Rainy, cold, but memorable day

Radisson Hotel Beijing, China




Today we had a buffet breakfast at the hotel. We got to meet the rest of our travel group, as the majority of the others arrived much later than us yesterday. We then boarded buses to Tiannamen Square & the Forbidden City. As we left, the sky was pretty smoggy. Just as we got off the bus, it started to rain. Well, it turned out there was more than just smog in the sky. Within a short time, the sky turned scary dark along with a lot of thunder. Let me mention, once you start walking through the Forbidden City, it's a 2-1/2 tour and there's no turning back. Most of us were expecting a warm day and dressed in pants/shorts and short sleve, and no jackets. It got very cold and very windy! We all ended up buying unbrellas and ponchos (which were pretty much a once us item as far as quality). My shoes were soaking wet, along with my hair. BBBRRRRR! I'd say the majority of what I saw on the tour was either the back of an umbrella or the cobblestone on the ground (trying to avoid stepping into a huge puddle). It was also very easy to accidently start following the wrong umbrella and not the one of our guide. At one point, we lost two people and had to get help from the police to locate them.




After that, we enjoyed an authentic Chinese lunch. I got a kick out of the sign that was on the bathroom stall. Hope that's not an indication of what normally happens after eating there! Then, off to the pearl market. We learned a lot about pearls, how to tell the authentic from the fake, and then had the opportunity to shop.

Next was the Summer Palace. We, along with a few others, decided to skip this part and stay on the bus. It was way too cold and windy!



Then we went to a silk factory. They had a quick instruction on how the silk worm grows and the process for producing the silk. Very interesting! Of course, more shopping there.


Finally, we enjoyed another Chinese meal of Beijing duck. By this time, we were all tired and cold and ready to return to the hotel. Oh how good it felt to take off my wet socks. My feet are still freezing! All in all, we had a great time and were able to laugh and have fun with the other families. Hopefully, tomorrow's weather will be nicer. We'll all be a littler better prepared.

ONLY 2 MORE DAYS UNTIL GOTCHA!! Unbelievable!

Braden & Holden...we love and miss you soooo much!!