China, Part One: Return to Beijing

August 1-5, 2006: After packing all of this baby gear* (along with our own meager allowance of clothing): into two suitcases not over 44 pounds each, we were off to China. I was eagerly anticipating my return to Beijing after a ten year absence. Still, with the help of some tylenol pm, I managed to sleep for most of the flight. I had been warned by friends that the city was not the same and that I would not recognize anything, and they were right. The airport expressway that used to end at the fourth ring road delivered us right into the Dongcheng district and our hotel, the PolyPlaza. So much had changed I almost did not realize I was standing across the street from the Swissotel, where I had a gym membership ten years ago! Although our Great Wall guide met us at the airport and got us to the hotel when we finally arrived in Beijing the morning of the 3d, we had planned on sightseeing on our own on the 4th. Enough of my Chinese had returned so that I was able to order us some dinner the evening of the 3d... I even remembered how to order one of my old favorites, yuxiangrousi. On the 4th, we fought off jetlag and visited the Summer Palace. It's always been one of my favorite sight-seeing destinations in Beijing, and I had to show James the infamous marble boat commissioned by the Empress Dowager. He did not believe me when I told him it was carved from marble and intended to float (it didn't), but here is is: The Summer Palace used to be far from the city limits, but now Beijing is quickly encroaching on this old suburb. It's amazing how fast the city is growing! After the Summer Palace we went to Liulichang for "antiques", and then walked through some hutongs to Qianmen. All the old shops and buildings are being torn down, and what used to be a jumble of street stalls and shops is now a construction site. It was sad to see so much of old Beijing under the wrecking ball, but some change is good. Wangfuqing is much more fun now that the crowded shopping street has been turned into a pedestrian mall with upscale shops and sidewalk cafes. We wandered around there after enjoying Peking duck, the local specialty. On the 5th, we met up with two other Great Wall families for the tour of the Forbidden City and the Great Wall. Here are a couple of pictures: As you can see from the photos, the weather the whole time in Beijing was hazy. A combination of pollution, a recent sandstorm, and the side effects of a typhoon. The pollution was bad enough that our clothes smelled after being outside... much worse than ten years ago! Beijing is well on its way to preparing for the Olympics. I noticed a huge improvement in the cab drivers, who no longer haggle over whether they will drive you and for how much. That was a welcome change, since I am no longer a "local," though it used to be fun to surprise the cab drivers by telling them which way to go! Bright and early Sunday morning, we gathered in the hotel lobby to head to the airport. Our guide was stressing out because the van driver did not show, so we moved out in a couple of cabs instead. At the airport, we met the phenomenal Grace, our guide for the Guangxi portion of the trip, and then it was off to Nanning for the real purpose of our trip... *A separate post on tips for other A-parents on what to take and what not to take will be forthcoming.