B-B-Back in Beijing!

So we are back in Beijing – we had a bit of a concept shift trying to think of Beijing as home – but it does feel comfortable. Shanghai was nice but in the end we preferred Xi’an. We set out Thursday to find the Yuyuan Gardens, but all we found was a small park. However, we did find Shanghai Old Street, which turned out to be a shopping street that had been renovated to look like an old Quing dynasty street. It was narrow and very crowded and we felt very afraid of pickpockets. However, we found a department type store and bought some silk embroidery very cheaply. I also bought a second battery for my camera and a keychain. Later we took refuge in a Starbucks where the coffees cost us more than the silk embroidery! Later we had dinner at a very elegant Chinese-style French restaurant. Mostly, we have found Chinese-style western food a bit odd, but this was good. Afterwards, we walked the riverside one last time and I took some night shots of the Pudong skyline – very spectacular.

Friday morning, I went out to explore the neighbourhood immediately around the hotel. There was a golf shop and a men’s store. I also found a massage parlour and ended up having a foot and head massage and some kind of weird ear cleaning. The foot massage was 20 RMB (less than $3) – a bargain for sure; my feet felt great after about an hour of massage. Our flight boarded at 1:40 and we landed in Beijing at 4:00. We were back in the apartment by 5:00. The trip was 1150 kilometers and the airfare was about $100. We were amazed and encouraged by the ease and low cost of travel in China generally – really very few problems. We are hoping to travel to Hong Kong, Macau and Hainan at Christmas.

We both have things to do to get ready for the term, so today is a workday. I believe we can get back into the school today – they have been redoing the floors, so it has been closed during the break. We are supposed to be getting a turkey dinner from the school either today or tomorrow at lunch. We have also signed up for a turkey dinner at Paul’s Steak and Eggs, a local restaurant owned by a Cape Bretoner.
First Posted October 8, 2006