We spent two weeks in Beijing. The day after our arrival, we visited Chao Yang Park (Sun Park) and rented a duck boat. Though it was quite slow, we had a blast maneuvering it around the lake. At the park, we discovered a place that Logan and Lizzy were eager to check out. It was an outdoor ropes course, but the heat made it uncomfortable to stay outside for long, so we opted for an indoor location instead. It turned out to be even more enjoyable than the outdoor ropes course because we could play with other kids, some of whom spoke a little English! The indoor venue featured a ball pit, rope swing, slides, a ropes course, rock climbing, cave exploration, an obstacle course, live human whack-a-mole, and VR experiences. We particularly loved the ropes course, and at the end, we received candy—a special pixie stick that allowed us to fill it with our chosen flavors. We also went rock climbing in the middle of a mall. Additionally, we hiked the Great Wall, but we did more waiting than actual hiking. We took the cable car up since our grandma joined us. It was enjoyable but quite tiring, and we suggest visiting when it's less crowded. Our two favorite meals in Beijing were at a hot pot restaurant called Haidilao and the famous Peking duck. To enjoy Peking duck, you create your own rolls by adding cucumbers, onions, sauce, and then the duck onto a pancake, somewhat like making a taco. One evening after dinner, we strolled along the Liang Ma River. Logan even grew some sprouts in our hotel room, which thrived while we were there. On the morning of our departure, Logan had his sprouts for breakfast. We found Beijing to be a lot of fun and are sad to leave China, but we're off to Japan!
A few weeks back, I visited Hangzhou for a job fair. Although I didn't secure a job, I met a Chinese guy named Min Jie. We spent some time together in the West Lake area, which was enjoyable, but I doubt we'll be traveling together again anytime soon.
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A highly soggy mountain and an extremely busy panda sanctuary.
I recently had the amazing chance to visit the Great Mosque in Xi'an, China. It was genuinely an unforgettable cultural experience. Situated in the vibrant Muslim Quarter of Xi'an's downtown area, this mosque is among the oldest and largest in the country.
I'm still trying out my knee, so I visited Zhou "garden" (which isn't really a garden) and Wenfeng pagoda. It was impressive but tough for me to climb.
I was initially planning to stay in Nanjing and gain some weight, but I figured I should take advantage of my five days off. Since no one would help me transport my belongings to my new school until after the holiday, I decided to book a train to Chongqing. Then, in a stroke of brilliance, I thought I should probably arrange my return train to Nanjing. The management wants to send my things on February 5, but can you believe every train is fully booked for that day? So, I ended up booking a train for February 7, arriving in Nanjing on February 8. If they have an issue with it, they can just deal with it, I suppose. This meant I had to hurry and pack everything since I had no idea what the cleaning crew would do on February 5. I informed my boss that the bags were packed in my room, except for some laundry I did on the day I left (another mistake). I still haven't heard back from her about that.
One thing that surprised me about Chengdu was how similar it felt to Beijing and other major Chinese cities we had explored. While we experienced some interesting nightlife spots, the city overall seemed quite generic. I initially thought this might be due to my limited Western viewpoint, but Mei Ling concurred that Chengdu didn't truly embody Sichuanese culture. We resolved to venture beyond the city borders during our remaining days in Chengdu.
We spent two weeks in Beijing. The day after our arrival, we visited Chao Yang Park (Sun Park) and rented a duck boat. It was quite slow, but we enjoyed navigating it around the lake.