Oct. 2- The Mongolian Air flight was a success- we landed in one piece in Beijing. We then headed straight for the Red House Hotel, which we had reserved beforehand. We went out for Sichuan food, per Jerry's recommendation. We had the fish in spicy oil bowl, and it was awesome! It took 3 waitresses to get our order straight because they couldn't believe we wanted as much food as we ordered. Truth be told, they were right. But between the inexpensive prices and metric system, we really didn't know how much we ordered, and we didn't care. Jason picked our meal from the tank in back, and a few minutes later, it was cut up & floating in a boiling bowl of hot chili oil. After getting lost out back of the building, we found our way to our local shop for 3 waters & 4 Tsingtao for $3, we were off to our room early.
Oct. 3- Up & out in a taxi to Panjiayuan antique market even though it's Monday and the weekend is best there. Half of the shops were closed, but we still saw some good stuff & bought things as well. Next shopping stop- the Xiushui Silk Market. This place is like Yashow with all the clothing & scarves a person could want. We got lots of goodies for the folks at home (and a bit for ourselves of course), and finished by buying a big suitcase to take it all home in- for a whopping $17.
<<As in some other countries we've been in this year, bargaining is not just common, it's practically a law. In China, it is more prevalent than ever. It is standard to offer less than 20% of what the salesperson asks for. After they whine about how you're killing them, you're such a shrewd businessperson, that offer is waaaaaaaaaaay too low, you then start walking away. This goes on for about 5-15 minutes, depending on how patient & polite you are. Needless to say, after almost 7 months of travel & buying souvenirs, Jason ended up a bit on the not-so-patient side. With JJ playing good cop, she & bad cop were in & out in record time, with a load of goods to show for it.
After a taxi home & freshening up, we had big double meat burgers at the pub next door. We wanted to go to a hip cool bar Jerry recommended, but the old & lazy thing kicked in and we settled for Internet & our warm hotel room.
Oct. 4- Up late and hit the computer room for some photo admin, then ate yummy dumplings for practically nothing at Yashow Market, and we still found a way to get ripped off for a few cents. We spent the rest of the afternoon in the Ho Hai area, stopping at the drum & bell towers...famous for...the big drums & bell respectively. The drum tower (originally built in the 1200s, burned down & rebuilt several times) is where in the old days- pre-Timex- that the drums would be beaten to tell the locals what time it was (on the hour). The bell tower (same history, currently dating to the 1700s) holds the nation's biggest bell, weighing in at a hefty 63 tons! Both had great views of the surrounding hutongs.
We left the towers and hit the hutongs, stopping at a local restaurant for some Tsingtao while we watched the day go by. After paying 40 cents apiece for two 630ml Tsingtao, we hit a trendy restaurant and ordered 330ml Tsingtao for $3 apiece! What a difference a few blocks makes....sounds like Houston!
The touts here are amazing. But once you sit in their restaurant, often you can't find anyone to serve you. That's because they're all out in the street touting for more customers! We stayed awhile in the Ho Hai district.
Before going home, we made it a point to go into one of the standard Chinese bars with the cheesy band of one or two singers, keyboards, & an acoustic guitar. They typically sing Chinese & English language music classics, like Hey Jude, which is what our new friend requested for Jason. With the sore throat & exhaustion, Jason didn't do so well. But the good news is no one knew him! This new friend of J3 brought his two other friends over to our table and we had a nice time chatting. Of course, not much was understood on either side, but it was fun trying. The oddest part was the main kid showed us his calorie/carb chart from his job at McDonald's (they are all in college too) and his friend kept saying the McDonald's catch-phrase "I'm Loving It!" WEIRD. Over the next hour, he fell in love with JJ, Jason's beard, and two other girls at the bar respectively.
By the end of the day, Jason had made some headway in the rummy game, but with one day left, 25o points wasn't nearly enough- JJ was still up over 600.
Oct. 5- Had to sleep in a bit due to the Tsingtao's & that pack of Marlboro's J3 inhaled at those bars last night. We had our last cup of tea while packing for the last time on foreign soil (at least for a while ). Took a leisurely stroll to Yashow to score some more dumplings & do more last minute shopping. Although we had the purchase price almost worked out, we apparently chose the busiest time of the week to eat. Jason stood waiting patiently for about 25 minutes at the dumpling stand, looking like Shaq towering above all the 5 foot somethings around him. Height was not an asset, especially when those little old ladies start yapping about their slow orders! Jason decided to just stay out of the fracas & wait...
We finally scored a plate of 15 and they were great, as usual. Then we proceeded to play hardball for more souvenirs (JJ= good cop, JB= bad cop) & tried to buy some small, portable speakers for the ipod (thanks friends!) but those folks wouldn't budge. We then had our last massage at Bhodi, and said goodbye to one of our favorite massage places ever before heading off to the airport.
First & lasting impressions of Beijing-
1. Smog. Worst since Bangkok, and it's a tie.
2. Hacking & spitting- could be the smog & the cigarettes, but whatever the reason, it's done by old & young, male & female. Watch where you step!
3. Clash of old & new- 3 wheeled carts, powered by people or horses next to brand new luxury cars.
4. Last but not least, HECTIC. In line at a store, on a bus, in the street, in a restaurant, EVERYONE moves & talks like they are late & life is over if they don't get where they're going first. It can almost make you crazy if you let it, but remembering that they are a country that holds more than 1/4 of the world's population helps cut them some slack.
Zaijian (goodbye) China, hello America!....Wow, we haven't said that in almost 5 months!
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