5 Nights in Beijing - Day 5 (Great Wall, Emperors Burial Grounds, Hooters?)

[6:45] -_- early in the morning.
We had to get up early because we decided to take a tour to the burial grounds of the emperors and with the main event the Great Wall total price 300 yuan each. As a bonus we would visit a Jade Factory and a Silk Factory although these two seemed more like additional forced sponsored visits. In the hope we would buy some things. Not sure what the deal here was, maybe a sponsor deal for the trip or something. They were kind enough to show us how things were made and how to tell the real and the fake jade apart. This did make it interesting enough to not smell the commercial aspect right away. As for the burial grounds I personally thought it did not show many interesting things. What I can say is that the scenery was beautiful and the guide was very nice explaining all the different artifacts found. The group that we were with were all nice people which was a big plus. I talked for a long time to a woman from Australia about her travelings and her country. It was quite a nice chat and I got some insight of life in Australia. (future visit?)

After the burials grounds we headed to the main even of the tour The Great Wall!
We took a cart ride up to the mountain. I'm not to sorrow to walk, but the tour only had limited amount of time so the suggestion was made to take the cart. So we did, this turned out to be quite nice actually. Once on top, we climbed the wall. The scenery is breath taking! The hills, the wall and seeing it endlessly going on, it is truly amazing. On the wall there are many tourist, but with some good timing you can take some incredible picture like the one I show here.


I had a beautiful experience here and will remember this sight for the rest of my life. I would recommend anyone that is willing to travel to Beijing to have a look. It's a must! Once down again we bought some T-shirts saying "I climbed the Great wall". Stefan bought his first for 40 yuan, after that I bought mine for 20 Yuan and Frank later on even got it down to 10, but already bought one with me for 20. We got some great insight in the prices on tourist items.

At the end of the tour we went back to the hotel, we seen this advertisement on a free map of Beijing that was given by the hotel. It was an advertisement for the Chinese Hooters. I explained to Frank and Stefan the concept of Hooters in the US and I suggested we should go and check out them Chinese Hooters. Without any objection we got in another taxi and headed towards hooters.
At this point I should point out that the taxi cost about 2 Yuan per km which is about 0,23 euro cents per km. So it's quite a nice alternative if your not familiar with the bus route. At Hooters we had a girl which went by the name of Emma serving us food, she brought a friend to have a chat with us. Suggested we should go to some club nearby and wait for them there after work. We tried to find the club to check it out, but failed. Maybe for the better because we had to leave the hotel at 05:00 the next morning to take a plain to the city of Xi'an. The city were we will have our internship for 100 working days. Although we didn't have enough time to explore the night life of Beijing, we visited a lot culture things and I think we will all remember the amazing scenery and bad traffic, haha. Good bye Beijing, see you in 5 months!

5 Nights in Beijing - Day 4 (Tiananmen Square, Summer Palace, Olympic Stadium)

I'm feeling a lot better today! Still a little stress on the stomach, but not enough to keep me down. Since we staid in the hotel yesterday it was time for some catching up on our Beijing experience. So we made a small plan on where to go and what to see using our remaining time efficient as possible. After breakfast we headed out and started walking south towards Tiananmen Square. The weather was again beautiful with temperatures around 30 degrees (86F), not a cloud in the sky. Arrival at Tiananmen Square first thing we saw was the face of Mao, time to take a quick picture and move on.

The square on its own was not very interesting apart from its gigantic size, however the sculptures surrounding the square representing the founding of the People Republic of China showed a lot history. We headed south and walked through a shopping street after a quick check at a New Balance shoe store which was heavily overpriced it was time to move on. We got a taxi and tried to explain that we wanted to go to the summer palace. He understood what we meant and after a 30 minute drive we arrived at the summer palace which was located in the north-east corner of Beijing. The summer palace as the name might indicate was a palace used by the emperor and the empress during the summer to cool off during the summer. I must say, the emperor had quite a nice location to have his summer palace here. We climbed up to the highest point and took a few pictures and videos of the scenery, truly stunning!


After the Summer Palace we grabbed another taxi, this time heading towards the Olympic Stadium on arrival the line for tickets to have a peek inside the stadium got closed. Bummer just a few minutes late, so we walked around a bit and noticed we could have a look at the Olympic swimming pool. So we did, unfortunate the Olympic swimming pool was closed due to some water show. In the same building there was also a recreational section with some slides that take you in a loop truly amazing, would love to try it sometime. Who knows, we might try this on our way back in 5 months.

After this great sightseeing tour we thought it would be nice to have a drink and eat at one of the bar areas around Beijing. According to our hotel we should head a little bit north of the forbidding city. So we did and we arrived at a lake in the middle of the city where lights were shining all around the lake. We walked around a bit until we passed some restaurants. Here we had dinner, we certainly paid much more than at the previous restaurant, but the food was quite nice. Walking around the lake we were offered drinks and girls that we would have to pay to come drink with us. We took most of the free drinks and left the bar area in a "happy" state. Don't ask me how but for some reason we took the risk to sit with 3 people on a 2 person rickshaw (tuk-tuk) this certainly created a fun situation and we laughed all the way until the hotel. The next morning we would need to get up early to join a tour which we signed up for.

5 Nights in Beijing - Day 3 (Sick)

Argg....

Not sure what is going on, I'm not feeling well....
Stomach problems, must be the difference in food or drinks or something.
After some quick check on the internet it turned out to be quite common that the transition of region causes stomach problems, but this shouldn't last more than a few days. Great the rest of my Beijing experience being ruined by this?
I doubt it since I usually recover within a day. We'll see what happens tomorrow.
Slept all day, staid close to the bathroom at all times. Frank and Stefan decided to stay at the hotel as well. They were not feeling super great and still felt a bit of the jet-lag. At the end of the day they brought me some western looking food, which tasted great! Went to sleep again hopefully feeling better the next morning.

5 Nights in Beijing - Day 2 (Forbidden City)

I slept great last night! I had to share my bed with Frank this did not turn out to be a problem. Although he did complain I kept taking all the cover, haha.
Today turned out to be a sunny day, 30 degrees Celsius (86F). We decided to spend our day at the forbidden city since it was close by and one of the main sights of Beijing.

Nice walk in the beautiful weather with Chinese tourist everywhere, who happened all to be amazed with Stefan's height. Stefan is quite tall 205cm (6'7 feet) so he really stood out compared to the average Chinese 171 cm(5'7 feet). From time to time we noticed pictures were being take of us. We just smiled and waved, which caused happy and laughing faces. We entered the Forbidden City from the South Gate which on its own is enormous.


We took an audio guide and decided I should listen to the guide and pass the information to Frank and Stefan. We learned about what the city was used for and that the forbidden city has a total of nine thousand, nine hundred and ninety nine rooms. Chinese historical culture says that heaven has ten thousands rooms, the emperor had one less to show he wanted to show his importance was next in line right after heaven.
In the forbidden city we walked around for several hours visiting almost every region of the city. From the emperor throne to the different houses the emperors and empresses chose to life in.
The main events like the throne were flooded by people trying to take pictures. Fortunate with our height it is quite easy to get a good shot.
At one point there seemed to be some panic at one of the gates we tried to pass through. After we passed the gate it got closed and we were locked in to one of the courts. Some security guards came and started forcing people to move away from the main highlights of the city.
We all basically got locked in the court and decided to sit and wait in the shade to see what happens. It turned out that there was a representative of an African nation visiting the Forbidden City, so everyone had to make way. The whole event took about 25 minutes before we were allowed to move on again. Overall the city was quite beautiful and extremely big!

When we left the city a few different sellers tried to sell us Rolex watches and Chinese statues. Quite a bargain but not something we were really interested in at that time. We went back to the hotel to relax a bit. That night we headed a bit east of the hotel and found a great restaurant where we had great food and a few beers all for a total of 15 euros. This was truly a shock for us, great food, a nice looking restaurant and beers (600mL per bottle) included and that for such a price. There is no way you would find something like this for the same price in The Netherlands. Happy and satisfied we went back to the hotel for a good night of sleep.

5 Nights in Beijing - Day 1 (Arrival)

[12:40] Arrival at Beijing after a 10 hour flight.
I slept little on the plane, but with some movies provided by the in-flight entertainment it was quite durable. Although for the first 15 minutes I was afraid all movies were Chinese dubbed. It later turned out I just had to switch the channel.
Anyhow, we finally arrived and we decided we should just head to the hotel we booked. Stefan had made reservation at a hotel close to the old city and had printed the address in Chinese. Since we were not to sure on which bus to take and being a bit tired we decided to take a taxi to take us to the hotel. We got in line for the taxis and were appointed to a small fan which was old and crooked but did the job. The drive would take around 45 minutes and cost 480 yuan for 3 people. This is about 50 euros in total. Of course this later turned out to be quite the rip-off, but hey, first time in China not sure what the prices were. From our point of view this was still relatively cheap compared to back home.

During our ride to the hotel we got a quick introduction to the Chinese traffic rules, which basically state:
- use the clutch at all time
- on a 3 way lane drive with at least 4 cars next to each other
- the safety lane can be used to speed along the traffic
- use your big light when the person in front of you is not moving fast enough to your liking.
In other words complete chaos!
I personally thought it was quite a miracle we didn't get in any accidents, but it seemed we had a driver familiar with all these rules so we went amazingly fast.

We arrived at The Emperor Hotel, located just east from the Forbidden City. This is where we would stay during our 5 nights in Beijing.
During the wait for our check-in we all got a cup of tea and a wet hot rug to wash our hands and face. Quite nice after such a trip.
Taken to our rooms we were quite amazed with the style used in the rooms. The design really stood out especially the placement of the shower. This design inevitably caused this picture to be taken by Stefan.


After a quick shower we decided to explore the surrounding area. Walking up north, we started to understand that this place was not just a tourist place for internationals but also for the Chinese. Trust me there were a lot of them! After a nice walk we got a bit hungry and decided to just pick a restaurant and check it out.
Frank noticed one on our way he said it looked pretty decent. So we had a check and encountered a few internationals. We sat down and had a look at the menu.
I wanted to order something traditional, to get in the Chinese spirit.
I ordered a portion of dumpling, of course chopsticks were provided and we agreed to force ourself to learn to eat with it.
During dinner we heard the other internationals speak in Dutch, so we thought saying "hello" wouldn't be a bad idea. It turned out that they were students from the same city as us, Delft. I thought this was quite funny to meet people from the same city within 6 hours in an unfamiliar country and that just by chance. After dinner we headed back to our hotel. I had quite a jetlag from flying through 13 time zones within 48 hours so I went to bed at 20:00. To wake up the next morning feeling greatly refreshed.

26 hours

*Yawn*
Bit tired, but well entertained on the nearly 9 hour flight. I was seated above the left engine which provided a constant vibration. This didn’t help me to catch sleep so I’m feeling a bit tired. Luckily these days a great alternative to sleep is in place, the in-flight entertainment system.

With a selection of a few different movies I killed the time and arrived safely in The Netherlands. Upon arrival my dad and the Uncles were waiting for me.
I was very happy seeing them again and after a cup of coffee we headed towards a city called Leiden. In Leiden we would meet up with a few close relatives and friends for dinner. Here I could share my stories and have a pre-celebration of my 22nd birthday which would take place the next day. I had a good rest that night.

AUG 24

This day will be remembered as “The chill rush to China celebration!”
What an exciting day indeed, trust me I've had quite some memories about my birthdays, but this one I will not forget for any time soon.

Let’s start with the chill part, 10:00 nice breakfast with my uncle, eggs and juice, no rush. With my bags almost packed everything seemed to be going quite smooth. Frank (same year aeronautical student) arrived who would join me and my uncle for the ride to the city of Antwerp in Belgium. From Antwerpen we would take at 16:30 the Thalys (high speed train) to Schiphol Amsterdam. The drive would approximately take around an hour or so according to my uncle.
With our bags all packed we drove off at 14:45. After a 45 minute drive (15:30) we approached the Belgium boarder and decided to have a small snack at a road restaurant. We had a late brunch and were quite hungry and it would only take 15 more minutes to Antwerpen or so we thought...

After the small break we turned on the GPS system and the display showed 40 minutes with an arrival time of 16:25!!
We jumped in the car and my uncle started speeding (140 km/87 miles and hour) while I tried to keep my calm and just focus on what had to be done the moment we arrived at the station. Frank was just chilling in the back, hoping it would all turn out well. Arrival at Antwerpen 20 minutes left, we still had to drive through the city. We ran in to construction work ended up on the bus track and did something which are probably not allowed. We were about a block from the station away with no option to get any closer. 10 minutes left Frank suggested we should stop and just run to the station, I quickly checked the GPS and it seems at that exact moment we were only one long street away from the Station. My uncle pulled the car over, Frank and I got out grabbed all our bags and started running. Around 6~7 kilogram on my back and a 20 kilogram in the hand. I cursed myself for wearing flip flops at this point.
As fast as we could we got to the station with 7 minutes left until train departure. I saw a ticket window and kindly asked some girls to let us pass, by the look on our faces and with the bags in hand they understood the situation and stepped aside.
Sadly for us it was the wrong ticket window! Thalys tickets were sold at the entrance of the station. We rushed to the entrance of the station where Stefan (same year aeronautical student) was waiting on us with his Thalys ticket already in hand and pointed us to the ticket window. He already went ahead towards the railroad. Stefan's aunt was waiting for us in line on our arrival she was next in line.
Thank god she stood there because the line was very long and we could not waste another minute! 5 minutes left, we put some pressure on the employee to start printing some tickets, he said we were lucky my other uncle, who I have to point out as one of the most excellent travel agents, already registered our names for the Thalys. This made the ticket printing an easy job and it was done in a few minutes. After the printing he told us we are very lucky because the train had a delay of 5 minutes! So it would leave at 16:35. Which gave us 4 minutes to run to the correct railroad. Problem was we still had to run 5 stores underground with bags and all. With our tickets in hands we weren't about to give up and with a few crazy quick sprints down the escalators we managed to get to the right platform, where Stefan was waiting for us with good news. We made it!

YES!
What a relieve, my heart was pounding like mad and my legs were shaking, but the news that we actually made it brought great joy.
The train arrived, we said goodbye to Stefan's family and boarded the train.
Which took us within an hour to Schiphol Airport.

At Schiphol I first found my dad waiting for me. He brought a present and a card with Chinese characters written on it. The present was a small book with Dutch-Chinese translations this could help me during my stay in China. Later on Frank's family and my uncles arrived. We all had diner together.

It was time for Frank, Stefan and me to head towards the gate. Up on arrival at the gate I noticed the increasing amount of Chinese people there was no place to sit so we stood around waiting until boarding would start. Calls were made for parents with infants and disabled people. During that time all the Chinese seemed to wake up and got in one big line. As soon as the doors opened for normal boarding they just marched in.
I was stunned!
I told Stefan and Frank to wait getting in line until everyone else has passed. Our tickets had our seat numbers printed on them so there was no use joining the madness I just witnessed. I would like to remind you that a mere 26 hours ago I got of a Delta flight from the US where boarding is done in sections. Starting with the passengers at the back slowly moving to the front of the plane. Which makes boarding efficient and pleasant.
So what I witnessed just now was a bit shocking and strange. It was like people were afraid the plane might be full if they didn't hurry up. Walking through the plane it was a bit of chaos, people all over the plane were still putting their stuff up and a few people were walking back and forward through the isles.

Our seats were all the way in the back at last row. I got to my seat and found a Chinese woman sitting in my seat. She moved back to her own seat which was located 3 row to the front. I'm not sure what she was hoping for. Once I settled down I noticed the space was a bit limited but enough to remain comfortable during the flight.
20:55 The plane took off, destination Beijing (Peking)!
Estimated flight time: 10 hours and 20 minutes

Goodbye America!

Two months have passed and its time to move on with my seven month journey. My stayin sweet home Alabama with my beloved mom, brother and sister has come to an end and even though over the years I have learned to part with them it still remains an unpleasant event. Just before we went up to the airport we took some family pictures and they turned out great! Im very happy we made these.

13:30 [GMT 5:00]
After saying goodbye I got on the plane which took me to Atlanta. The flight to Atlanta is a short one hour flight with a great view on the country side of the states. It sets my mind off of things and is a good preparation for the longer flights ahead of me.

15:40 [GMT 4:00]
After a pleasant flight it was time to wait for a total of 8 hours, before I could continue with my flight to the Netherlands. So what do you on an airport for 8 hours? I usually start killing time by just walking, try and avoid using the metro/train which takes you from terminal to terminal and use your legs just to get some movement. Another good reason for walking is the limited space Ill have once Im on the airplane and with plenty of time on my side there was no reason to rush. After walking around for 40 minutes, it was time to get some food. Enough places where I could eat, took the easy way out and went to the Food Court, grabbed a McChicken and a Dr. Pepper. Fortunate for me free Wifi was available around the food court, downside, none of the connections seemed to work. Thiswas quite a pinch since I still had a little less than 7 hours to burn. Luckily a friendly employee who was walking by was so nice to pass me a password to a secured fast connection. With my laptop connected to the internet and the power cable plugged in time was flying. Starbucks Coffee in between kept me up and going and before I knew it my flight was announced. 23:50

[GMT 4:00]
The long wait was finally over, it was time to board. Next stop Amsterdam!