During our night time flight out of Phuket, the five of us slept soundly for the next 5.5 hours, as we recharged for the next part of our Asia trip. Our travels took place during the end of March of 2019, with the first destination as Thailand and the second being China.
Here is the travel squad - together we ventured half way across the world 🌎 Pictured from left to right: Subhan, Ali, me, Danny and Rita.
The start of our trip began with the recovery of Rita's belongings that she had forgotten at the security check point in Beijing during the beginning of the trip. We located the lost and found center, where they brought out a laptop that was not Rita's. A glimmer of panic sunk in as the front desk clerk showed her the valuable. He went to the back room and grabbed another bag, where her items were actually contained.
The hotel:
We stayed at The Great Wall Hotel Beijing, formerly a Sheraton hotel, located in a central area of the capital with close access to public transportation. The hotel included an indoor pool and a bakery located in the lobby, which made for a great grab and go to begin our days.
The staff members were dressed identically, in red and black formal attire. The women had their hair pulled back in a perfect bun, while the men were all clean shaven. There was always a doorman who stood outside to welcome you, even with the brisk wind present.
The Itinerary
We spent our three days in Beijing exploring the historic landmarks. As a word of advice - if you are traveling here during March, it is very cold. Make sure and pack accordingly! It was definitely hard to adjust from extremely hot temperature in Thailand to frigid weather in Beijing.
Tiananmen Square
We left our hotel and made our way towards the subway station. In order to get inside, there was a single file line leading up to a security checkpoint. As I observed my surroundings, I couldn't help noticing how pristinely clean it was. I definitely wouldn't mind if the Bart stations in San Francisco practiced hygiene like this 😉. For safety precaution, there was also a glass barrier between the platform and train tracks.
Everyone on the metro was dressed stylishly, with their heads down staring at their palm sized screens. Once we arrived to our stop, we exited and headed towards Tiananmen Square. There was another stopping point with government officials checking you through the entrance.
We trekked along Tiananmen Square, but felt like we weren't getting as much out of the experience as we would have liked too. We observed the monuments without much knowledge as to what we were witnessing, so we pulled out our phones and googled the history.
The cold weather was taking some getting used too!
The Forbidden City
The next stopping point was The Forbidden City, located right behind Tiananmen Square. As we entered through the wall, there were security men dressed identically, standing silently on duty.
We truly had entered a city of its own. Large groups gathered around their tour guides, who spoke in Chinese. In the blink of an eye, a woman who we learned to be named Jasmine, appeared by our side and spoke in English, offering to take us on a guided tour. After experiencing Tiananmen Square without guidance, we decided it was worth investing in.
Jasmine explained the history of the palace, which included stories of the emperors and their rulings. We walked through the city in awe of the unique structures and tales being told.
As we neared the end, we arrived to the top of the Forbidden City, which overlooked the palace and the unique rooftops down below.
Jasmine tried taking us into a tea store to purchase souvenirs, but we would be doing a tea delicacy the following day. She then offered to help us get tickets for an acrobatic show that evening, where tickets were sold out as it was taking place in a matter of hours. She made several phone calls and reserved our spots. We would be meeting with her later in the evening to pick up the tickets and enter the theater.
We were a few minutes late to the show, so when we arrived, the acrobats were in action in front of a full house. Every seat in the audience was taken. However, Jasmine made her way over to several men seated towards the front and whispered a few exchanges. They immediately rushed out of their seats, and she gestured for the 5 of us to get seated. I don't know how she pulled that off, but she really worked her magic here ✨.
The Dinner
Following the show, we were starving and ready for dinner. We had been recommended a duck restaurant, so we ordered a cab to where we thought it was. However, with everything written in Chinese, we struggled to find the spot and walked around hopelessly in the coldest weather I have ever experienced 🥶. A group of local teenage boys tried to help us, but there was a strong language barrier. They escorted us to a strip with several other restaurants, where we befriended a European family who recommended a hot pot place to eat. I decided to venture off and find another restaurant, where I had myself a tasty cashew chicken and rice dish. Afterwards, the group went to the hot pot location, where they dipped their meats and veggies in a boiling water stew.
The Great Wall of China Tour
We begun our day bright and early, as we boarded a bus that would be taking us on a tour to one of the 7 wonders of the world. We were a few minutes late to arrive, and our tour guide named Alice wasn't shy to call us out for it 😅. We made several stops to nearby hotels to pick up the rest of the group.
The Textile Factory
The first stop of the tour included a visit to a textile factory, where Chinese crafts were made of glass and hand designed artistry.
We had another tour guide inside to walk us through the different stages of how the crafts were made, beginning with the pottery and outline design of the vase.
Next, we saw how the vases were painted and polished by hand. At the end, there was a shop full of beautiful pieces that represented the Chinese culture. We all made our purchases and headed back to the bus.
The Great Wall
Alice explained that we were free to explore for 2 hours. We started with a gondola ride to get us to higher elevation, where the surrounding mountains were barren and rigid. We stood for a moment, soaking in the fact that we were half way across the world and actually walking on The Great Wall of China! 🤩
The Great Wall stretches for more than one could ever walk, so we explored only about 2 miles of it. So much history was present, as each stone in the wall was crafted together by soldiers and convicts.
To make our way back down the wall, we took a toboggan, which is similar to a bobsled. I highly recommend doing this, as we had a great time. Be careful not to bump into the person in front of you!
We met the rest of our group right where Alice had left us. She then escorted us to a Chinese restaurant, where we sat together at a round table. We were served soup, rice, noodles, and an assortment of flavorful chicken and shrimp.
The Tea Tasting
After a delicious lunch and incredible time exploring, we headed back onto the bus for the last stop of the day tour. We arrived to a tea shop, where we also got to experience a tasting. There was a petite, middle aged woman who sat at the head of the table. She explained the flavors and origin of each tea we tasted ☕️.
We purchased several teas to bring back home to our families and headed back to the bus, where several of us fell asleep after such an exciting day.
Evening in Beijing
We freshened up and relaxed when we arrived back to our hotel. While sitting in the lobby, we befriended an older woman, who seemed to take a liking to us knowing that we were Californians. Although there was a language barrier, she was quite friendly. We then spoke to the concierge for a restaurant recommendation, as we wanted a traditional Chinese dinner for our last night. He wrote down the name of the restaurant for us on a small post it note, outlining the name in Chinese. We took a photo on Google translate, where it led us to the spot. Google was our best friend in China, as it helped us navigate the land and communicate with the locals.
The food was so tasty! 🥡🥢We ordered dumplings, schezwan beef, chicken, shrimp, noodles, rice, and soup. It was the best meal we had during our time here (I'm sorry that I never got the name of the place!) Next, we ordered a cab to take us downtown to explore the night life.
There were many designer stores and bars on this strip. We stopped at a local Starbucks to grab a hot chocolate, as it would help warm us up while we walked in the cold. When we saw all that we wanted, we flagged down a cab driver, who turned out to be a bit rude to us unfortunately. Be aware of your surroundings always, especially in a foreign country. We made it back to the hotel, where we all slept safe and soundly, dreaming of the adventures we had that eventful day.
Temple of Heaven
Our last day in Beijing was spent seeing the Temple of Heaven, which is a complex of religious buildings. The emperors would come here to pray for good harvest and held various religious ceremonies.We walked around with a feeling of sadness, knowing that this was the last stop of our Asia trip before heading to the airport 🥺.
We made our way back to the hotel to check out and board our taxis. I hadn't sensed the pollution until that car ride to the airport, so I pulled out the mask I had packed with me as I looked out the window. I bid farewell to Beijing and reflected on my time spent here, exploring a completely new culture with my best friends beside me.