Weekend in Beijing

So this past weekend we went to Beijing and it was AWESOME!!! There is so much stuff to tell about. We got there around 7 pm on friday and checked into our hostel which was very old world style. It had several levels and everything was so neat. Lauren has pictures of it that I have to get from her and then I will post them. It was just the four of us (me, Matt, Lauren, Erin) in our room. It was very clean. It was also very close to Tiananmen and the Forbidden City. From our hostel we went to eat at a western restaurant called Grandma's Kitchen. The food was fabulous. From there we walked around Tiananmen as it was closed by the time we were done eating and took pictures in front of Mao's picture (Lauren has those too). I had forgotten to take my camera at this time so the pictures from that night will get posted next time. After that we were all pretty tired and so just decided to go to bed so we could get up early to try and find tickets to the paralympics. We woke up the next day and went to meet the others from Shijiazhang. While we were waiting we went to Starbucks (oh so good) and this other place where they sold the greatest muffins I have ever tasted. The one I got was apple cinnamon and had real chunks of apples baked into it. They had ones like chocolate cheescake with real pieces of cheesecake and others that just looked so good. I wish I had gotten some to bring back. From there we went to where the bird's nest and the olympic green are and found some people selling tickets on the street. They wanted way too much money for them so we passed and so then tried to go get them from the bank of China. But they didnt have any tickets available for the days we wanted. So in the end we didnt end up getting to go to the paralympics which was a disappointment. We plan to go back after the olympics end so that we can go inside the bird's nest and on the olympic green as at that time it will all be open to the public. After that we went to silk street which is a market. We spent a really really long time there shopping and haggleing. It was pretty sweet. I ended up getting a bag, some shoes, some jeans, some earrings, a watch, and some sunglasses. It was a great time and I really want to go back again. From there we went to eat at a Mexican restaurant, yes Mexican. It was so great to have margaritas (strawberry frozen baby), and chips and salsa. Oh so good. The food was okay but the staff kept messing up our order and tried to charge us for things we didnt even eat or drink. In the end we got it figured out. After that we all went back to our hostels to shower and change for a night out on the town. We went to San Li Tun which is a street with a bunch of bars and clubs on it. We spent the whole night dancing and meeting new people. There were so many other foreigners from lots of different countries there and we had an awesome time. There were people from all over the world and paryting with them was super sweet. We got back to our hostel around five in the morning and all went to bed. The next day we went to 798 which is an art district in Beijing. Matt and I were still really tired so we just kinda sat around while the others walked around to look at galleries. At one point Matt and I layed down on these wooden benches. We were laying in the same positions just opposite one another and behind us was a sign that said living culture. We got our picture taken like six times. Some I think just thought we were sleeping and that it was funny. But not all the people who took our pictures were Chinese so I am kinda thinking that some thought we were some sort of art exhibit given the sign behind us and the way we were laying the same. On monday we tried to go to this western market to get Mac and Cheese along with cream cheese and some other western goodies. To our chagrin they were all sold out of mac and cheese :( and a few other items we were looking for, so here is hoping that next time they will be stocked up. Oh mac and cheese i never thought I would miss you so much :) Also,on monday we went to see the Temple of Heaven which is absolutely beautiful. There were so many people and we took so many pictures. There was one place called the Echo wall where it goes around and someone at one end is supposed to be able to hear a person at the other. We tried it but it didnt work (hence the picture of everyone frowning LOL). There were just too many people there for it to work well. After the Temple of Heaven we had to go back to our hostel and grab our stuff if we were going to make our train back to Handan. Oh I almost forgot. On Sunday night we tried to go to Wongfujing to try out these weird foods. Apparently there is this street that sells strange food on a stick like shark, starfish, scorpian, testicals, and the like. But it had just rained a little earlier and so everything was closed up by the time we got there. So we just ended up eating at McDonalds :(. All in all the trip was a great success and a super awesome experience. I met some great people some I will never want to forget, (you know who you are) ;) I can't wait to go back and have even more fun and see other things. We didn't have time to do all the stuff we wanted because there is just so much to do. Next time we want to go back and go through the forbidden city, see the Maoseleum, and visit the Summer Palace. We have plenty of holidays coming up so I am sure we will have the time. I wish my writing in these blogs could be witty and entertaining but I just dont want to leave anything out and I am sure that even with all this there is plenty I have forgotten. If I think of anything else I will add more later. To all those at home: I MISS YOU ALL. To all those in Beijing we met and saw: see you again soon. To everyone else: CHINA IS THE PLACE TO BE!!! (Pictures: Us at Tiananmen, Us all dressed up the night we went out, at the mexican restaurant with people from Shijiazhang, on the train, at the Temple of Heaven, at night on Wongfujing, at McDonalds, others that were not included were in front of Mao's picture and a few other places that I will put up next time)