Saturday, August 12, 2006

Today was our first full day in Beijing. After we met the two other families in our group we all boarded our bus and headed off for the day. The first part of our day was spent at the Temple of Heaven-incredible! And as beautiful as it was, we were all anxious to get back to our air conditioned bus as it was VERY humid today!

We stopped for lunch at a wonderful restaurant which had many performers throughout out meal. One of the pretty dancers asked Connor to come on stage and dance with her. With his face beat red, he quickly declined but we all enjoyed the rest of the show and the food. After lunch we visited the Lama Temple and saw some very beautiful and LARGE Buddhas, including the smiling Buddha.

The highlight of today, however, was our Hu Tong tour. We rode rickshaws through the old preserved areas of Beijing. We were invited into the home of a local man who offered us some snacks (which were unidentifiable, but fairly tasty). Our kids were so tired we barely got through dinner without them falling asleep. It took about 30 seconds for Spencer and Connor to fall asleep after their heads hit the pillow. It was a tiring day, but a fun one! Only 2 more days...