Day 25 & 26: Beijing

Steph and BHO here. We can't believe that our trip has gone by so fast. Also, we're currently drinking Minute Maid Orange Juice, and it tastes like Tang... plus pulp. Stephanie loves it and wonders how she will ever readjust back to Simply Orange Juice.

Anyways, our first two days have been fun. Yesterday, we went to Beihai Park and it was simply adorable. We rented a boat but Steph and I fell asleep in the back as Andrew drove the boat around the lake. Seeing the locals in their native setting and seeing them do their yoyo action/chinese calligraphy/taichi/dancing/ribbon dancing was really cool. Afterwards, we washed up at the hostel and then went through the Forbidden Palace and Tiananmen Square. And we were wowed by all the guards and the size of the palace. It wasn't too crowded because we went at the end of the day (S: Yes it was) and they definitely upped their security, doing bag checks for people entering T-Square.
Afterwards, we visited KFC, where I tried the imfamous fried shrimp burger. Quite the experience (not necessarily positive). Then we wandered around WangFuJing, the shopping area, before finding dinner- HK style.

Today, we set off to the Beijing Zoo. We saw Pandas (YAY) but the rest of the zoo was quite depressing. S: The enclosures were quite outdated/metal bars and tiny rooms for the animals. The large animals like the elephants, tigers, lions, (oh my!) all seem to be miserable and screaming out for help with their eyes. (B: SO TRUE!!) We wanted to free them all/and or have them trample their trainers and revolt and escape.

After our jolly time at the zoo, we had korean bbq next door for lunch. Then a massive rain storm hit so we were trapped there without any umbrellas, etc. We had planned to go to the Summa Palace but it was too late and too wet so we settled on the shopping mall. Afterwards, we met up with Nicole, a family friend, for Sichuan Hot Pot! It was delicious though we got too much food. It was great to catch up with her since I hadn't seen her for a while. Her dad and my dad are best friends and we've had many fun family adventures together.

Now we're all prepping for Mutianyu Great Wall tomorrow. It'll be exciting, though I hope the weather cooperates. Bed time!

-b and s

PS: Panda Paw!!

PPS: Sophia- The Happy Meal was not happy because of a huge group of people that cut us in line! People in China don't like to queue, which can be quite frustrating. But the Hello Kitty toy was a nice touch to make up for it. :)