Our Trip to China (Part II) - The Great Wall!

When Cicely and I woke up on the second day of our tour, we were happy to see that the smog had cleared up a little - that, added to the fact that we had to drive an hour outside the city, made for great views up in the mountains! The trip to the Great Wall of China was definitely the highlight of our entire trip, and probably the most impressive thing we've seen since we moved to the Far East.


I did some research before booking this trip with regards to the Wall specifically. The Wall is divided into many sections that are both on the border of China (with Mongolia) and also at various spots in the interior of China (like this particular section). Every tour I looked at took would've taken us to the Badaling section of the Wall. That was the section that President Nixon visited during his historic visit to Communist China in the 70's; it's also the closest to Beijing, so it's consequently the touristy spot of the Wall. Our tour was the only one I could find that did NOT take us to that section of the Wall - instead, we visited the Mutianyu Section, which is a bit farther and harder to get to, but well worth the hassle, as there are virtually no tourists there. At 500 years old, this section is actually one of the newest of the entire Wall.



We took this shot riding the cable car to the Wall; the Mutianyu Section runs along the spine of a mountain range, so the views and natural curvature of the Wall on the mountain ridge make great pictures!














Taking a rest...




Here we are with our guide, Martin - actually, he had a Chinese name, but he decided to use a western name because most of his clients are from Britain or the U.S., so it's easier for them to remember.



This is the tallest stairway in the Mutianyu section - it leads to the end that is overgrown with vegetation and falling apart.



I won't say who, but one of us got tired from the climbing and made the other carry her purse...it's a good thing that didn't happen on Mt Fuji last year!

Our Trip to China...Tianamen Square and The Forbidden City

Cicely and I finally took the big trip we've been anxious to take since we moved to Japan - we just didn't want to go until we'd seen everything here locally. So here it is, our trip to China! Much of the trip was financed with our Tax Stimulus check - which, ironically, is designed to stimulate the U.S. Economy - not our major global economic rival ;o)



The very first thing we noticed (immediately after leaving the airport) was how heavily polluted Beijing was - here we are in Tianamen Square - that haze isn't the extreme heat, it's smog. Breathing was a joy - I'm sure the visiting Olympic athletes will appreciate the clean air in August ;oD



One of the unique experiences of being in the U.S. Military and visiting a potentialy adversarial country is the added attention we got, both at the Airport and around town. My Visa application had my occupation on it, and our tour guide (who's company has a contract with the U.S. DoD MWR tour company) was used to the attention - he pointed out the gentleman in the shorts and white t-shirt to my right - notice the earpiece in his ear. He's part of the Chinese secret police.






If you recall your world history, you'll remember the 1989 Cultural Revolution characterized by the student stopping the PLA (People's Liberation Army) tanks at Tianamen Square (see above left pic). The intersection on the right is that same spot today. When I hear the word "Tianamen", that's the image that's burned in my head - only this weekend did I realize that Tianamen Square is the largest city center in the world, not just a spot for an historic protest. It's very much like the Mall in Washington D.C., Trafalgar Square in London, or Red Square in Moscow.




The Forbidden City is aptly named because of it's use as the historic residence of the various Chinese Emperors from it's completion in 1420 until the last Emperor was ovethrown in 1911; commoners were never allowed inside. After walking through the Gate of Heavenly Peace (the first pic of this blog), we came to the Meridian Gate - where the Emperor received official visitors. Notice the PLA soldiers on the right - these guys were all over the city - very Cold War-ish.




Next came the Gate of Supreme Harmony - hopefully, you can grasp the size of this place - it seemed like there were endless gates, and the walking never ended.






Here is the Hall of Supreme Harmony. This is the largest of the buildings in the Forbidden City and where the Emperor conducted major ceremonies.






Many of these buildings start to look alike, but to get an idea of the magnitude of their size. Here are the Marble stairs up close.





The Hall of Preserving Harmony, which was the actual residence of the Emperor and Empress.



Just in case you're wondering what's inside these massive buildings, they're all pretty much the same. Giant rooms with a throne for the Emperor in each - without TV, the internet, and modern entertainment, all he had to do was eat, drink, and give orders...so there wasn't much reason for anything else in these huge buildings.





At night, the Emperor and Empress slept in separate quarters - here is the Empress' bedroom. The bed and the silk covers are all original - still in pretty good shape too. The Emperor's room, had a huge bed too, and 25 single beds, each with a different concubine - variety is the spice of life ;o)





Finally, we finished the length of the Forbidden City - here is Cicely outside the North Gate, by the surrounding Moat. It's similar in design to the Japanese Imperial Palace in Tokyo, but much, much bigger. Fortunately, or tour guide had our driver meet us so we didn't have to walk back ;o)



After the Forbidden City, we took a trip to the outskirts of Beijing, to see the Emperor's Summer Palace. It's a relatively small place on a lake, but noticably cooler in temperature.






After that visit, our first day was coming to a close, so for dinner, we had the traditional Peking Duck - remember the movie 'A Christmas Story'? It looked like it was smiling at us! After being served, we were given a certificate saying it was duck number 622,075 since the restaurant opened in 1864. I've never had a death certificate with my dinner before.

Cinco de Mayo....Another Excuse for a Party!

So after the Holiday Season of 2007, the party scene had slowed down a bit...now that Spring is almost over, Summer is all but upon us. With Summer, comes Memorial Day weekend, 4th of July, our 2nd Anniversary (can you believe it's been that long already?), my Birthday, and a plethora of other excuses to have a party. So to kick off the season, my XO and his wife, Maritza (in this pic with Rich and I) took one for the team, and threw a Cinco de Mayo party!

I grabbed Cicely for this photo-op; a Corona in one hand and a beautiful woman in the other - what else does a man need? ;o)






Here's Rich and I with our boss, Eric. Please forgive him, he's a Naval Academy grad and a computer geek all rolled into one - fortunately, his wife is cool and his kids are great, so they balance him out!




Here is Cicely and a lot of her friends from the wives' club.





Throughout the party, we congregated in various groups all over the apartment; for some reason, the kitchen was really popular - probably because that's where the margarita blender was. I don't remember what we were all laughing at in this particular picture - it may have been XO's pink shirt, but since he's laughing too, that's prbably not it. More then likely, we were making fun of someone at work...it's always a goal to not talk about work when we get together on a social basis, but it inevitably comes up. Work is, afterall, what we all have in common - we are a Wardroom of Naval Officers; the comraderie is why I love the Navy. Regardless of the topic of conversation, when the drinks are flowing, and you're among friends, that's all that matters!

Random Act of Kindness

Last Friday night I reluctantly went out with a few of our friends to a local hangout, Vahanas, in Zushi City. I almost suggested to make it a guys' night out. I was that tired. But then a girlfriend called sounding excited to finally be going out and I just couldn't let her down. I am so glad I went because if not, I wouldn't have scored myself a box of heavenly Krispy Kreme donuts.

There's a long list of things that I miss from back home, Krispy Kremes being one of them. But what makes this craving worse is that I know they have Krispy Kremes here, but I just didn't know WHERE to get them. While exploring neighboring cities on the weekends, I'd see random Japanese people carrying around boxes of those delightful treats, but with my extremely limited Japanese, I didn't know how to ask where in the world they got them. One afternoon, it got so bad after a donut box sighting that I made Mike wander around Akihabara searching for the elusive Krispy Kreme store. No such luck.

But last Friday night as we were sitting in Vahanas enjoying our drinks and conversation, in comes a Japanese couple with not one, not two, not three, but FOUR Krispy Kreme donut boxes! And then they sat down at the table right next to us! Hoping that they got them nearby, Mike somehow communicated to them, using hand signals and rudimentary Japanese, "Where did you get the donuts?" When the guy answered, "Ginza", my heart sank because Ginza is about an hour and a half away. Oh well, there goes yet another unfulfilled craving, I thought.

Well, I guess the guy saw the disappointment in my face and in a show of true Japanese kindness, he gave me a whole box! Not just a donut to taste, but a WHOLE BOX to devour!!

There are some things about living in Japan that can be frustrating, but it is all made better by the extraordinary kindness of Japanese people.