Our Chinese adventure began as we flew from LAX to San Francisco when Yin, a student from Indiana University Bloomington sat next to us. We immediately became friends and started learning about Chinese customs and the language. She talked her way into the seat beside us again from San Francisco to Beijing so our education continued for another 12 hours.

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We were met by Ping, our Tour Director at the Beijing airport. Being bussed from the airport to our 5-star hotel we had a great introduction to Chinese drivers - they're crazy! We did a short walk about upon arrival at our hotel and were amazed to see the overhead wiring! This is a very modern area with too many wires. This reminded me of the internet cartoon showing outsourced computer assistance - hehe.

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Vivian, our Beijing local guide, took us to Tiananmen Square, a place of both fame and infamy, to begin our introduction to Beijing. To help us keep track of her, she carried Ping's "yellow panda umbrella" which turned out to be a lifesaver in some of the crowded places we visited.

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The city originally had four gates with a square like this one. It's a vast area said by some to be the greatest public square on earth. It's also the site of infamous uprisings in China's 20th century history including the eight rallies that began the Cultural Revolution in 1966 and the student protests in 1989.

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Tiananmen Square was huge! Part of it was this large building which is Mao's resting place. According to our guide, his body is preserved under glass and as you can see there is a long line of people waiting to enter the shrine. Needless to say we didn't take the time to do that but rather walked on the square we remember from TV coverage of the student uprisings. This was also the only place where we saw a huge photo of Mao.

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The Forbidden City operated as the seat of power during five centuries of Chinese dynasties.

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Imperial and impressive, it boasts three great ceremonial halls and three principal palaces where the extravagant living quarters housed more than 34 successive emperors.

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While at the Forbidden City we got to see this bronze of a dragon headed turtle that is a symbol of more power...

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...this jade figure which once belonged to an emperor...

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...and these solid gold bells.

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On our way back to our hotel we went through the Olympic Park and passed the birds nest and water cube which were used during the 2008 Summer Olympics.

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Tonight we enjoyed a delicious, traditional roast duck dinner complete with a demonstration of exactly how to carve a duck.

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Hutongs are a type of narrow streets or alleys commonly associated with Beijing. The hutongs are alleys formed by lines of siheyuan, traditional courtyard residences. Many neighborhoods were formed by joining one siheyuan to another which then formed a hutong, and then joining one hutong to another. The word hutong is also used to refer to such neighborhoods. Since the mid-20th century, the number of Beijing hutongs has dropped dramatically as they are demolished to make way for new roads and buildings. More recently, some hutongs have been designated as protected areas in an attempt to preserve this aspect of Chinese cultural history.

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We visited Shichahai Hutong by modern day rickshaw which was a kick. Winding in and out the tiny alleyways we were able to witness and appreciate this communal lifestyle that is fast disappearing in modern-day China.

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What a thrill it was to stop and visit Mrs. Yang and learn about her life firsthand. This home was very different than mine but this family seemed to be very happy and living well. They even had an inside toilet that was a sitter (as opposed to the typical squatter)!

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Our next stop was at the silk carpet factory where we got to see a demonstration of a carpet being hand woven. The process was much like counted cross-stitch as the weaver followed a blueprint of the finished design. Tryna couldn't pass up the opportunity to try her hand at weaving.

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The Great Wall of China stretches some 2,480 miles across the country. They began construction in the 5th century BC and didn't finish until the 16th century AD. We went to Mu Tian Yu, which is a scenic and less crowded section of the wall. We took a cable car almost to the wall but then had to walk up the rest of the way, which was a daunting task but we made it!

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Even though it was misty and hazy, this was a most awesome experience!

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Off the wall and trekking down the hill to the bus we came through the inevitable area of vendors who were selling all kinds of souvenirs. Bargaining is a way of life here and once you're used to it, it becomes kind of a game. A T-shirt the vendor tells you is 100 yuan (about $15) can eventually be purchased for about 20 yuan (about $2.50)

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The Temple of Heaven, literally the Altar of Heaven is a complex of Taoist buildings. The complex was visited by the Emperors of the Ming and Qing dynasties for annual ceremonies of prayer to heaven for good harvest. It is among China's most beautiful shrines with two circular ceremonial buildings crowned with blue tile roofs.

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It is now a public park where locals visit every morning for exercise such as ballroom and line dancing, tai chi as well as...

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...doing Chinese painting with water on the concrete. This man did an exact painting of our guide Vivian holding the panda umbrella!

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A huge crowd had gathered around this happy soul who was in the park for a morning of singing and knitting.

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We next visited a pearl factory where we saw how they cultivated these gems. Our guide opened this oyster and found about 15 pearls inside!

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People in China shop once or twice a day in daily local village markets. While strolling through this market we saw this black chicken - something we'd never seen before and were told was a delicacy.

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Last stop today was the Summer Palace, a former royal retreat. It was a beautiful spot with a park for both visitors and local citizens with a large lake, imperial pavilions and palaces.

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Dinner on our own tonight found us in this private room with Ardie and Dennis enjoying a hot pot meal. You order meat and veggies and then cook them yourself and dip them in sauce fondue style.

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