Week in Beijing!
Our week in Beijing was a very eventful one.Coming from Shanghai, the modern city that it is, to the more culturally rich and traditional Beijing was a very interesting transition.Some of the differences the students realized in their day-to-day lives were the fact that barely anyone speaks English in Beijing and taxi cab drives are only paid to turn the steering wheel and press the gas and brake (as described to us by one of our tour guides because of their seemingly little geographical knowledge of the area).Our week here consisted of a quick snapshot of the highlights of Beijing including the Great W all, the Forbidden city, Tiananmen square, and the local street shops and food joints.The great wall was an experience to remember for a lifetime.The 8 mile hike during the day time was absolutely unforgettable due to being constantly surrounded by 360-degrees of pure beauty.After being exhausted, we all finally reached the village we were spending the night.We were greeted with a village style buffet feast of foods ranging from our host’s famous kung pao chicken, rice, a tofu dish, a beef dish, and various other foods which were all very delicious.In the morning, we woke up at 4am to go on a morning hike to one of the tallest peaks in the area to watch the sunrise.Although it was one of the most difficult hikes many of us have ever completed, there was a huge air of satisfaction when we finally stepped foot on the top.Sitting in the group, huddling for warmth, and stopping every so often for a moment of silence to enjoy the absence of sound made our morning truly great.The rest of the week was spent taking advantage of the fake markets, seeing the Olympic Green, and trying to get as much emersion as possible before our departure to the last leg of our journey.