Tuesday was such a lazy day that I don't have much to blog about. It was the second day of our three-day holiday from work, and all I did was sleep in and catch up on quality American television online.
We made another American friend in the evening when one of Courtney's high school friends came to visit. As a graduation present to himself, he has been traveling all over China, and happened to be in Beijing at a good time! We went to the outdoor market for dinner, and I had edamame. I'm sure that's not what they call it here, but it's just as addicting of a snack as it is at Chinese restaurants in the States! During dinner, we were bombarded by some Chinese people dressed in orange giving out free shots of some sweet-smelling liquor, similar to the Red Bull girls that walk through the Pit in Chapel Hill. Courtney's friend, Tim, accidentally asked a Chinese neighbor to cheers with him and down the mystery substance - a really funny moment. The next bombardment came from the sky - it started pouring. One of the vendors brought us an umbrella, so we just shared some beers until the rain let up. It was a great end to a relaxing day.
Yesterday was another story. After sleeping in again, Courtney, Annie, Brian, and I set out to Tiananmen Square. We took a taxi to the closest subway stop, the Beijing Zoo, and successfully took the subway (which is a super cheap way to get around) to the Square. It was uncomfortably hot at first, but eventually, the pre-storm breeze that we are so used to now, made things more bearable. We took the obligatory photos outside of the Front Gate (the old entrance to Beijing) and the Gate of Heavenly Peace (the one with a portrait of Chairman Mao), and an Asian family asked me to take pictures with them because I was a foreigner! I felt like a celebrity! Not feeling like sightseeing too much more, we walked to a historic shopping district. It was beautifully laid out, with fancy shops and eateries, all outside of our price range. Luckily, we peered down an alley to find a bunch of street vendors selling bags, clothes, and souvenirs for MUCH cheaper. This is more like it. Turns out, there was about a mile of this parallel to the classier shopping one street over. We haggled with Chinese merchants and came out with many souvenirs and gifts.
We took a break to look at the map, because we planned on going to the Haoyuan Market in Wangfujing later that night. Another stroke of luck! We looked up from our resting spot and saw the sign "Pizza, Lasagna, Pies!" We were at a hostel that doubled as a restaurant (and tripled as a bar). I was so happy to have a juicy beef burger and fries. If anyone is planning to come to Beijing, 365 Inn is THE PLACE to stay with a menu like that!
We made our way out of the winding streets and over to Wangfujing, one of the most popular streets in Beijing. It's an open-air mall basically, with neon lights and advertisements reminiscent of Times Square. We immediately found the Haoyuan Market, a much narrower street popular with locals and tourists alike. They were selling all kinds of things on a stick - crickets, spiders, silk worms, seahorses, starfish, and more. We all tried... a scorpion. It basically tasted like a burned potato chip. Not bad, but definitely not good.
Those were just some of the highlights. I feel much better now that I know that I can navigate through Beijing by subway. Next to conquer - the bus system!
(Also, last day of the Dragon Boat Festival, and I have yet to see any dragon boats. But I have eaten plenty of zongzi!)
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