When I say we did some walking, I mean we did some walking today. We trekked through Tiananmen Square which was massive on our way inside the Forbidden City gates. Centuries ago, the ruling Emperor would live inside the many Forbidden City walls. The palace changed hands several times after being built in the early 15th century. It was called the Forbidden City because only the ruling Emperor and his court could be inside the city walls. At one point, peasants could have been sentenced to death by simply looking at the city walls. It was very interesting and the gardens were beautiful. We found the opportunity to try on some traditional clothes while there (see below).

After dining in a local restaurant, we went to the Olympic village. The Bird’s Nest is a stunning piece of architecture. We were able to go inside and came close to taking some laps around the track on Segways. Unfortunately, our perception of value did not align with the purveyor’s. We faced another stumbling block with our attempt to swim in the Cube. The short version is that it wasn’t quite worth the effort to immerse ourselves in the same pool as Michael Phelps. We did get to visit the pool though where he made Olympic history. Our day ended by going to see the Chinese Acrobats perform. It was truly amazing as we were wowed by their strength, skill, and courage of the performers.

A few observations about Beijing. It is definitely a blend of new and old. Most properties fall in one of three categories: new, old, or about to be torn down. They have built some amazing new properties, but the skyline is not as impressive as Hong Kong or Shanghai. I have also come to determine that nearly every conversation in Mandarin sounds like an argument. I find it humorous. We have found everyone to be very nice and friendly again on this trip.

We are very excited to be going to the Great Wall tomorrow. It will be awesome to scratch that one off my bucket list.