Beijing

Our time in Beijing is nearing the end. It hasn't been that long, but sometimes it feels like an eternity. Even though we have enjoyed the sights, we all feel that we enjoyed Changsha more. It was a smaller city and we seemed to have more leisure time. As well, we really enjoyed the neighbourhood around the hotel. We haven't seen the sun much here, either; however, it is still hot and humid. I can't imagine what it's like in the summer.

On Tuesday, we visited the summer palace. It was restored in the 1700's and is quite the summer home....we could just imagine the family packing up and heading to the cottage for the summer!!! As you can see, it was an overcast day when we visited, but it seemed to add to the atmosphere of the place and the lake. We took a nice, but short boat ride across the lake. It's about an hour outside Beijing and is another popular spot for musicians. It is not free for seniors, though (as is the Temple of Heaven and the Forbidden City) since it is outside the city.

We headed back to the hotel for a rest...Lan Lan (Isaac's nickname) fell asleep on the ride back and slept for about an hour more in the hotel room. He really is a great traveller and I may have said this before (but I can't actually see the bog to check) but he absolutely loves the stroller. He watches the driver put it in the van and rushes to get out of the van to get back in it. He also loves driving in the van and looking out the window. The last two days were not as exciting anymore (in the van) and he got a bit restless, but was still very good. He always wants me to sit next to him...or rather, he on my lap. Of course, I may have forgotten to mention, but you can see from the photo of him asleep, that there are no seat belts and no child seats in cars here. We'll see what happens when we get home.

Enjoy the pics.