Beijing

17-21 January 2010

Days One and Two
So here it is then, the first blog entry on my trip (part of the way) around the world. Technically, we arrived in Beijing on Sunday (17th) but spent the rest of the day sleeping off the jetlag, only venturing out in the evening to get our bearings and find sustenance.

The next day, however, we were all togged up and raring to go, looking like the Michelin Man in thermals, fleeces, hats, gloves and ski jackets (having heard rumours of temperatures reaching -17, we weren't taking any chances)! Started with Tiananmen Square - a vast, concrete expanse flanked on all sides by equally vast and impressive, if a little soulless, buildings. From there, we set off for the Underground City, a series of tunnels and chambers built during the 1970's when China feared nuclear war with Russia. After half an hour of searching for a street that didn't seem to exist before collaring a passer-by and communicating solely through gestures and pointing for ten minutes, we learnt that it was down a less than inviting alleyway. But, determined sightseers that we are, we soldiered on through the dilapidated buildings only to emerge on the other side thoroughly bemused and seemingly no closer to our destination. We gave up on our search and instead spent the afternoon at the Temple of Heaven Park, relieved to be wandering through temples and pagodas and along tree-lined avenues rather than dodging cars on the twelve-lane boulevards - as far as I can tell, red lights and green men really are just guidelines here! Went to the Quanjude Duck Restaurant for dinner. The service was indifferent at best but the food made up for it - moist sliced duck served with pancakes; spring onion and cucumber; sweet and sticky sauce; and (new additions) mashed garlic and sugar. We were also introduced to the indulgent delicacy of crispy duck skin dipped in unrefined sugar.

Day Three
I think ours was a unique Great Wall experience. A thin sheet of ice meant that we crawled rather than walked and thick fog ensured that we could only see a few metres in either direction. It did lend the wall a rather eerie and mysterious atmosphere though (more so than the Subway at the entrance anyway!) and it was a great way of making sure we had the wall to ourselves.

Day Four
Tackled the Forbidden City today, an almost overwhelming labyrinth of increasingly intricate temples and palaces separated from the city by a huge stone wall and vast frozen moat. In the evening, we found a great little restaurant in the Hutongs (the old alleyways of Beijing) where we enjoyed sizzling beef in a fiery black pepper sauce and vegetable chow mein. We even got some free Chinese lessons from the man at the next table (who also complimented us on our as-yet unpolished chopstick skills!) - I now know that 'shie-shie' means 'thank you' and that 'wo bu dong' means 'I don't understand'. That should be enough to keep me going for a couple of days at least!

Day Five
Our final day in Beijing - climbed Prospect Hill in Jingshan Park for a panoramic view of the city. This was marred somewhat by the thick haze of pollution hanging over it though. Had lunch at Ajisen, a vibrant and bustling noodle bar chain with minimalist decor and cartoon-style paintings of sumo wrestlers adorning the walls. The noodles arrived in steaming bowls with huge wooden spoons: fragrant broth with a kick of chilli, rice noodles, sweet prawns and crunchy fresh vegetables. Delicious. Our final stop in Beijing was Donghuamen Night Market, a collection brightly coloured street stalls selling everything from scorpion and starfish skewers to sugared fruit kebabs (unsurprisingly, we chose the latter!)

It has been an incredible few days but I am ready to leave Beijing - I have loved the individual pockets we have seen but it feels so sterile that it's difficult to form any kind of attachment to the city as a whole. Perhaps this is in part due to the sheer size of everything? Most of the pavements are wide enough for two lanes of traffic! We have just boarded our first sleeper train at the most high-tech train station I have ever seen and now we are speeding through the night. Next stop, Shanghai......