Greetings!
Life seems to be speeding up day by day for us here...
In the less than 40 days we have left we will somehow manage to drive my grandparents to their summer gathering grounds, go to a supercool wedding (while hosting my dad, stepmom and sister), host my bestie for a quick catchup, participate in a triathlon, celebrate Pearce's 30th and party for Pearce's completion of his Neurology program (not to mention 23 years of school/training). Oh and did I forget to mention that we are going to Asia for 3 months?!? Luckily I am free and clear from school work-and so can focus all my energy on organizing our life here so we can cast off free and clear.
Already, I have been able to get some pretty big things checked off our list. We have arranged for our good friend Jay (from my program) to stay in our house over the three months so our home doesn't get lonely. Yay JAY! My stepdad John has volunteered to drive my car with our most precious belongings (the chia pet of course) to Florida so she too can be well taken care off in our absence. Yay JOHN! I have also got our mail forwarded, most of our packing list bought, phone cancelled, China Visas applied for and have booked our first hostel!
The Beijing Downtown Backpackers hostel came highly recommended by a friend of a friend Yay PEKWEIN! who lives in Beijing.
http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowUserReviews-g294212-d674488-r33284734-Beijing_Downtown_Backpacker_Hostel-Beijing.html
It is located in a historic Hutong neighborhood just North of Tianamen and the Forbidden City, and just east of Beihai park and the lake area. After some deliberation, we decided to tackle Beijing first, rather than head off to Mongolia directly. We thought it would be beneficial to transition to the time zone there rather than Mongolia so we aren't as tired when we see my Mongolian family. Additionally, seeing Beijing first will allow us to arrive in Mongolia closer to the time of Nadaam which I want Pearce to see for sure. I also thought this would free us up to go directly to another Chinese city if we wanted on our way back from Mongolia- if that is even feasible.
So that is where we stand for now. I'll keep you posted- I am sure I can fit it in somewhere!
Al and P out
The Great Wall - there's different access points to it from around Beijing - and different parts are maintained at different standards. Badaling is the most popular amongst tourists and is usually recommended in the guide books (pros: high level of restoration, safe walkways/cons: too many tourists, not much of the original left).
ReplyDeleteI would suggest though thinking about going to Simatai or one of the other more wild parts of the wall (google image it!). It was one of the highlights of my stay in Beijing. The rolling countryside gives a much better feel of why the Chinese were freaked out about the Mongol hordes. Best photo ops EVER :-)
I am having a bit of a dilemma nailing down which part of the wall we will go to because the Jinshanling to Simatai route which provides the most authentic (and rough) experience has been closed to rehab for a fu-fu resort. I am hoping we will get a better indication of where to go when we meet up with other backpackers once there!
ReplyDelete