There will be alot of pictures! YEY!
This is just a really quick and not really a "good" blog, more to describe what we did and what the pictures are about. When Eirik is done editing his photos I will have a not so wide but more entertaining blog about episodes during the trip
(pictures are under spoilers)
DAY 1
Monday July 7th.
We left for Beijing at 12.15. First a 1 1/2 hour plane ride to Amsterdam, a 4 hour layover there then a plane to Beijing, 9 1/2 hours. It was a really long trip and we actually were in Beijing at 9 am Tuesday morning!
DAY 2
Tuesday July 8th
As said, we arrived at 09.00 (or something like that) at Beijing airport. We had ordered a taxi through the hotel we were staying at (Bamboo Garden Hotel), so there was this tiny Chinese guy holding a white piece of paper with my name on it. I found that hilarious, cause Ive never actually had that done before
So we got in the taxi, and the first thing Eirik mentions is how clean all the cars are! We saw a 1989 Ford that looked like it was bought yesterday and gasped. In Norway they salt the roads in the winter, and cars rust very easily.
The taxi trip took about 30 min, then we arrived to the hotel that was located in a hutong (a small street side). It truly was a piece of heaven in a tiny really poor street. (or so it seemed.)
We found out that we needed to get out and about so that we didnt go to bed! So we went to the reception where the ladies where pretty much fluent in English and were more then helpful! We asked them to write some shopping mall on a piece of paper so we could give it to a taxi driver. She did, and we left.
She had written down the name of a very fancy shopping mall, and thats not really what I was hoping for. I was much more interested in finding the small markets and so forth, not the western style city streets. But it was fine for the first day. We ended up at a little cafe pub outside with a beer and water.
It was so hot we couldnt even move..
We figured it was just as well that we went back to the hotel and took a sleeping pill and get up rested in the morning. So we ended up going to sleep at 16.00 -.-
DAY 3
Wednesday July 9th
We both got up at a reasonable time and I had slept pretty much through the night. The hotel breakfast was OK, but pretty pricey to be Beijing. We took a cab to the famous Pearl Market and I thought Id interduce Eirik to the world or bargaining. (I have been to Beijing once before!) The pearl market was cleaned up beyond recognition! I was so impressed! (The Olympics had really got to them I guess -.-)
I found the Pearl Market to be a bit boring, so we figured we go over the street to a tiny restaurant to eat lunch. I was really afraid for Eirik, him being picky when it comes to food, but he LOVED it, and so did I
After this we figured we walk a little to see if we could find the Silk Market (I remembered it not being too far away, being as wrong as I could be.) We ended up in some fashion street where the prices were even higher then at home. We took a cab home after hours of walking and sweating like pigs.
We went down to a bar and restaurant street and had dinner. It was pretty good, but the food we had at the little place by he Pearl market was hard to beat! But again, it was so hot outside, even at nine at night, we just walked home. On our way Eirik had a great idea for a picture series! We walked by tons of small stores and homes, and it was pitch black outside and very bright inside. So he took pictures every other foot step. The pictures look AWESOME! He is still not done editing them but when he is, I will be sure to show you. (you can also check his myspace.
DAY 4
Thursday July 10th
TOURIST DAY!!!
We went on a guide buss ride to Ming Tombs and the Great Wall.
The Ming Tombs was prolly the fastest guide tour I have ever had. The guide was in a real big hurry :/ So I have no pictures, but it was really interesting!
Next stop was a over 200 year old pharmacy where a Chinese doctor would be able to diagnose us by looking at our tongue, our face and feeling our pulse on our wrist with three fingers.
I went first out of Eirik and I. WARNING: VERY SENSITIVE INFORMATION ABOUT ME AND MY MENSTRUAL PERIOD UNDER THIS SPOILER!!!!!! DO NOT READ IF IT GROSSES YOU OUT!!!
After all this, we had lunch. Then off to the Great Wall
It was a bit of a drive, but thank GOD for AC! It was about 40 degrees cellcius when we arrived at the great wall.
We got back to the hotel and got in the shower. Later that night we were off to meet a friend of Eiriks that was also in Beijing! We all went to a Peking Duck restaurant and walked around the fancy part of Beijing. We went looking for a fun walking street, but it was closed to be rebuilt for Olympics.
We ended up taking a private taxi home.. And it was pretty much a three wheel moped with a roof over the back. (Eirik has a picture!!) Kinda scary, but we got home
DAY 5
Friday July 11th
We overslept big time after the long day the day before.
We took a cab to the silk market and had pizza there for breakfast! mmm <3
Eirik was REALLY good at the whole bargaining system, and we got the best deals on everything. I had my nails done, and Eirik had a pedicure (on my command, he works physically and is on his feet all day long! )
The lady that took the picture thought that the lady on the right was a part of us
That was pretty much all we did that day. We got a lot of stuff, but tried our best not to go overboard!
DAY 6
Saturday July 12th
(this is our two year anniversary, but we do not speak of that considering the way the day was spent -.-)
We got up early cause we were gonna meet that dude that Eirik knew, and go looking for a camera store that he had found. Eirik wanted a battery grip for his Nikon D300. We have now started to take the tube, so we took it to meet him for breakfast at Starbucks then go looking for it
We took the metro to where he thought it was, and walked up and down streets in a really really humid and sticky day.. No fun. We ended up getting in a taxi and with all kinds of sign language figured out that he was just gonna drive us up and don till he said stop. Finally, we found it. I tipped the man a hell of alot for being so patience with us
We went in, and Eirik got his batter grip. We walked back to a department store and went up to the 6th floor to eat. It all looked good, and it was some sort of gourmet place, cause it was all very icky and classy. But we did find a few nice things. I ordered chilly chicken. Only by looking at the pictures, cause it was all in Chinese. The guys split a rooster pot that they said was excellent (I have just started eating meat again after a year of figuring out what I can eat or not, for you that remember early this year and late last year I had a hell of a time with my tummy, so I didnt really want to jump at rooster, but went for something "clean cut" like chicken). My chicken arrived. COLD. So we asked if they could please heat it. They came back with it. COLD. So I ate beans and rice. I was so hungry. It was awful. We had to go, cause I wanted to go to a little place called Studio 22 where they showed student film (in Chinese). We got out of the subway station at ten till three, and it was suppose to start at three, and we had no idea where it was. So we started to look at the map, and we figure out that to read maps of Beijing, you have to turn it upside down and have superman vision so that you can read through the paper. (get it?) it was God awful warm and I was just getting more and more pissy and itchy. So when we had asked about 10 people and no one knew where it was, we sat down at a pub and had a few drinks. But it was still to hot and I just wanted to go home
So we went home. We ate at the hotel restaurant and tried to go out a little later. NOONE was out. It was a Saturday, but the bar street was as quiet as Tuesday. So fuck this, we go home and have a few beers in the room and play casino card game.
Needless to say, it was the worst day so far.
Later that night I start to itch like CRAZY! I had a friggin mosquito bite. -.- dot over the i for that day.
Eirik calls the reception and asks if they have something for it, but no. So at two in the morning he gets out of bed, and goes to the 24 hour open market and with sign language and sounds, he tries to explain that I had a mosquito bite and that it was itchy. The dude gave him something that we to this day still think was a oil that you put on to prevent the bites. BUT I felt better and I could sleep. He IS the best no matter what
DAY 7
Sunday July 13th
We took the subway to DonDan and had breakfast at a little French place that actually sold bread! then from there the subway to the Silk market for more shopping. We both had a really bad day, and were tired. My bites were still not better and we went to the local pharmacy and got a cream that helped A LOT!
Day 8
Monday July 14th
I was SO sick. I had a fever and I was just really ill. Considering the mosquito bite the day before, I was actually kinda freaking out. Even though I have all my shots. So we stayed in all day watching Hallmark for China and just chilled. I think we both needed it.
Eirik went to the store and pharmacy for me and got me medicine for "a common cold". It helped the fever a lot and the next day I felt better! I called my mom and told her (in the USA omg I cant WAIT for that phone bill) and as she said "they have been doing this for 1000 of years, they had to get something right!" Chinese medicine is the best. End of story.
At night we went to an Acrobat show! It was FRIGGIN AMAZING! I wish I had pictures, but cameras, for obvious reasons, were not allowed.
The bite has only grown bigger
DAY 9
Tuesday July 15th
We wanted to do some more Tourist stuff and went looking for the Forbidden City. We ended up at
Jingshan Gongyuan park
When we got to the top of the "hill" inside this park we saw where the forbidden city was!
We walked down tot he forbidden city and looked at the prices. It was 60 RMB pr person, and we only had 110 loose. So we went in line, assuming we could pay by VISA at such a big tourist attraction. But no. After two hours of looking for it and entering the wrong parks and so forth, we couldnt even get in -.-
So we got in a taxi and went to Tienanmen Square.
Maos place
Eirik was pretty sick and tired of Beijing today. So we just took the subway to Oriental Plaza and went inside the AUDI store. Eirik has all the pictures from that, so I will be back with those
After that we just went home and relaxed.
DAY 10
Wednesday July 16th
Today we went to the Summer Palace
DAY 11
Thursday July 17th
Today we just went back to the Silk Market. We had made a bunch of friends there now hehe
I had a pedicure and Eirik had a foot massage. While we were doing this there was a cute lady that came over from her tea store and asked if we wanted any tea, free of charge. I love tea. Tea is the best thing in the world. So we did. And when we were invited over to her shop to have some tea. To begin with I was afraid this was just a scam for her to really sell us all kinds of shit, but she really just wanted to tell us all about tea, and her english skills were really really good! So we ended up staying there about an hour after the market had closed, just drinking tea and talking about Chinese music and traditions. It was pretty cool! She invited us back on Saturday, and then we left for home. It was a really nice relaxing day!
DAY 12
Friday July 18th
Today we went to the HardRock cafe Beijing!!
DAY 13
Today we went back to he silk market to the tea lady and had a few drinks. We ended up buying some green tea and a tea pot that is just beautiful! We got a Hello Kitty suitcase cause we needed a new one, and I wanted that one -.- Not much more happened, later we got room service and just hung out in the hotel room. We bough a 56% liquor bottle for a buck 50. HAHA It tasted like REALLY BAD Tequila!
So we didnt drink that. -.-
DAY 14
Sunday July 20th
We were sick of Beijing by now. So we just hung out in a street and waited for the night market to open!!!
BEWARE VEGETARIANS AND ALL ANIMAL LOVERS THE PICTURES UNDER THIS SPOILERS WILL OFFEND YOU!
DAY 15 LAST DAY!!!!
All we did today was bike around Beijing
DAY 16 HOME HOME HOME HOME!!!!
If you read all that, then cool! I get it if you didnt
WTF.
Tho it doesn't surprised me.