If it's Tuesday, this must be . . .

Tuesday, our first full day in Beijing, was jam-packed with sightseeing and shopping. We began the day at seven with a buffet breakfast at the hotel, then it was off to Tiananmen Square. The day was unexpectedly sunny (the forecast was for rain) but fortunately, breezy and moderate. The square teemed with visitors, mostly Chinese. We were allowed to wander off for a few minutes to gawk at the Mao Memorial (no, we didn’t go in to check out the Chairman’s remains). Then back to the group for a group picture, which would be put in a souvenir book and sold for 100 yuan (about $15). Then another bit of free time to wander and shoot. Carl and I went to a concession stand for some cool tea (I say “cool” because we haven’t really had cold drinks other than at the restaurants) and a meander past yet another terrace-with-greenery project for the Olympics.

It’s true that Westerners still attract attention here. At TS, a boy of about 5 turned around and spotted us, and a startled grin shone out from his face. He said something to his grandmother, and she too stared, delighted with us for some reason. A toddler came up behind me and hugged my leg, laughing and staring up at me in wonder. At one point, a Chinese man took a picture of our group, and several of the women with him ran over to get their pictures taken with us. We, in turn, aimed our cameras at him. A group of school kids following us back to our bus shouted "Laowai! (Foreigner!) Hello!"

It was all very jolly and friendly.

Leaving TS, we walked over a bridge into the Forbidden City. I’m not going to say much about that (try Wikipedia for some excellent info) except that it was beyond grand, utterly imposing, and ultimately, rather a bore. We marched more or less in a straight line from the south gate to the north. There are many things to see and linger over if you’re not in a group on a tight schedule. We came out into one of the lovely imperial gardens but were not permitted to explore it, because we were due for lunch at Wa Ha Ha. Such is the traveling life.

Lunch was nice. Another “family style” bonanza of dish after dish, beer, and tea. Carl and I took pictures of the enormous golden Buddha just inside the entrance.

After lunch, a trip to the Silk Factory, where we learned about the process of creating silk and were then pestered to buy it. Then the Temple of Heaven park, a lovely place full of local people singing, exercising, playing cards and a game involving stones on a paper grid. And then a trip to the Pearl Factory—another demonstration-cum-shopping-obligation. Then dinner at the restaurant in the factory. And back to the hotel at 9 or so.

Long day, many sights, sunburn, wonder, aching feet.