We have had a VERY rich and full day, our first full day in China! After I returned from the morning walk (complete with the tea-ceremony), I returned to the hotel! Our wonderful Beijing host, Zhong, re-met us again today at the hotel and brought with him his mother! What a delight!
She presented Ellen as a gift ... a hand-made, full-length, Chinese silk formal gown! It is a gift for Ellen as a "thank-you" for being Zhong's teacher. She then ... proceded to measure ME for ... something! My favorite color was requested, along with probably the most hilarious measuring-session I've ever had in my life! When I was asked about my preferences for the cut of the gown (apparently she is going to make me one, but I could have lost something in translation ...) ... I was asked how low she should make the front and-or the back. Zhong got an impish look in his eye when he translated,
"Do you want it sexy, or traditional?" I'm still giggling about this ...
We then were escorted to a restaurant, apparently one of the most famous for its PEKING DUCK. Peking Duck is a specialty from this area, and the cooking of said duck involves blowing its stomach up with beer, roasting it, and hanging it for several hours before serving it. The food that was brought to us was enough to feed all of the people at Tiananmen Square today. And it was ALL amazing -- the flavors, textures, colors of it. Zhong asked me if I wanted to try the Duck Head ... remember my rule of "trying everything once" - and so I said, of course! I was also informed that eating duck's brains adds to your own intelligence.
Getting to the restaurant was also an *adventure*. We took a public bus (that was uneventful) and then Zhong made us take two different rickshaws! (Small cart pulled by "driver" riding a bike in this case). Ellen and Bob took one, Zhong, his mother and I were in the other. I loved riding in this rickshaw. It was fun, and you could smell the streets as you rode by, and hear the sounds of this city!
From the restaurant, we went to the "Forbidden City." I have seen pictures of this, I have played an opera about it (Puccini's final opera, "Turandot," takes place in Peking's Forbidden City), and I have seen it on television and in the movies. However, nothing prepares you for the magnitude and beauty of this place! So many palaces, rooms, thrones, and rooftops. I was informed that when President Bush visited China, he stayed in the Emperor's quarters, which we saw part of today.
I'm also in shutter-bug-heaven here. It is such a different place than any place I have ever been, and every turn is a different monument to color and detail. There are sets of gargoyles I keep seeing - a dragon with several minions - that I need to find out more about.
Tomorrow's adventure - the Great Wall.
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