China, Part 1 (Beijing)

Teaching in Korea has been an amazing experience thus far. However, some days can feel somewhat routine and a bit exhausting. Education in Korea is very different than it is back in the States. Most Korean students attend private school year round and get very little vacation time. At our school, we only get two weeks of vacation, one in July and another in December. Nonetheless, it’s a nice way to break up the school year and it gives us at least some time to travel or relax (whichever we so choose).

I decided a while back to spend my summer vacation in China. My trip to China was quite the adventure. In true fashion, I started packing the night of my departure, but I decided only to pack a small backpack for the week. Wearing just one pair of shorts for the entire trip made it much easier. Most people would probably prefer having clean clothes to wear everyday, but it just isn’t very efficient and all the extra weight only slows you down when traveling. I’m trying to refine my “ultralight” backpacking skills anyway.

After packing, I had to catch an airport shuttle bus from Daegu to Incheon International Airport at 2:00 am Saturday morning. The bus ride to the airport was about 4 hours. I arrived at Incheon a little after 6:00 am and quickly checked in with plenty of time to spare. My flight departed Seoul at 8:45 am and I arrived in Qingdao, China (my layover) at 9:00am local time. Going through customs in China was really fast and easy, much easier than customs back in the States. After an hour delay, I was on the plane heading to Beijing.

As the plane landed at Beijing Capital Airport, I looked out the window and saw nothing but smog. I was instantly disappointed. I remembered reading about the stories leading up to the Beijing Summer Olympics and the city’s efforts to reduce smog and pollution. I thought maybe after a few years they would’ve had better control over the problem, but I guess not. I can understand the athlete’s frustrations over the city’s pollution, it wasn’t a welcoming sight to see or breathe. Smog is often a problem in most Asian cities, including my own city of Daegu, but Beijing’s smog was on a whole other level. I shouldn’t have been surprised though, smog should be expected when traveling to a developing country. I was more worried that I wouldn’t be able to see Beijing’s sights in all of their glory.

As I exited the airport, I stepped into what felt like a wall of heat, humidity, and smog. I was determined to get to my hostel using only public transportation to save a few extra bucks. I got on an airport “shuttle” bus. The ride from the airport to the city ended up taking an hour and 40 minutes. I was dropped off at some random location along a major city highway. I walked around for about 10 minutes looking lost and confused trying to find the public bus I had to take. Then, a friendly Chinese couple approached me and pointed me in the right direction. I hopped on the public city bus which slowly made its way toward my hostel. The bus was extremely hot and crowded. The traffic was ridiculous. After almost an hour on the bus, I finally arrived at my destination.

I quickly checked into my hostel and spent the evening exploring the local Hutong (type of traditional courtyard residences) and Houhai Lake. My hostel was located in a really neat Hutong. I enjoyed walking around the area and back alleys. It was nice to witness the traditional Chinese way of life. The Hutongs throughout Beijing are far removed from the modern build up parts of the city. Life there seemed simple as families sat and conversed curbside, but there was still a sense of hustle and bustle as people quickly rode by on their scooters and bicycles.

Houhai Lake.

A street near Houhai Lake. 

The view from the Bell Tower.

The next morning, I got up early and continued to explore more Hutongs. Then I made my way to the Bell and Drum Towers. Next, I went to the Yonghe Temple, also known as the "Palace of Peace and Harmony Lama Temple." It’s a Buddhist temple dating back to 1694. The temple was absolutely beautiful. After the temple, I walked over to Jingshan Park which had amazing views of the Forbidden City. It started down pouring on my way out of the park and I ended up walking all the way back to my hostel in the torrential rain. I was nearly swept away in some flood waters as some areas along the way were literally a foot or so deep.

Yonghe Temple (Lama Temple).

The view of the Forbidden City from Jingshan Park.

I woke up the next morning and it was still raining. Thankfully though, it starting clearing up around noon, the sun started shining, and for the first time while in Beijing, the sky was clear. So, I decided to go to the Summer Palace. The Summer Palace was once the summer retreat of various emperors. The palace and gardens were really beautiful. It was one of my favorite places in Beijing. Late that night, Andy finally arrived.

The Summer Palace.

The next day we went to the Forbidden City and Tiananmen Square. The Forbidden City is an impressive and massive complex that was built in 1406 to 1420 during the Ming Dynasty.

The Forbidden City.

Tiananmen Square was another impressive site. It’s the world’s largest pubic square. The Chinese government has placed "advertisements" throughout the city celebrating its 90 years of Communist control.

 

Tiananmen Square.

On our last day in Beijing, we hiked the Jinshanling section of the Great Wall. This section is 10.5 km long and is a little more remote than most of the popular sections. Andy’s friend, who lives in Beijing, was kind enough to drive us and two other people we met at the hostel to the Great Wall. We had a great time hiking the wall and taking in all the amazing scenery.

 

The Great Wall.

After our hike, Andy’s friend took us for Chinese hot pot. Hot pot consists of a simmering metal pot of stock at the center of the dining table. We ordered lamb, beef, shrimp, and fish balls to cook in our hot pot. My friend Jenny also joined us for dinner. She lives in China but I had met her back at Rutgers. It was nice being able to reconnect with someone I haven't seen in awhile over a delicious meal.