Today we had to get up at 5 am to catch a flight to Beijing. We flew Dragonair which is Hong Kong based airline. There were hardly any people on the plane but I don't blame them because it was early!!! For breakfast Mum and Dad had Dim Sum - a selection of small Chinese snacks. I chickened out and had an omelette instead. It all looked a bit strange and unbreakfast-like!!
On arrival in Beijing we had a taxi driver meet us at the airport. Dad knew him from his previous visit and he was very friendly. It was funny because he hardly knew any English and we didn't know any Mandarin and so we had lots of fun trying to make ourselves understood. The driving in China was quite something really - they don't seem to have any rules on under or overtaking!
As you can see from the image, we went straight from the airport to the Great Wall. The heat wasn't as oppressive as in Hong Kong but it was still three times hotter than you usually get in the UK. To get up the mountains to the Great Wall you had to get a cable car. Mum was a bit apprehensive because they looked a little old and not too safe! Mum says she would like to see the safety certificate! It was fun though but anyone who is scared of heights would not have liked it.
When you actually get up to the Wall it is absolutely amazing. We had to climb lots of steps and the views are fantastic. It made us wonder how people built the Wall long ago without the machinery we have available to us now.
When we went down we went on toboggans. I wasn't keen on going down on my own because it looked pretty steep. So Dad and I went in one together and left Mum to get down by herself. It was fun because you could break or accelerate your own toboggan. In fact when we got to the bottom I wanted to go up and back down again.
We had a drink at the cafe afterwards and then went to the toilet. I decided not to go when I saw them because they were just a hole in the ground that you had to squat over to go to the loo. They didn't look too clean either and they absolutely stunk! I hope not all public toilets are like that in Beijing. But I'll let you know. If they are I will just use the hotel!!!
Afterwards the driver took us to our hotel in Beijing which was very nice. We stayed at the Kerry Shangri-La. We went for a swim and you had to wear swimming caps and disinfected shoes. Dad looked funny in his!
Later Dad took us to a local Chinese restaurant. The food was fantastic. We sat outside and lots of people were staring at us. So much so that Mum said 'hello' to some and they said 'hello' back and laughed in a shy way. We then went back to the hotel and slept heavily.
Speak soon.
Love from Meganxxx
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