Barbara kept a daily journal and this posting is almost verbatim from that.

We took a rickshaw ride through old, narrow streets called “hutongs”.

We did not think it would amount to much and we were eager to get moving to see the Wall, but it turned out to be quite interesting.  We stopped at one of the houses for a visit with the residents.  The lady was a retired physics teacher whose husband had died a few years ago.  Her daughter and son-in-law live with her, as well as their son, who is now in college.  The son-in-law is a calligrapher who learned his art from his father-in-law.  He had a large selection of works to view (and buy, but no pressure).

Now, on to the Wall.  How exciting to finally see it.  It was as impressive as we thought it would be.  We took a bit of a hike up to the cable car, but then moved on up quickly on the same cable car ride that President Obama took during his recent visit to China.  We are standing on the Great Wall of China!!!

We walked one direction from the guard house, returned and walked the other way.  I decided to rest and take it all in while Barbara and Ken Freyermuth, our two most dedicated hikers, walked on quite a long distance.  The light of the afternoon sun made the scene especially nice.

We were thrilled to see not only the Wall, but the beautiful countryside around.  We were not expecting such lovely scenery.  The Wall was a true highlight.

We returned to the city for a wonderful Peking Duck Dinner.

It was quite different from what we had expected, not at all like roast duck at home.  The duck was thinly sliced.  You could take 2 or 3 thin slices, wrap them in a taco-like bread, dip the whole thing in a delicious sauce, and eat!  We returned to the hotel, full, tired and happy.

The next morning, June 2, we enjoyed our usual very good breakfast at the Sofitel.  The buffet is huge with something for everyone.  This morning we visited the Temple of Heaven, a UNESCO World Heritage site.  We were free to explore on our own.  We saw one of the two circular ceremonial buildings with the blue roofs.

From there we went to see a pearl outlet demonstration.  I enjoyed the beer, while Barbara learned about pearls.

After the pearl stop, we walked through a farmers’ market.

It was very interesting to see all the goods, especially the great variety of vegetables and fruits, for sale as well as hear the vendors’ shouting to get buyers’ attention.

We had lunch at a local establishment where a wedding party was in process.

This afternoon we went to the [new] Summer Palace.

It was full of people exercising and enjoying the day.  Michael showed us some of his exercises and guided us along through one of his routines.  It looked easier than it was.  We strolled along the lake and then took a boat ride to the other side of the lake.  We both agreed that it was a little disappointing, maybe because the weather was dingy today, or maybe because it was so crowded.

Dinner was on our own, so we went to the mall near the hotel.  We found a cafeteria, but had no idea what was what or how to order.  There was a couple sitting nearby who noticed that we were clueless.  They helped us out.  Lo and behold, she was Chinese, but he was from Red Oak, Iowa, and had graduated from UNI.  Small world, indeed.

Tomorrow morning we fly to Xian and we look forward to spending time with the Terra Cotta Warriors.