The Beijing Boogie

Last Day in Beijing

Today I got to sleep in!!! I got up at 8:00, and had a nice lazy breakfast before heading out to the Pearl Market. One of our tour leaders, Kimberly, had lived in China for several years, and she knew a jewelry dealer in the Pearl Market where we could get good prices on some jewelry. And, we did! I got some gorgeous pieces, and paid very little for it. The Pearl Market was crazy though! There were vendors all over the place, and they wanted you to buy from THEM! They would grab your elbow and pull you to their stand. It was such a pain, but I learned to tell them no pretty strongly and to jerk my arm away. It was pure and utter craziness!!

We went for lunch after that, where we had a cold noodle dish and some sour plum juice. It was good, but it was loud in there! But, it was definitely authentic! It was a fun last lunch in China, but let me tell you, I am tired of big group meals! I am definitely dining solo for a while when I get home!

After lunch Mona and I went back to the Pearl Market to finish up a couple of deals, to fight off a lot of vendors, and just to make sure we had bought everything we needed for home. Then, I persuaded Mona to go to the zoo with me because I HAD to see the panda bears. Yes, I have seen pandas before, but not in their native country, so I had to go. I had heard mixed things about the Beijing Zoo, such as that their exhibits are pretty bad with the exception of the pandas, so we decided to not go to any of the exhibits other than the panda bears. It was fun to see them! I was so glad about going to the zoo, and I had a great time!

My job finished in Beijing, we came back to the hotel and had a rest before heading out for one last meal in China. And what did I pick for my last meal? PIZZA HUT!!! Yeah, I know, what a choice, but as I have told you before, Pizza Hut in China is amazing. I am pretty burned out on Chinese food, and I really wanted one more of those rose lichee drinks!

Tonight's blog is being written on the third floor of our hotel, where Cindy, Shari and I were kicked off of a table (it sounds worse than what it is), so we are sitting on the floor listening to Chinese folk music being played in the lobby. Finally, a slow and relaxing, yet humorous way to end our last full day in China.

Location: Third floor, Jianguo Garden Hotel, Beijing
Tooth Update: Tooth is planning on making a full trip home, missing a little bit of temporary filling. It is also planning on packing a grain or two of rice in its gaping hole as a souvenir.
Weather Update: Rainy! I actually had to use an umbrella - what?!?! But it cleared up the air, and was very nice.