Recent slideshows

While on the road, I didn't have a 'great' internet connection, so uploading and posting slideshows wasn't on the top of my list.

I've made good progress in the past few days (and will finish up in the next day or so). Each slideshow has about 30 pictures. Depending upon your computer / internet speed, it may take some time to load and play.

Here they are (and there are links to the right under Photos and Slideshows)...

• Denmark and southern Sweden - my parents visited us over Easter. Lots of castles, 3 countries, walking and climbing...or as my dad said, 'training for the Olympics', many cities.
• Great Wall of China (Mutianyu section) - Chuck and I visited the Wall on a cloudy day, so some of the pictures have a morning fog to them, which is quite mystical. I returned a few days later with Marianne for some nice sunny-day pictures.
• Various sights in Beijing - Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, Temple of Heaven, and the Hutongs
• Various Parks, People, and Culture in Beijing
• Pompeii, Italy
• Amalfi Coast, Italy - Home base was Sorrento, Italy, but we managed to fit in some day trips to the island of Capri and then a drive along the Amalfi Coast to Positano.
• Capri, Italy
• Vatican City, Italy
• Rome, Italy

Exploring Beijing

We had great fun exploring Beijing the last few days. In our short time there, we...

• Walked around Tiananmen Square
• Explored the Forbidden City
• Met the nephew of the Last Emporer and had him sign a beautiful wall hanging
• Sat gridlocked in rush hour traffic
• Walked through the Hutongs
• Saw the Temple of Heaven
• Shopped at the Pearl Market, on Silk Street, and Yaxiu Market
• Got lost in the embassy district...stopped by a guard and told to show my passport
• Walked the Great Wall (Mutianyu section) on a very cloudy / foggy day...then went back on a sunny day to get some nice pictures!
• Rode in the same gondola at the Great Wall as President Clinton in 1998
• Took a tobaggon ride down from the Great Wall
• Went on a culinary market tour in the Hutongs
• Saw dancers and performers at Ritan park
• Walked around the Summer Palace
• Walked through some amazing parks (Ritan, Jingshan, Beihai)
• Watched the flying acrobatic show in the Chaoyang district
• Bought some tea on Tea Street

A few pictures (until I get a chance to upload slideshows)....

The shopkeeper in one of the stalls at Yaxiu market, my favorite market.

The flying acrobatic show in the Chaoyang District.

Beihai park

Aerial view of Forbidden City; taken from Jingshan park. This is the north gate entrance (south gate entrance is near Tianenmen Square).

Jingshan park

The Mutianyu section of the Great Wall

Shopping at the market in one of the Hutongs

Hello Beijing (Ni hao Beijing)

I learned a few basic words in Mandarin before our trip to China. A week isn't much time to do a crash course in a foriegn language, but I think I should get an A for effort :-P

The two most important words....

• Ni hao (knee how) = Hello
• xièxiè (she she) = thank you

Our first day in Beijing was a day of catching up on sleep...and then a little exploring. Coming from Denmark (population about 5 million) with our little town in southern jutland (population 7000), Beijing (population 17 million, YES 17 million) was a little overwhelming and a bit of sensory overload!

Within my first 8 hours in Beijing, I was told to STOP, not once, not twice, but 3 times by an armed guard AND he wanted to inspect my passport and visa. Great. I was looking for the Ri tan park and got a bit confused, even with my map. Gee whiz, give a girl a break!

I found a quaint little shop that did foot massages and pedicures. The advertisement was in English, so I assumed they spoke English. Alex, I'll take Bad assumptions for 100 dollars (Jeopardy reference). The only English I heard was, 'Where you from?' and 'Oh, U.S.A. yeah Obama.' Just under 2 hours of pampering was a crazy 25 USD!!!

Tomorrow is a big day of sightseeing in Beijing. More to come.

So excited to add another trip to the list....

drum roll, please.......Beijing, China (photos borrowed from stock pictures on the internet)

I cannot believe it. Actually, it's hard to contain my excitement. Chuck will be working and I'll be a tourist. Lots of things to get done before we go; the most important one...a visit to the Chinese Embassy in Copenhagen to get our visas.