Just a recap on this adventure.
During the two week break, Sam, Olivia, Danny, and I went to look around Beijing for 7 days.
We stayed in a Green Tree Hotel by a Subway so it was easy for us to move around.
Day 1 was the Plane ride and then just at the hotel as i discribed in the last blog.
Day 2
Got breakfast in our hotel before heading out to The Forbidden City. Taxis are not too expensive here but Danny found a route that we can take to the Forbidden city by using subway. The Subways here are very cheap, 2 yuan. No matter what stop you get off at you only have to pay an entrance fee which is 2 yuan and you can transfer to different trains as many times as you like. Only in Beijing the subway is like that. Other places like Shanghai and BART in SF charge depending on distance. I imagined the Subway being packed with no room to move because that was my experience in the Airport subway so i wasnt too thrilled about going in the subway. You can imagin how happy Sam was to know that it was only two yuan for the subway since he couldnt spend a lot of money due to his tight budget.
When we got into the Subway car there were a lot of room, we even got to sit down. I was shocked. Our destination was about 30 min away from our hotel. During the ride Danny looked a bit nervous. I asked him if he was ok. He told me he was nervous. He doesnt like Subways either!! I told him he is a "small time boy living in a up town...CITY called BEIJING!"
We got off at the stop right by the Forbidden city. Across from the city there was Tian Min and we saw a bit of that before we went to the Forbidden city. The place was MASSIVE! It was super windy but luckily i wore enough jackets. We took many pictures there but a lot of people would crowed around a view and it would be hard for me to take a good picture so i had Danny who is tall take pictures since he can get a better view! I was shocked to notice that many of the tourists where chinese or Korean. I thought a lot of Koreans where chinese people but Danny could notice the difference easily. There where a few westerners but not as many as i thought.
The wind began to blow harder while we were there. We kept walking forward because we wanted to see the whole place. The buildings looked a bit same and it seemed like we were walking in a circle! But the rooms were different and had different stories behind each one. We finally made it to the Garden and then the exit soon after. It was a nice experience but we were extremely cold! It was worth it because now i can say i have been to the Forbidden City!
We were starving so we were waiting to get a taxi to bring us to the food court. While we were waiting a lady came over with a dragon statue. it was really nice but she wanted 150 yuan for it. Danny told us dont buy it its fake and bad quiality. Once he said that we all stopped lookin at it and the lady got so pissed off since we didnt want it anymore and started yelling at danny. Full on screaming in chinese. It was hilarious! I was laughing so hard and she just kept yelling at him. Later when she left we asked danny what she said and he said she was saying why didnt i help her sell it instead of telling you guys not to buy it and some bad words. Then Danny said we will go get a Traditional Chinese lunch.
We arrived at a 6 floor mall. I said, "Sure looks traditional." At the top floor there was a restaurant that served traditional hot pot. Its like the regular hot pot but it had a huge volcano of coal in the middle that heated up the food. This was how the ancient Emperor ate.
After lunch we walked around the mall a bit and saw a magic store! Got a couple things that i never seen before back in the US.
We went back to the hotel after that by taxi. In the car danny looked a bit nervous as well. I asked him are you scared of taxis too?? He told me that the city just makes him a bit nervous. I laughed but he is from a small town so i guess that makes sense.
Had a long day and had a rest for tomorrows adventure.
Day 3
Ill try to explain how Beijing looks like to me. Imagine San Fransico's China Town took over the entire Bay. Chinese stores everywhere, chinese street signs, Chinese people walking around. Then get rid of the hills and that is exactly what Beijing looks like. Big tall building everywhere, Highways, A lot of cars and traffic, buildings close together, and a lot of people walking around. I felt like i was back home.
Next day we went and got Breakfast. Then Olivia, Sam, and I wanted to go to the Zoo. So we all took a taxi to the zoo. I realllllllly wanted to see Pandas while i was here.
The Zoo was bigger than i thought it would be. We went and saw the Pandas first. They are so ADORABLE! I wanted to hug one! We saw two pandas running around and fighting. I sait they were practicing for the next Kung Fu panda movie. The funny thing was they looked like they were doing our Kung Fu moves. When they fought they did San Da take downs, there was a wooden pole that looked exactly like the Wing Chun Dummy at the academy and the bar was hitting them like he knew wing chun, one of the bears were medidating like Qigong in the back round. It was hilarious. We went and saw Lions, and Tigers, and Bears, OH MY! Also elephants and many other animals. Seeing all the animals made me miss my pets a lot!
Then had dinner then went to the olyimpic statium! It was 8pm, dark, but all the lights were on and it looked amazing. Only problem was it seemed to be -7 Degrees out plus strong winds! We tried to look for the entrance but everything looked closed... We finally found the entrence and the guard said it was closed!
Well we took a couple pictures before we left and we decided we will come back another day and we went back to hotel.
Day 4
Today was a pretty relaxed day. Had breakfast and then went to subway to summer palace.
It was freezing cold there so we didnt stay around long. Went to the Peking University instead because i wanted to check out some schools over here.
Walked around the campus. It was a really nice place. Will look into international business. Maybe go to college here. Went to mall to eat and do a little shopping for gifts for back home.
Got an early night because its the olympic city tomorrow. and this time we are going during the morning!
Day 5
Went to the Olympic City. The place was huge!! We stared off at the Aquatic center. Saw the pools and they made a huge water park inside the center to keep people coming i guess. Looked around at a few exhibits upstairs then headed over to the birds nest. Chinese people would be standing around trying to sell items. One guy was selling Gold Metals. I thought about getting one but wasnt sure and the guy saw me looking. He immediatly ran over to me and tried to bargin. I didn't want it anymore after he said 300 yuan so i said in Chinese, "Dont want, but he wants" and pointed to Sam. he immediately started trying to get Sam to buy and Sam doesnt spend any money on anything only if he has too, so he knew i was teasing him and ran away from the guy. It was hilarious seeing Sam's reaction though.
Then we went into the Birds Nest where they have the field games. It was turned into a Giant Snow land. Snow was everywhere, Inflatable castles were everywhere, i guess the Chinese utilizes their buildings.
Then few of our friends from Yantai that we met at a club a few times was in Beijing for New years so after we washed up at the Hotel we went to meet them. Played a bit of pool and Sam and Olivia were picked to play a chinese game on the stage which was hilarious to watch how red they both got. I didnt know what the rules where but they were bouncing up and down saying chinese words and all the chinese people int he room were laughing. It was great but they were so embarresed after. After a bit we decided to go to a dance club by there and enjoy the New Years. Had the countdown, saw fireworks, and danced a loooooot. Had a great night. Never Celebrated New Years like that before. I will always remember that night.
We were originally planning to leave tomorrow but we didnt do the Great wall yet so we extended our stay for two more days and we got a Great Wall tour company to pick us up from the hotel and bring us back when it was over. Danny didnt want to go to the great wall so instead of paying him for extra days as translator, since we didnt need him he asked if he can go ahead and go back home. We didnt mind and since he helped us so much on the trip we took him out for one last dinner.
He got us our train tickets and ssecured everything for the hotels and we said our goodbyes that night. It was a really sad night. It felt like losing another brother. We were all upset but i told him i will visit him sometime again and we will keep intouch for sure.
Day 6
We paid 150 for a tour to the Great Wall. Started at 7am and ends at 6pm.
That morning We all got up at 6 to get ready. We get downstairs right at 7 and ask the front where the Tour lady is. They desk guy didnt speak a lot of english but managed to say Ba Dian, meaning 8 am. My chinese has improved a lot during this trip. I can recognize and understand a lot more words now. We were all a bit mad when he told us that the lady would be here at 8am instead of 7. So we decided to get some breakfast in the hotel. He didnt understand what we were trying to say and then he got a call and told us the tour lady is outside! Thank god we didnt get breakfast!
Got an early night because its the olympic city tomorrow. and this time we are going during the morning!
Day 5
Went to the Olympic City. The place was huge!! We stared off at the Aquatic center. Saw the pools and they made a huge water park inside the center to keep people coming i guess. Looked around at a few exhibits upstairs then headed over to the birds nest. Chinese people would be standing around trying to sell items. One guy was selling Gold Metals. I thought about getting one but wasnt sure and the guy saw me looking. He immediatly ran over to me and tried to bargin. I didn't want it anymore after he said 300 yuan so i said in Chinese, "Dont want, but he wants" and pointed to Sam. he immediately started trying to get Sam to buy and Sam doesnt spend any money on anything only if he has too, so he knew i was teasing him and ran away from the guy. It was hilarious seeing Sam's reaction though.
Then we went into the Birds Nest where they have the field games. It was turned into a Giant Snow land. Snow was everywhere, Inflatable castles were everywhere, i guess the Chinese utilizes their buildings.
Then few of our friends from Yantai that we met at a club a few times was in Beijing for New years so after we washed up at the Hotel we went to meet them. Played a bit of pool and Sam and Olivia were picked to play a chinese game on the stage which was hilarious to watch how red they both got. I didnt know what the rules where but they were bouncing up and down saying chinese words and all the chinese people int he room were laughing. It was great but they were so embarresed after. After a bit we decided to go to a dance club by there and enjoy the New Years. Had the countdown, saw fireworks, and danced a loooooot. Had a great night. Never Celebrated New Years like that before. I will always remember that night.
We were originally planning to leave tomorrow but we didnt do the Great wall yet so we extended our stay for two more days and we got a Great Wall tour company to pick us up from the hotel and bring us back when it was over. Danny didnt want to go to the great wall so instead of paying him for extra days as translator, since we didnt need him he asked if he can go ahead and go back home. We didnt mind and since he helped us so much on the trip we took him out for one last dinner.
He got us our train tickets and ssecured everything for the hotels and we said our goodbyes that night. It was a really sad night. It felt like losing another brother. We were all upset but i told him i will visit him sometime again and we will keep intouch for sure.
Day 6
We paid 150 for a tour to the Great Wall. Started at 7am and ends at 6pm.
That morning We all got up at 6 to get ready. We get downstairs right at 7 and ask the front where the Tour lady is. They desk guy didnt speak a lot of english but managed to say Ba Dian, meaning 8 am. My chinese has improved a lot during this trip. I can recognize and understand a lot more words now. We were all a bit mad when he told us that the lady would be here at 8am instead of 7. So we decided to get some breakfast in the hotel. He didnt understand what we were trying to say and then he got a call and told us the tour lady is outside! Thank god we didnt get breakfast!
We picked up four other people for the trip, two ladies from England and a couple from who knows where. we went to the great wall and not a lot of people where there since it ws early so it was perfect for climbing and taking pictures. We had an hour to climb 800 meters to the fourth tower. We made it to the 5th tower in 40 minutes. It felt just like the mountain run! Good thing we have 3 months of prior training of walking up steep steps up mountains! The view was amazing from the Wall. We could look down and see more and more peoople where walking up the Wall and it must be terrible being crowed on the narrow walls. I told Sam half way we should build a lift to bring people down from the top of the wall and charge 1 yuan per person to make some money. On the way down a lot of people where saying where is the water and i need a soda and Sam told me we should buy a vending machine and put a couple on the way up and make a lot of money. I thought it was funny how us Jews where thinking of ways top make money on a ancient tour site.
When we met up with the group we were told we are going to a jade factoy. I asked for free because all i thought the tour was to the great wall. It was free and we learned how to tell if a jade bracelet is fake or not. With a real jade bracelet, women are suppose to wear it on their left wrist and every day for 15 minutes rub the bracelet gently on the pulse of your wrist and they say within 6 months it will remove wrinkles in the face and improve your health which is why jade is also called the magic jade.
After the tour we walked around the shop. When the workers would see us they would rush to us and try to sell us things. Luckily sam was with me so i would tell them that he wanted it and i would slip away. he would get so mad at me. I ended up buying a couple gifts and then we all headed back to the van. Then she told us ok we go to lunch which is free. We had a huge lunch all for free which was amazing! Then we were able to walk around a small shopping center. After that we were told we are going to a foot massage place. Again i was shocked and said for free? and the tour guide, kathy, said of course its in the tour. Got the best foot massage but then doctors came out and told us indivitually that there is something wrong with us and we should pay 2400 yuan for medicine. we all said no. After that we headed to a Silk factory. Learned how they made silk from the larva caccoons and other materials. it was pretty interesting and i didnt mind since each place was a surprise for us three.
When we left the silk factory we went and had tea at Dr. Tea's tea house. we tried 5 different teas and they were amazing. During that the other couple who stayed to themself thoughout the other tours began to talk to us and the English Ladies who were extremely nice. The couple is from Russia. THey didnt speak much english but we were able to communicate through gestures and a few words but we all had many laughs. After that we went to a Pearl FActory and saw how they got pearls from fresh water oysters. WHen we finished the Russians invited all of us to dinner. We all agreed to meet at the Russians hotel in two hours so we can get ready and wash up. The Russians names where Ruslan and Nora. The english ladies names were Shilla and Nimera.
After the tour we walked around the shop. When the workers would see us they would rush to us and try to sell us things. Luckily sam was with me so i would tell them that he wanted it and i would slip away. he would get so mad at me. I ended up buying a couple gifts and then we all headed back to the van. Then she told us ok we go to lunch which is free. We had a huge lunch all for free which was amazing! Then we were able to walk around a small shopping center. After that we were told we are going to a foot massage place. Again i was shocked and said for free? and the tour guide, kathy, said of course its in the tour. Got the best foot massage but then doctors came out and told us indivitually that there is something wrong with us and we should pay 2400 yuan for medicine. we all said no. After that we headed to a Silk factory. Learned how they made silk from the larva caccoons and other materials. it was pretty interesting and i didnt mind since each place was a surprise for us three.
When we left the silk factory we went and had tea at Dr. Tea's tea house. we tried 5 different teas and they were amazing. During that the other couple who stayed to themself thoughout the other tours began to talk to us and the English Ladies who were extremely nice. The couple is from Russia. THey didnt speak much english but we were able to communicate through gestures and a few words but we all had many laughs. After that we went to a Pearl FActory and saw how they got pearls from fresh water oysters. WHen we finished the Russians invited all of us to dinner. We all agreed to meet at the Russians hotel in two hours so we can get ready and wash up. The Russians names where Ruslan and Nora. The english ladies names were Shilla and Nimera.
We all met up at 8 and went to an amazing ROAST DUCK resturant. I have been wanting chinese duck since i got here and we went to the most famous resturant in beijing for duck. Had a great meal but cost 1050 for the 7 of us. Ruslan tried saying he was going to pay for it all but we all told him no and split it 7 ways! We communicated with the russians like cave men would. Lot of gestures and small words. It was an interesting experience but it was very fun! AFter that we went to KTV to do some singing. I was meeting a friend at 11 so i sang a little then left. Met up with my friend and just hung out till Sam and the English ladies joined us and we all danced and Sam and i headed back to the hotel exhuasted.
We were leaving tomorrow so it was an amazing way to end this amazing trip in beijing. All of us miss training soooo much. We were talking about it and i miss my master, my friends, and even the pain!
Day 7
Planes, Trains, and Automobiles...
Today we woke up after a long sleep and packed and headed to the train station. Had a snack before we went into the station. It was amazing how many people did not speak any English in Beijing. Noone in the station spoke english when we asked them where we go so i would communicate in mandarin and managed to get us to our location 2 hours early. So we went to a cafe close by and i began to write my blog for the last few days.
Now we made it on the train and we are on a hardsleep. Meaning there are three bunk beds on each side and sam and i got both bottom beds and olivia is next door on the other bottom bed. Good Bye BEIJING...Hello KUNYUSHAN!!
Day 8
The train was ok. Better than I thought it would be. It reminded me of an old Navy warship. Went to sleep around 10pm and kept waking up every four hours it seemed either by loud noises or people walking around, it sucks to be a light sleeper. Arrived in Yantai around 7am. We were all super tired, cold, and just wanted to sleep! We found a taxi to take us to Kunyushan. Made it back to the academy around 745am. We were all going to unpack and rest but i saw master guo and he was smiling when he saw me and i couldnt say hey master Guo im going to take the day off when he was happy to see me! so i went upstairs changed and went to class.
I MISSED CLASS A LOT! It was great to get up and move and fight. Sam and Olivia went upstairs to sleep. Sam didnt feel good so i cant blaim him. Today was Power training though. After the morning classes i was exhuasted but i stuck through power training. It seemed super hard today, i dont know if its because i didnt train hard for a week or if i am just tired from a 16 hour train ride but i was dead after.
We were leaving tomorrow so it was an amazing way to end this amazing trip in beijing. All of us miss training soooo much. We were talking about it and i miss my master, my friends, and even the pain!
Day 7
Planes, Trains, and Automobiles...
Today we woke up after a long sleep and packed and headed to the train station. Had a snack before we went into the station. It was amazing how many people did not speak any English in Beijing. Noone in the station spoke english when we asked them where we go so i would communicate in mandarin and managed to get us to our location 2 hours early. So we went to a cafe close by and i began to write my blog for the last few days.
Now we made it on the train and we are on a hardsleep. Meaning there are three bunk beds on each side and sam and i got both bottom beds and olivia is next door on the other bottom bed. Good Bye BEIJING...Hello KUNYUSHAN!!
Day 8
The train was ok. Better than I thought it would be. It reminded me of an old Navy warship. Went to sleep around 10pm and kept waking up every four hours it seemed either by loud noises or people walking around, it sucks to be a light sleeper. Arrived in Yantai around 7am. We were all super tired, cold, and just wanted to sleep! We found a taxi to take us to Kunyushan. Made it back to the academy around 745am. We were all going to unpack and rest but i saw master guo and he was smiling when he saw me and i couldnt say hey master Guo im going to take the day off when he was happy to see me! so i went upstairs changed and went to class.
I MISSED CLASS A LOT! It was great to get up and move and fight. Sam and Olivia went upstairs to sleep. Sam didnt feel good so i cant blaim him. Today was Power training though. After the morning classes i was exhuasted but i stuck through power training. It seemed super hard today, i dont know if its because i didnt train hard for a week or if i am just tired from a 16 hour train ride but i was dead after.
There is a new student in our class. His name is Lu Ping. He is Master Guos "disicple" you can say. He is 16 or 17 and master Guo has been teaching ihm since he was 8. Last year master Guo sent him to study in the shaolin temple for a year because he said, "he needs to suffer for a little." I was shocked Master Guo said that!!
He is a very good fighter, his moves are so presis, low stances, looks professional. During warmups i would try to go as low as him or as fast as him. helps me train harder. I was so tired i feel asleep.
Day 9 (Today)
I woke up sooooooo sore!!! I dont know if it was because of the hard training yesterday or if my muscles arent used to pain again.
Instead of running we now shovel snow off the drive way and walk way for warm up. The other guys complain about it but i see it as playing in the snow!
Felt good to stretch out again during morning class. Had a pretty easy morning then San Da in the afternoon. Paired up with Jake and worked a lot of Monuvering around and kicks. Im exhuasted.
Dinner was great and did abs with Jospeh after.
Its Great to be back home.
-Scott
He is a very good fighter, his moves are so presis, low stances, looks professional. During warmups i would try to go as low as him or as fast as him. helps me train harder. I was so tired i feel asleep.
Day 9 (Today)
I woke up sooooooo sore!!! I dont know if it was because of the hard training yesterday or if my muscles arent used to pain again.
Instead of running we now shovel snow off the drive way and walk way for warm up. The other guys complain about it but i see it as playing in the snow!
Felt good to stretch out again during morning class. Had a pretty easy morning then San Da in the afternoon. Paired up with Jake and worked a lot of Monuvering around and kicks. Im exhuasted.
Dinner was great and did abs with Jospeh after.
Its Great to be back home.
-Scott
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