25% literate

I've gotten past my two day language ramping up period and am able to get my way around Beijing. I am reasonably certain that when I take a cab or order food that I could possibly get what I'm asking for or get where I want to go.

Yesterday we did make the journey out to the Great Wall. We went to the Badalong section of the wall. It's the closest to Beijing and definitely a good adventure. As we entered the actually climbing the wall area, we had a decision to make. Right to the easier climb and possibly more scenic part but also more crowded or left to the noticeably steeper but way less crowded part. At that point in time, less crowded seemed like a fabulous idea. As some of you may or may not know, I have two things that made this a definitely memorable experience: Athsma and a slight fear of heights. The first quarter of the climb was not so bad, but as things went on and up both kicked in. To get an idea of how steep it is, imagine climbing stairs and hitting your shins on the next step. Oh joy, oh bliss. I was in pretty rough shape but then I turned around and saw the other section of the Great Wall. I have some fun pictures and perspective shots.

Beijing is one of the more interesting cities that I've visited. It has the feel of both traditional and modern. Maybe because of China's long history, but sometimes modern amenities with a back drop of old style Chinese homes is more than enough to make you stop in the middle of the street. Today some of my classmates and I visited Liulichang, or Tile Factory Street. It was where the roof tile for the imperial Forbidden City were made. The factory has long since been demolished, but the feel of the street was amazing. I looked down the first part of the street and it felt like this was the way it had been and always would be. The history just oozed from everywhere. This street had seen the Communist Revolution, but what stuck out in my mind was that it had seen the Cultural Revolution. If you're not familiar with the Chinese Cultural Revolution I can recommend a few books, but the basic idea was to get rid of the old and reinforce the new (read Communism). On this street one could see where the red paper would have hung along with the denuciation posters. The vibe was unreal.

I'll be here about another day and a half and still have many obstacles to climb, because climbing seems to be a daily activity for me. Who knew that there is a seemingly mile long staircase at every monument? Glad to hear that things are still cold back in North Dakota. I'm very glad to be missing the brisk October, um I mean May weather.

Today's shout outs:
Graham: Happy Birthday! You're close to being officially old.
Grandma Ginny: Don't worry, I've been very careful and I look both ways before crossing the street.
Dad: Sounds like you're doing great! Keep up the good work.
Sarah: We're excited to see you in Hong Kong. Please pack your A game.

I'm off to our daily meeting. The saga continues...