Beijing

It's been really hard to blog from here (internet connection is not good, and we are so, so busy), but there's so much to say.

I'm absolutely blown away by Beijing. I was here 20 years ago (just 4 months after the protests in Tiananmen Square), and things have changed more than I could possibly have imagined.

We are staying in a 2 star hotel in a funky little hutong neighborhood. Hutongs are the traditional neighborhoods, with one story buildings (sometimes two, but rarely). Most folks don't have their own bathing facilities, so there are public loos and baths every block or so, and the houses are small, so there is lots of life on the streets. Traditionally, these neighborhoods are rabbit warren like, and full of smells and sounds and sights. But in walking around (and we have walked upwards of 8 miles a day here), we've seen "new" hutongs--areas that were flattened and rebuilt by the government in anticipation of the Olympics. The shape is the same, and the buildings are similar, but everything is new. It's hard to describe how disconcerting it all is.

And then there are the huge skyscrapers, the high end malls (Louis Vitton, anyone?) and the fabulous subway/metro system that costs just 30 cents regardless of how far you ride. We went today too to see the Bird's Nest and the Cube. The TV never captured just how much space there is surrounding these buildings. And I never imagined that they were turning into derelict structures, because they can't find sporting events to host in them.

We've got lots more to say about Beijing, but we've got to get up in 9 hours to go see the Great Wall.

Only 8 more days on the road, and then we're home. We can't believe it, and are trying to fit in as much as we can. It's going to be a hard transition.