Today unfortunately was our last day here in Beijing and China. This morning we went on a visit to Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City. I never realized how huge both of those monuments are. The square is in the dead center of Beijing, and cops were everywhere looking for people who could possibly start some trouble. It was scary to look at the lamp posts and see 7 or 8 security cameras on every post. And the Forbidden City really is like its own little city. It took us almost an hour and a half to walk from one end to the other, and that was without even stopping. There were probably a hundred or so buildings all together making up the place. It was really cool to see everything and try to imagine what it must have been like to be the emperor in ancient China. In the afternoon we went to the Pearl Market, which is basically a 5 story shopping mall with everything you could ever want. Walking around there was so tiring with everyone trying to get you to look at their stands and sell you things. At one point I had a lady try to wrap a belt around my waist as I was walking away, then she grabbed onto my bags trying to pull me back to her stand. But the best part was bartering with the people to get the best price possible. At one point I was able to talk a lady down from 350 RMB for a set of 8 chopsticks, to 100RMB for two sets of 8. It is definitely an experience like no other, that can’t be replicated anywhere else. If you even look in the direction of a product the people are on you like vultures trying to sell you things. But all in all everyone made out really well buying gifts for family and friends, and I am looking forward to getting home to give them to everyone.

Today was yet another exciting day in China. Although our journey is slowly coming to an end, the next few days will be packed with places to go, people to see, and most importantly things to buy.

This morning we woke up early (as usual) and ate breakfast. After breakfast we got on a bus to go visit the paraolympic training facilities. It was wonderful and extremely moving to see the opportunities that disabled people have to compete in the athletics. During our visit we visited the swimming pools, basket ball courts, and ping pong rooms. We were even able to play a couple games of ping pong. After the tour ended, we got on the bus and headed back to the university for lunch.

Later that afternoon, it was time for our infamous Birds Nest and Water Cube tour. We were originally not able to visit the Birds Nest, but Dr. Guan pulled some strings to get a tour that president Obama himself received. I do not think any of us knew how lucky we were until we arrived at the entrance of the Birds Nest and were personally escorted inside. We were then given a tour of the facilities. It was absolutely surreal to be standing in the location that the 2008 olympics were held. After our visit to the Birds Nest, we went to the Water Cube where Micheal Phelps won eight olympic gold metals. As you can imagine this was also very exciting to witness. The structure of the building itself was absolutely amazing. We were informed that the building was made up of air filled pockets which appeared like bubbles in a cube.

After our tour, we headed back to campus for dinner. We then had free time to do what we wished for the evening. It is hard to believe that this trip is coming to an end, but we are excited for our last full day before our departure for home.

Today was a busy day; breakfast was from 7:30 to 8:30. By now we are all so used to traditional Chinese food that I think everyone was able to find lots of things they enjoyed at eating. We are all also becoming quite proficient at using chopsticks. After breakfast we all met with the vice president of Beijing Sport University. We all gathered in an elaborate meeting hall and listened to a welcoming speech from the vice president. After the welcoming we exchanged gifts with each other; we all received Beijing Sport University hats! We had a bit of free time before our Calligraphy class so our guide took us to Champions Road. This was a beautiful park that honored all the National and Olympic level athletes that studied at the school. At 10 AM we had our Chinese Calligraphy class. The teacher first gave some background information on the different types of calligraphy and then gave us each our own symbol to practice drawing. After practicing our individual symbol for a while we took turns writing them down on a Chinese scroll that we were allowed to keep. After this we had lunch and then an hour break before our massage class.

 During the break many of us went to the on campus market and got some great deals on clothes! Massage class started at 2:30 and was very fun and interesting. Instead of having desks each student sat at a massage table. We were all paired up with multiple Chinese massage students. First the teacher explained how to perform a move, and then we practiced it. Having multiple students was very helpful because one of them could be our subject while the other demonstrated to us how to perform the move.

We ate dinner at a very famous restaurant in Beijing with some of the university’s faculty; the food was delicious. The restaurant’s specialty is roasted duck and we had the pleasure of watching the cooks prepare the duck in addition to eating it. We were informed that the roasted duck was a crucial element of Beijing’s culture so it was very cool to experience. There was also a delicious fish covered in an orange sauce that everyone loved. It was very interesting to notice that in China many of the meat dishes are served with the head (like the duck and fish from dinner tonight). We are all very excited to go to the great wall tomorrow!

We had our last academic class in the morning which was another Chinese language course. Our professor started out with the basics as a review and then we practiced dialogue. She also gave us our Chinese names. Our names translated to Lau Lun and An Ni. She also taught us a children’s song to remember our numbers. The melody was the same as the Barney song we sang as children. Later during the day we were able to practice our greetings with some people out in the town. We even sang the song to our taxi driver. He thought it was quite funny.

In the afternoon we had our trip to the Great Wall. There are two sides; one is steep and the other is easier to walk on. We chose to take the harder path because it is always less crowded. We started off on the stairs that seemed easy but soon became taller and more difficult to climb. Then we reached points where the stairs turned into steep ramps that provided hand rails to help you get to the top. We couldn’t believe how steep these ramps were! We needed many rest points along the way to catch our breath and give our legs a break. These were also great opportunities to take photos of the view. The weather was also beautiful which made the view breathtaking. We definitely lucked out because there are times when the pollution is so bad that the view is obscured. Once we made it to the top, we slowly made our way back down which was also quite difficult. When walking down the ramps you really must concentrate on your body position so you don’t slip.

Once we made it down, there were many shops to buy souvenirs. The bargaining was great practice for our trip to the Pearl Market in a few days. We spent about an hour and then loaded the bus for our ride home. We were all so exhausted but had a wonderful time! Hope we’re not too sore tomorrow!
 

Today we woke up at 5AM to make our flight to Beijing. It was pretty smooth and after a short two hours we were landing in the capital of China. It is HOT. It’s not muggy but it’s definitely hotter than Chengdu. The ride to the university was relatively short and soon we were moving into the last rooms we will stay in while in China.

After a short break and a meal, where we got to meet the president of the university, we went to our taichi class. Our teacher taught us about the philosophies of taichi. He went into great detail about the moving of energy and the imaginary pushing that you must create when moving your arms and releasing your breath. I think we were all tired but right afterwards we went to the Beijing Sport University’s athletics center. It is HUGE. They had their track and field area and we bumped into the national wrestling team in the weight room. Then we went to see the gymnasts. They were all elites of different age groups and they were amazing. Their timing and coordination to do their group performance astounds me. We also saw the national trampoline competition team. Two members recently became ranked number one in the world, one for women’s and one for men’s.

After dinner we had some free time so some friends and I took a walk around the town looking for a drug store to buy cups in. Now we can use the techniques we learned in our classes in Chengdu to give cupping therapy to friends and family. The directions were written in Chinese and English so that should be helpful when I start to broaden my knowledge.