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Janet and Steve Wells were working in the Beijing office - so Robin and I decided we had to fly up and see them and the place...
I remember we got to Beijing airport and were picked up by Hotel Courtesy car, and so far as we knew it was just a quiet ride to the hotel, meet up with Janet and Steve - a few drinks and some dinner.....
No, No!!
As we arrived, Janet and Steve whisked us off for a DHL office party - cannot remember what was being celebrated, but there was lots of toasting and Kampei'ing with Mao Tai's - which I guess like any spirit, if its pure enough you don't get a hangover (well - we drank lots and none of us had hangovers!!) - brilliant!!
Next day we had to do the sights.... and it was very cold - as you'll see....
People from the Beijing office organised vans/cars for us as well as coming along to help translate and get us where we wanted to go - many thanks.
15th December, 1995
First we had to see Summer Palace..... which was a bit of a drive...
The Summer Palace is spread over a hillside next to a lake....
which was completely frozen - we HAD to walk out on it!!
First tentative steps on the
ice......
Getting braver... Brilliant!! We walked (on the ice) from the palace
towards a lovely bridge...
Janet, Robin and Wellsey (how
come he's not cold?? Inner warmth??) right out on the ice.
Made it!! Now lets climb all
over it!!
That was a cold day - but ordinary Jackets were just about warm enough.... next day the local office people said a trip to the Great Wall would be very cold (strong winds) - so they loaned us some courier jackets - and we needed them....
16th December, 1995
The drive to the Great Wall at Badeling was memorable for one stop that we made - calls of nature.... We had pulled off into something of a lay-by and were watching cars coming up the gentle hill that we had just about surmounted, but you could see wheels spinning on the icy road - and what with one then two then more cars having the same problem - then having to stop and try to get going again - we ran out onto the road and gave them a push!! Cementing Sino/Western ties!!
The Great Wall was brilliant!!
A couple of ladies from the DHL China office - we're all
trying to keep out of the biting wind!!
On the way back to Beijing we visited
the Ming Tombs....
and then a park with old, giant
statues...
17th December, 1995
This was "Beijing Day" - Tiananmen Square (one of the buildings had a giant display - counting down the seconds to the handback of Hong Kong to China in 1997...
Shame you cannot see the countdown (in seconds to 1st July 1997)
- its in the red windows in the big white poster
Out on Tiananmen Square with Forbidden city in background.
Spent lots of time in the Forbidden Palace... still cold enough for the
parkas!!
I especially liked the
colour of the walls..
Temple of Heavenly Peace