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| The Great Wall of China |
The plane ride of two hours ended up being five hours and we reached the hotel way past mid night. A few hours of sleep and we were on the bus to visit the Great Wall of China. Beijing was very different from Shanghai, no modern high rise buildings, not too much hustle and bustle on the streets and a lot of cultural heritage was evident by looking at the streets on our way to the Great Wall. The Great Wall was amazing and the sector that we visited was open to the general public. We saw a lot of foreigners on the streets to the Great Wall. To get to the Wall we had to take the chair lift and then a quick walk to the top. The day today was actually very nice and therefore we were able to clearly see for miles. The wall runs from the west to the east of China and is
over five thousand kilometers long. The guide told us that not all the sectors of the wall are intact right now and the government does not allow the foreigners to visit many sectors of the wall.
over five thousand kilometers long. The guide told us that not all the sectors of the wall are intact right now and the government does not allow the foreigners to visit many sectors of the wall. 
On our way back from the Wall to Beijing we stopped at a special restaurant that had a spectacular view of the Wall. The restaurant was adjacent to a hotel that was built with a view of the Wall from its rooms. The hotel offered rooms at one hundred and fifty dollars per night.
Our next stop was a visit to the Forbidden City in the heart of Beijing. It was a huge city built by the Emperors and we saw Emperor and Empress palaces along with the quarters where other officials of the palace used to live in the past. The architect of the Forbidden City was incredible. Towards the end of the visit of the Forbidden City we saw Tianeman Square. The square was full of military presence and the Communist party was evident everywhere near the Tianeman Square.
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| Forbidden City |
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| Forbidden City - Communism |
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| Tianeman Square |
Today ended with a traditional Chinese dinner in Beijing. The time had come when we had to say goodbye to China. It was saddening to realize that we now have to leave and travel tomorrow. Over dinner though, we shared our thoughts about the visit and it was pleasant to know that everyone actually enjoyed this highly informative visit to Vietnam and China.
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| Our Last Group Dinner In Beijing |
As remarkable as this trip was and as enlightening, I will be happy to return to my family now…
