Xi-an to Beijing

Wednesday 3rd October

Before leaving Xi-an this morning we paid a visit to the old city walls. We drove on the new road over the moat but could see the old drawbridge. The walls are completely intact and very impressive going on for miles with the walkway on the top of the walls wide enough for two coaches to pass each other. There were bicycles for hire but, as we only had a short time to walk around, we made do with taking photos.

As it was the middle of the national holiday week the inner courtyard was set up with a stage ready for some historical drama and music. We managed to persuade one of the guards in Qing (pronounced 'Ching') Dynasty costume to have his photograph taken with us! It was also fascinating watching the locals in the square below doing sequence dancing and Tai Chi - this is a common occurrence in the big cities with many people, young and old, stopping off on their way to and from work to share in this pastime - a great way to keep fit!

Then it was off to the airport for our internal flight to Beijing - the capital of China. All our internal transfers were organised very efficiently by Jacky, our guide and today was no exception - we were provided with a packed lunch (as well as getting a meal on the plane during the 2½ hour flight) and check-in was managed on our behalf - oh, to have someone like Jacky with us every time we travel!

Anyway, there was no time to waste when we eventually arrived in Beijing. We were promptly introduced to our new local guide, Sally, who whisked us off to our first port of call in Beijing - the Temple of Heaven (see right). An impressive example of Ming architecture, this was where the Emperors staged sacrificial rituals to ensure good harvests.

From here we were taken, late afternoon, to Tiannanmen Square. Teeming with thousands of people this vast square sits in the centre of many buildings of historical note including Chairman Mao's Mausoleum, The Great Hall of the People, the Hall of Chinese History and the Memorial to the Patriots. Portraits of Chairman Mao at one end of the square and Dr Sun Yat-Sen at the other dominate and with hundreds of soldiers marching and on guard there was quite an atmosphere.

We were disappointed not to get photos of the magnificent fountain in the centre of the main square but, just as we arrived it stopped! However, we did get to see it illuminated later in the evening on our 'Beijing By Night' tour. We were encouraged by Sally & Jacky to have a souvenir group photo taken here although none of us were at our best having been on the go since early and desperately looking forward to checking in at our hotel! The photo has come out remarkably well considering!

So ... it was onto our 5* hotel (actually this was the worst hotel we stayed in for the whole tour with poor service and the bar closed for the whole week because of the national holiday!) Another quick shower and change before dinner then back onto the coach as most of us, despite our exhaustion, didn't want to miss out on Beijing by night. Probably, because we were all so tired, this wasn't the best experience but we did enjoy our rickshaw ride through the streets of the old town (I guess this is something you have to do when you're in Beijing!)

We were also taken to meet a family in the Hu-ton district - despite their apparently basic accommodation they had all the 'mod cons' including washing machine, large screen TV, video & DVD, computer, etc. The families who live here are all inter-related and have turned down offers of millions of pounds from Western developers (as this is such a prime site in the centre of Beijing) as they do not want their way of life to change.

We wound our weary way back to our hotel through the illuminated streets of Beijing passing Tiannanmen Square with it's beautiful fountain (the photo's not great as it had to be taken through the coach window at speed!!) We fell into bed exhausted but looking forward to our visit to the Great Wall tomorrow.