The Beijing Adventure Continues...

Today was another day of adventuring, spent almost entirely on my feet. The hope was to find a good scenic spot for some pictures, but to go somewhere that isn't on the standard list of tourist spots. I ended up taking a subway/bus ride to the western outskirts of Beijing, to 香山公园 (xiang shan gong yuan). This is supposed to be much more beautiful in late October, when the leaves turn orange and brown. But, I was determined to check it out anyways.

Little did I know, it was going to be a hike. And actually, I think this hike up to the peak was much harder than either of the Great Wall hikes I've done.

There was the option to take the cable car (ski lift) up to the peak, but the starting base was at a different location than the entrance to the park where I came in. Then, up at the top, it was already too late to take the lift back down, so that meant hiking back down too.



The hike up took me about an hour and a half. The hike down only took half an hour. But up at the top was a pretty grand view of Beijing. It's crazy to see just how big this city is.



Then, for the evening, I slowly made my way back, stopping at Pizza Hut for dinner. The menu for Pizza Hut here is crazy. Seriously, it looks more like a menu for Chili's or TGIFriday's. I passed on the calamari, the waffle fries, the shrimp scampi pasta, the clam chowder bread bowl, and the stuffed filo dough. Yes, those were all on the menu. Instead, I did a personal pan pizza and a grilled chicken salad. After a long day of hiking, this hit the spot.

The nightlife in Beijing is active no matter what part of the city you're in. Here's just one area where I was walking by, filled with inline skaters (and people renting out inline skates), musicians, street food vendors, and people taking leisurely strolls.


Also in the area were people selling kites. I had never thought about what it would be like to fly a kite at night... especially a kite with lights! Here's a shot of a kite salesman (and his girlfriend?) trying to attract business.



Half more day here. Sunday morning will (I hope) be the long-awaited 4-hour marathon at a Starbucks.