Multicultural Beijing

We woke up with the knowledge that we would certainly be changing hotels within a couple of hours. What transpired was sort of typically Chinese. We checked out as Tan had found a place nearby that was cleaner, if a little "cosier" and more expensive. Not as much as I had originally planned on paying though. We'd got all our suitcases outside in the warm morning and paid for our solitary evening in the Forest Land Hotel. Then awaited two taxis to arrive to take us to our new place. They did arrive within half an hour but then refused to take us to our new hotel because...oh well I tried to get the answer but it was something to do with it being a special day and they couldn't drive there. Poppycock, it was just that it was the wrong way down a one-way street and they could have easily gone the long way round. As it was I did not understand this so we had to pay each driver the minimum 11 kuai or whatever.

After a long time on the phone a couple of blokes from the new place came to help us. It transpired that the new hotel was but a couple of hundred yards away so we set in that direction through the hu taos, passing blokes drinking beer in the late morning and many others eating, until we arrived at the Beijing Xiao Zhan Hotel/Hostel and it was immediately more welcoming than yesterday's attempt. The reception was clean, as was our room - if somewhat smaller than last night. But I could cope with a couple of one-and-a-half beds as I'd be with Xixi and Tan with Leilei. There was also a lovely courtyard that most of the rooms opened out to.

Once we'd paid our deposit and dumped our stuff Tan got in contact with her friend Cao Lei, who was a good friend for a few years while she and her family lived in the UK, until moving back to China a few years ago for better work prospects. Cao Lei and her husband and two daughters (born in the UK) came around later in the morning to pick us up and take us for lunch. As this was Beijing they left their car parked by the hotel and we got a couple of taxis to take us. We went to a charming place, and because it was around 1pm by now it was not too busy. We had some of the local specialities and a couple of glasses of beer, and it was nice for the ladies to chat in the same room rather than by QQ 5000 miles apart. Cao Lei's husband also mainly spoke to me in Chinese, which I took as a compliment.

Cao Lei's daughters are obviously a lot older than I remember them, but they were great company for Leilei and Xixi, and even me. After lunch we went to visit some ancient places that I now find interesting. I was struck by how many foreigners there were. Not just whiteys but people in Muslim garb and some Blacks too. I felt like I had just arrived from a foreign country and in some respects I had. Beijing has obviously become very multicultural in the eight and a half years since I was here last.

Meeting up with Cao Lei and family in Beijing

Tan and I at a Confucius place in Beijing

Tan and I in front of a lovers' tree apparently

All in all the day was enjoyable as we caught up with old friends and saw some lovely sights. But at the end I couldn't help really missing Pingguo. Here was if anything closer to London than to back home. I was tired, but forced myself to go for a little walk along the hu tao but still couldn't really feel as if I was here.