Beijing - Part 1

I will break our trip into several parts so you won't have to read it all at once. We sure packed a lot of excitement into a few days!

So, what first? Well, don't laugh too hard when I say I am first going to wax poetic over the FOOD! Oh, my, oh, my, but did we eat great food. This trip really helped me to know for sure that it isn't Chinese food that I don't like, I am just having trouble adjusting to the Henan version (which is not one of the better known cuisines). Our first night in Beijing we ate at a very local restaurant in an area outside the city. It was just a short walk from our hotel and came highly recommended by the people who are doing the clubfoot repair for John Wayne. We weren't quite sure we were at the right place because it was practically empty when we arrived. The menu was very diverse and huge. We ordered three vegetable platters, sweet and sour chicken, and a dessert. Everything was beyond delicious; we were all raving about it. I had ordered soup and rice for Kristen, just to be safe, but she ate everything and then ate some more! For dessert we had a Chinese version of fried bananas. The bananas are hot and come with a sticky honey glaze; you dip it in water to harden the glaze. These are addictive. Luckily I was so full from the other dishes that I didn't eat too many. I did eat more than I have eaten at any meal since I arrived, and I was a happy camper (which I mentioned so many times that I am sure my travel companions thought I hadn't ever seen food before!).

Our next culinary wonderland was at lunch the next day. In the heart of Beijing's old (and now commercially old) hutong district, we picked a nice looking restaurant that had a sign advertising duck. Since we were in Beijing what better to eat than Peking Duck? Well, the answer to that is...NOTHING. It was soooo great. Kristen had at least four of the little burrito-like bundles of duck, cucumber and sauce. Then she proceeded to eat and eat and eat the duck alone. I enjoyed it but she devoured it. We also had something like potato straws that were slightly sweet with a spicy aftertaste and some perfectly crisp vegetables. Yum Yum Yum

I am now back to pb&j, peanut butter and bananas and other items from the care packages I have been sent. I did splurge on some french fries at McD's while out doing errands this afternoon. ;)

(I will add photos soon...in my hurry to leave I left my memory card in the computer instead of in my camera, so I need to rely on our friends for photos.)