Melbourne - Beijing

Friday 30 - Saturday 31 March
Good flights, but not much sleep. Second leg with Dragonair was luxury, with three attendants just for us. Breakfast involved several courses, and seats and service were excellent.
Beijing
First impressions from the air were of very flat land, and very dusty with a dust storm. No visible trees or greenery. Airport is huge, and service very good. Travel to hotel by car, and the construction activity observed is enormous. Cranes, workers, excavators and piles of dirt everywhere. At first glance it appears to be like any other city in the world apart from the construction work. Cars and buses, with some bikes, but no motor bikes or trucks on the road.
Hotel Novotel is very modern, but service not up to scratch. Spoken English also difficult to follow - "den block" translates to "10th floor".
There are 5 people in our group - a couple and a single lady from UK, and of course the driver and "local guide".
Sunday April 1 Beijing
Full day today. Walked through Tiananmen Square, and then through the Forbidden City (emperor's quarters for over 500 years, and home to Ming and Quing dynasties). Public toilets are readily available, all "squat" type, and designated with a star. A 4-star is clean but has no toilet paper! The Emporer's garden was the highlight of the Forbidden City - some trees over 500 years old, with the high branches propped up with 3m or longer timber poles (we have seen a lot of this, and also rope wound around trunks to protect it from the cold and also for support). The lack of trees or grass in the Emporer's city was to ensure that no-one could hide and present a safety risk. The base of the main courtyard consisted of 15 layers of bricks laid criss-cross, so no-one could dig a tunnel under the wall and obtain access to his quarters, his empress, and his 1,000 concubines!
Then to a traditional Tea House (also a shop) for a Tea Ceremony and tasting. Lunch at a family home in a Hutong area (low rise, very old, narrow lanes, community toilets, family living). Served a delicious lunch by the lady of the house - 10 courses all fresh and home cooked. Rickshaw ride to the Drum Tower and climbed 69 very high and steep steps. Opposite is a bell tower - long ago when there were no clocks or watches, the bell was rung to wake everyone up, and the drums were beaten to tell them to stop work. The tower holds what is stated as the largest drum in the world.
Then to a show to see the world famous Chinese acrobats, which was excellent. From there by car to Wangfujing food street, where there is an amazing stretch more than 100 metres long of fresh and varied foodstuffs (soups, meats, vegetables, fruits, including the most unusual items - insects, snakes, sand worms, kidneys, in addition to skewered pork, dumplings, prawns and wraps). Great place to eat if you don't want to sit down or have a wine with your meal.

April 2 Great Wall of China
Today was a full-day trip, 90k to the base of the Wall which receives less visitors than one closer to Beijing. We did not expect the number of hawkers and their shops at the base of the Cable Car which took us to the wall itself. Amazing structure, which just seems to go on forever. Very high off the ground and quite high walls, with no level sections that we could see. It is quite wide, designed to take 4 - 5 horses side by side. Views are of craggy inhospitable countryside, mountains, and barren partly because the deciduous trees have no leaves yet. The steps are either very low and narrow (presumably for horses) or extremely steep and deep which are hard work for the legs.
Interesting report from our guide. Three generations ago, if a man wanted to be able to marry a girl he needed to have three things - a bicycle, a watch and a sewing machine. The next generation needed a black and white TV, an ice box, and a washing machine. For the current generation, it is now a car, mother must have a good house, and he must have a good job. How times have changed.
There are 3 young women for every 5 young men in China now.
This is an exciting and developing country, and we are looking forward to seeing more of it.