A big day in Beijing

Joy kept us going today. First we went to Tienanmen square and then the Forbidden City. That was an awesome experience. I could not believe the architecture and the grandness of it all. I kept picturing the ancient times and the emperor and the empress walking around going about their business. It was incredible. I had to pinch myself to really understand that we are in China walking through the Forbidden City. There was one building after another and seemed like it kept going on forever. We were all pretty tired from walking and the crowds when we were done.

We continued our tour today with a rickshaw trip through narrow streets in the middle of Beijing. Our guide explained about Chinese culture and the area we were going through. We got to visit some people that live there. One of our stops was at a Tea House. That was a real neat experience. The lady there showed us how she makes different kinds of tea, why they are good for you, and how to drink it. The highlight for Kai was the little statue boy that peed all over the table when she poured hot water over him. I liked that the decorations on the tea cups changed color when she poured hot tea in them. Kai surprised us and actually tried all the different teas she gave us. Brave boy!

The ladies got to try the squatty potty today. I am sorry I don't have a picture of it. I had a hard enough time making sure I was doing it right. I must have done something wrong, because our guide Joy laughed when I demonstrated my tecnique. Now she says she understand why Americans are worried about using squatty potties.

We also went to an acrobat show this afternoon. It was unbelievable what these people could do. The muscles and balance that they have is just amazing. We enjoyed the show a lot, but I think the whole group was getting tried at that point.

Everybody here likes Kai. They all look at him (because he is so cute) and he loves to smile and speak Chinese back to them. Speaking Chinese is his favorite thing to do these days. He says he wants to learn to speak it. He make our guide laugh saying underwear and bottom in Chinese today:) Kai actually stayed awake all day today. I hope we are over the worst part of jet leg.

I am so glad we have had these days in Beijing. It has been real busy and tiring, but totally worth it for us. I love all the things I have learned about China and about the Chinese people. I would like to learn more. We'll have to keep learning about China when we get home. One of the families in our group will be getting their child tomorrow and I am all nervous for them. I cannot believe that it is almost our turn. Our adventure is about to start. We have one more day of sightseeing and being tourist - on Monday we will become new parents to a scared little girl. Please pray for us!!!