Beijing, March 1

Much to report! After getting four hours of sleep, we had breakfast and met our guide, Michelle, at 8 a.m. for what would be a very full day of sightseeing. The pictures are out of order, but I'll describe them.
This is the drum ceremony in the Drum Tower near the Hutong area.

Rice with chopsticks ~ works for me! This was our traditional Chinese lunch.
April and I in the rickshaw on the Hutong tour.
Must be hungry people!
The Great Wall ~ one of the Wonders of the World. This is our third visit to the Wall, and I am still fascinated by its history and magnificence.
Great Wall.
The soup's not bad, until she's done and pours it on Mom!
Daddy and his girl in the rickshaw.
The Temple of Heaven.
Olympics sign at Great Wall. The Olympics will officially begin at 8 p.m. on August 8 (8/8/08 at 8). 8 is a lucky number in China. Opening Ceremony tickets are around $300, which I don't think is too bad, but I'm pretty sure I'll be watching it in my living room for nearly free.

The Olympic Aquatic Center. This photo really doesn't do it justice.

April, Kambry and I on the Great Wall.

Ah, now this is April in her element ~ shopping :) We were at the Jade factory and made some very nice purchases.
And my dear husband who knows no stranger.
On the road again ...

Stairway to the Drum Tower. Don't look up and don't look down!

Baskin Robins in China, perfect ending to an awesome day!
To sum up our day, we started at the Jade factory, then walked the Great Wall, had a traditional Chinese lunch, took the Hutong tour and visited a local family. The Hutong area is the "old China" which is maintained to preserve the culture and history of Beijing. Many of the homes are hundreds of years old. They are courtyard style housing with a building for each room, all surrounding a courtyard, with several generations of families living in each one. We had the pleasure of visiting one of the local families. Then we went to the Temple of Heaven, an ancient Chinese place of worship. Then on to the silk factory and finally at 6:30 arrived back at the hotel and enjoyed Subway and Baskin Robins. It was a very long day! We must be packed and ready to tour by 8 a.m. tomorrow (Sunday). We will visit the Pearl factory, Summer Palace and have a "dumpling" lunch before arriving at the airport for our flight to Guangzhou. We won't arrive at the White Swan until 8:30 p.m. so it will be another very long day. But this mama will likely not sleep as I envision the miraculous events of the next day, God joining us with our son! We will try to post once checked in and then as soon as we have Kaeleb! Don't forget to check out April's blog for more pix and posts. Thank you so much for your comments and emails. We love hearing from you! Kuyler, Kolton, Kenzie and Kayden, we love you and miss you like crazy!