Day 2: Beijing and Xi'an

Today the day dawned bright and clear. My room faced the East so I had the pleasure of seeing the sunrise over the Birds Nest stadium in Beijing. You might remember that the Birds Nest was the site of the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2008 summer Olympics. Today the stadium is virtually unused. In talking with my tour guide yesterday she said that after the Olympics the stadium was suppose to be home for a soccer team. The soccer team pulled out of their lease because it was too expensive and they did not draw a lot of fans. The guide went on to explain that the stadium may be turned into a shopping complex. That was sad for me. It just seemed like such a nice venue for a sports complex. The design is so beautiful. After breakfast we headed to a recruiters office to meet with Chinese recruiters who speak with students who want to study abroad. We left two hours early for our appointment as one can never predict the traffic in Beijing. We drove the 13 miles in an hour. While we waited for our colleagues to catch up to us we found a Starbucks and had a coffee. This was the first good cup of coffee I had since leaving the US. Coffee to date in China has been weak whether it was brewed or instant. I was so happy to see a Starbucks but fearful that Starbucks in China would not taste like Starbucks in US. To my delight a Starbucks drip coffee in Beijing is just like a Starbucks drip coffee in the US. The little things one discovers when the travel abroad! I now realize just how important my coffee is to me when I drink it which is not that often. Once our colleagues arrived we met with the recruiters and made our presentation about our college. Then we were off to the airport to board a plane for Xi'an. As I wondered about airport security in Beijing I was able to quickly discover that it is pretty much the same as that in the US. However, they still do pay downs in Beijing. Given the controversy over pat downs in the U S I just had to chuckle to myself. I couldn't help but wonder had any of the ney Sayers in the US ever been to Beijing? Our stay in Xi'an will take us to meet with another set of recruiters.

Day 1: Beijing, China

After a 14 hour flight from Detroit to Beijing and a good sleep, I am ready to begin my first day in China. My world has gotten immeasurably smaller by arriving in a country that was once closed to Americans until the Nixon administration and previously only a news article. Today was a day to be a tourist. Using a tour, suggested by my hotel, I set off early in the morning. The first stop was the Ming Tomb. The tomb is north of Beijing and looks back on the city. It is directly in line with the forbidden city and Tienneman Square. The good king Judea is burrows with his wife in what looks like a Hugh mountain of earth now covered by trees. The many buildings are Hugh and depict the traditional Chinese architecture. The main building contains a statue to the king. The wall surrounding the entry into the tomb is built with bricks. The builder was required to place his name in the bricks so that future rulers would know who was responsible for the brick work should the brick work fail to hold up over time. If the brick work did not hold up, the the brick layer was killed. That is certainly one way to guarantee quality. From the tomb we made our way to lunch at a factory that makes pots with enamel artwork. Prior to our stop for lunch we stopped at the government jade shops. There I learned that the best quality of Jade is the darker green Jade. I also learned that Jadite is the best type of Jade for jewelry because it is hardest. I also learned how to tell fake Jade from real Jade, simply by the sound. Better quality jade has a bit of foggy look to it when you hold it up to the light. Fake jade will be clearer more like glasses. I learned how to tell the difference between A level jade which is the best and B level of jade which is good. A level jade will have a higher pitch to it when you tape it with another piece of jade. I learned much about jade and now have a better appreciation for its importance to China. While waiting dot lunch we had a tour of the process used to make the enamel pottery so common in China. The hand work used to to made a clay pot to a piece of beautiful artwork is time consuming and detailed. However the craftsmanship is truly beautiful. After lunch we went to the Badalin section of the Great Wall. We took a sky ride to the top section which is 1000 meters above sea level. The climb to the top look out tower is said to made one a hero. I can attest to the steepness of the climb and thank my exercise routine for getting me in shape enough to made the assent. Standing on the wall and gazing out over the mountains and the various sections was breath taking. I was trying to imagine the guards keeping watch for Mongals charging from the north. The day was cold and the fall season well along. I could only imagine the bitter winds of winter bottling at the guards as they faithfully watched over their homeland. The guards would not need to keep an exercise routine, they walked the wall and that alone was enough to give anyone a good work out. When I finally snapped back to present day, I was struck by all the people who were visiting the wall. I was expecting to see many nationalities and foreigners outnumbering nationals, but that was not the case. It seems the people of China visit the wall is vast numbers, make the wall truly their wall. I can see how the Wall is one of the Wonders of the world.

Vacation Preparation

Heading home from a professional conference with anticipation for our next motorcycle trip. Trip preparation is systematic and calculated. First there are months of trip planning. We examine what roads, what routes, what cities, what adventures we hope to have while on the road. We know that you can really only have a beginning date and an ending date as so much in between depends upon,well, so many factors. So as I sit in the airport awaiting my flight home I am making my list and checking it twice so that once I arrive home I can begin the systematic, detailed activity of readying myself and my bike for the trip. That does not even account for all the things I have to do to ready the house for the house sitter. But that is for another blog. In June weather should be warm in the Carolina, our destination, but the mountains make weather a bit more unpredictable. Consequently, one must pack for all types of weather. The heavy leather jacket and chaps for the cooler mornings. The leather vest for warmer days. The rain gear because one just never knows and we are already anticipating leaving in the rain and driving the majority of our first day in the rain. Besides clothes one needs to have tools just in case. Then one needs the cleaning items, especially to clean the windshield at various stops and prior to getting back on the road after a night of rest. We pack a light dust cover to keep the rain off the bike, but really it is to keep the rain of the seat so that at least at the start of the day the seat is dry. You have to have rags. One just never knows what a rag is good for. I pack two types of cloves, one for warm weather and warm pair for cool weather. Of course, there is the road atlas and motorcycle manuals. Now, if there is any room left, I can pack my clothes. This is where minimalism is a good thing. Jeans and t-shirts are the standard. One needs clothes for the evening when the day ride is over. I pack my IPAD so I can have all the tech tools I need - books, blogging tools, MLB TV, and games to keep me entertained in case we have a rain day. So, as I await my fight home, my mind continues to make lists and checks them twice so when I get back on the ground I hit the ground running so when tomorrow comes we can be off, confidently knowing we are prepared for everything we can encounter on the road.