Beijing Part III

I'm going to wrap up the posts about our Beijing trip with a few more pictures highlighting my favorite parts of it. 

We spent one afternoon exploring Beijing's modern art district. The area is called Beijing 798 Art Zone, and it's full of old armory warehouses converted into galleries. Funky cafes and shops line the streets, and art is available for purchase. We had a great time checking out all the funky paintings and sculptures. Unfortunately, we couldn't afford any originals.

We also traveled to the Summer Palace. Although it was picturesque, it was also extremely crowded, which made it pretty much impossible to enjoy. 

We climbed to the top and enjoyed a view of the lake surrounding the palace.

Here we are in front of the lake at the Summer Palace. There were so many people there, but you can't even tell in this photo. 

One of my favorite attractions was the Temple of Heaven.  It's a beautiful building and nothing more than that to me.

The coolest part about the Temple of Heaven is the huge park surrounding it. It's so full of activity. We saw old couples dancing, kids playing badminton, people practicing thai chi, Travis ran into some kung-fu fighters and lots of aerobics classes were taking place, too.  

I don't have any pictures of my favorite part of the trip, seeing a Chinese acrobat show. I actually obeyed the staff's request to not take any pictures unlike many of the audience members. I purchased the cheapest tickets available, but somehow we ended up three rows from the stage, dead center. It was the most incredible show I've ever seen. My chin was on the floor the entire time. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. There were pretty much no safety measures implemented, and I had to try hard not to scream. I was so nervous watching the show, but it was truly incredible. If you go to Beijing, please go and see the acrobats.

The last picture is of a sign outside the Silk Market that I found rather amusing. Maybe you will, too. 

As always, thanks for reading about our trip. If you're considering a trip, Beijing is definitely worth the effort. It's dirty and polluted, but it's full of history, lively and inexpensive. And, most importantly, the food is delicious.