Beijing Day 3

The culture here is so different compared to the U.S. and Uganda (where I lived last summer).  A colleague asked me how many siblings I had and I responded that I had two brothers.  The person’s eyes got big and she said that I had such a large family since the stereotypical Chinese family consists of one child.  When I was asked the same question in Uganda last summer, everyone told me that I had a very small family and asked why my parents only had three children.  This is just one stark example that I have noticed thus far.  By law, Chinese couples can only have one child and if they have more than one, the consequences are pretty intense.  You get fined A LOT of money for every extra child you have and if you work in government you are lowered in rank (pay) if you dare have more than one child.  In Uganda, the more children the better.  Anyway, speaking of culture and tradition, Oscar and I decided to jump right in and go see the Forbidden City today.  It is absolutely breathtaking, and I had no idea how expansive it was.  From the front to the back, I would bet that it spans for at least a mile.  In other words, I was tired when we finished our tour 3 hours later.  You feel as if you have been thrown into the 1400s when the palace was built. Twenty-four emperors have lived/ruled there, and I am so fortunate that I was able to see it.  However, if you ever go see the Forbidden City, I would suggest you go on a weekday. We went on a Saturday and the crowds were ridiculous.  Be prepared to be pushed around if you go on the weekend.  After we left the palace, we made our way to Wangfujing Street which is east of the Forbidden City.  This is a huge tourist destination with a lot of pricy stores and hotels.  We decided that we really wanted to jump into the culture, so we ate at a restaurant called the Quanjude Roast Duck.  There we got duck heart dumplings, duck wings, rice, Chinese pancakes, and fried shrimp.   The meal was amazing.  We were not so sure about the duck heart dumplings, but they were excellent.  I have found that if you can get past the thought of what of you are eating and just try it, you will be pleasantly surprised.  The same thing happened hours later when we ventured onto the snack street of downtown Beijing which basically consists of hundreds of vendors selling everything from seafood to candy.  Some of the more interesting vendors sold a multitude of critters like fried scorpions, lizards, beetles, mice, chicks, and dragonflies. Oscar and I were brave once more, and both ate a fried scorpion, which to my surprise was not half bad.  We have only been here for three days, and I think we are well on way to becoming natives J.  I also bought a kebab of grapes that had been dunked in sugar that basically resembled a hard candy.  I really enjoyed that as well. I am so glad that I am here and Oscar and I get along great so I cannot wait for more adventures to come.  We start work on Monday, so we have one more day to play and explore.  Talk to you tomorrow.