2014
JANUARY – Milwaukee
We went to see my Aunt Karen in Wisconsin – in January!
[pictures to come]
MAY – Nice, France
In May, my work took me to Nice, France for two weeks.
Over the weekend I took a short trip through the Alps with a friend (no Victor on this trip).
[pictures to come]
JULY – China
I know what you’re thinking. Why didn’t Victor go with me to France? Answer: Because we were already planning to go to China in July!
This was our second time in China. The first time was in 2005 when we went down the Yangtze river. This time we had Albert and Anna (our niece and nephew) as well as Laurie and Don (two friends of ours). The full collection of picture galleries is below.
We started off by flying through Houston and on to Beijing. From there we caught a couple of trains and several subways to get out to Kangqiao in the suburbs of Shanghai. Why Kangqiao? To swim in a pool. I know it sounds crazy, but the pictures show why. After Kangqiao we transferred to the Hotel Indigo on the Bund and from there we spent several days exploring Shanghai. We saw the Yu Gardens, the Bund, and spent a day in Suzhou seeing the Beisi Pagoda and the Humble Administrator’s Garden.
From Shanghai we flew to Xi’an, a 3,100 year old city and former capital of China. There we visited the Qin dynasty Emperor’s tomb where he built over 7,000 unique warrior figures out of fired clay to protect him in the afterlife. We now know these as the Terracotta Warriors. We also visited the Banpo museum which preserves a Neolithic settlement/village which dates back 6,000 years. The next day we climbed to the top of the Xi’an city wall – the only remaining ancient city wall in the country and not related to the Great Wall. At the top of the city wall, we rented bikes and rode all the way around the city – an 8 mile trek. We closed our Xi’an visit with a trip to the Muslim street where one of the oldest street markets in the country still operates with food and trinkets and blind masseurs.
We spent the last week in Beijing with our friends Ivy, Peng and Lala who made sure we had a fantastic time. We visited the Great Wall, The Summer Palace, The Forbidden City, Tienanmen Square, the Lama Temple, and the Temple of Heaven. We ate two kinds of Hot Pot, genuine Peking Duck, and a fantastic meal of local Beijing food. We also took in some Peking Opera, shopped like mad, and had a little karaoke party on our last night!
Click the links above or below to see pictures from our trip.
- Getting There
- Kangqiao Hotel and Pool
- Shanghai – The Indigo Hotel on the Bund
- Shanghai – The Bund and Nanjing Road
- Shanghai – Yu Garden
- Suzhou – Beisi Pagoda
- Suzhou – Humble Administrator’s Garden
- Xi’an – Terracotta Warriors
- Xi’an – Banpo Museum
- Xi’an – Xinchang Opera
- Xi’an – City Wall
- Xi’an – Night Market
- Beijing – Getting Back to Beijing
- Beijing – The Forbidden City
- Beijing – The Great Wall at Xishuyu
- Beijing – The Summer Palace
- Beijing – The Lama Temple
- Beijing – The Temple of Heaven
- Beijing – Good Friends, Great Food, and Random Things
NOVEMBER – Cruise
In November we plan on taking a little cruise over the Thanksgiving holiday.
[pictures to come]