We started a beautiful second day in our hostel getting ready and eventually heading down to see if Lorilei was ready to head out for the day. The divide that had started on day one due to hunger continued on as we let the other 3 see the forbidden city which they had never gotten to the day before. Once everyone was ready we met up and headed for the metro. We used our trusty map and picked the appropriate metro stop for the summer palace. Once we had gotten our tickets we hopped the metro and headed out. After we got of the metro we started our search for the entrance to the park. Once we had been ambushed by a couple of tour guys who we promptly turned down it was fairly obvious where the entrance was so we headed into the park. The summer palace was huge and gorgeous. A large portion of it was water which provided some beautiful views and great picture taking opportunities. Once in the park we headed along exploring the area with all of its historic properties, informational signs, and beauty. We wandered for awhile talking as we went and taking pictures as we headed along. After awhile we found an area which was home to a grand hallway that was very long and displayed several beautiful images along the whole thing. We were able to capture several images that were painted along it and take in the beauty of this hall, along with the beauty surrounding it as it was an outdoor hallway and also had excellent views of the waterfront.
After we had been wandering and enjoying for awhile once we had seen many of the buildings and much of the history we started looking for our way out. Along the way we ran across a man who was doing water calligraphy. He had a giant brush and would use just water to write on the walk and once the water dried the calligraphy would go away and the sidewalk would be good as new. We spent a minute watching him and enjoying then we headed along. Also along our path we ran into another man who had a type of game with two sticks of wood and a spinner where you would try to flip the spinner off of the wood and catch it again. We stayed there for a few minutes as Lorilei and Dayna tried it out then headed on. After a few more minutes we found our way out and found a bus that would take us up to Xiangshan park. We hopped the bus and were on our way. It was a bit of a long bus ride but we talked or slept along the way.
Once we got off the bus we searched for the park. It took us a few minutes and asking someone where the park might be but we found it and headed up. Just outside of the park there were many vendors so we stopped for a minute as some of us found something to eat and then we headed into the park. We hiked around for a bit and took plenty of pictures, however, after awhile Dayna’s foot started to hurt her so she and Ashley decided to stay down at the bottom. Looking at the clock Nick, Lorilei, and I decided we wanted to try and amble to the top then back down before we had to head back to our hostel for our plans for the evening. So up we went as quickly as we could go, trying to make the best time we could. After awhile Nick let us know where we were regarding the time. We didn’t want to hold him back as we weren’t sure if we’d make it to the top so I passed off my camera to him while we kept Lorilei’s camera and we sent him on his way, with plans to meet at the top. Lorilei and I ambled up the mountain, Trying to race to the top, climbing numerous stairs, some steeper than others. At one point along our way we got stopped by some Chinese men to take some pictures with them. After a few Lorilei got away but I got stuck with them for a little longer then finally was let free. Once I was free I could still see Lorilei but barely so I continued to amble up. After a bit I had lost Lorilei close to the top, eventually I found her though and we took a couple of pictures at the top and searched for Nick. After a few minutes unable to find him we headed down the mountain climbing down numerous stairs and jogging along for the bottom. After a little while we finally made it to the bottom and a few minutes later we found Nick. After waiting for a few minutes Ashley and Dana came along so we were ready to head out. We let Lorilei and Nick head off for a minute as Lorilei wanted one of the medallions they were selling at the park. After waiting for them for about 15 minutes they finally emerged and we headed for the buses in a bit of a hurry. Of course the bus they were starting for us made an awful sound, so after waiting for a bit we tried to get a taxi to a metro stop, but to no avail. We headed out and found another bus which we took to the metro which we took back to Tiananmen square and then ran to our hostel from there. However, by the time we got back it was too late for our night plans, luckily, we were able to reschedule them to the next night.
After our long days adventure we headed out in search of some food. We found some food and filled up. Later Lorilei, Nick, and I decided we wanted some ice cream. As we headed out we ran into Luis and Dylan and they showed us a different area than the one we were used to and we went there for ice cream. After ice cream a challenged was issued and a piggyback race ensued with Nick on Lorilei’s back and Luis on Ashley’s. The race started and it looked promising until down Lorilei went flat into the cement, all of this caught on video. After this another race ensued with Lorilei on Nick’s back and Ashley on Luis’s. The race started and before Nick could make it all the way up from getting Lorilei on his back down he went to with Lorilei tumbling over his shoulder, tucking and rolling, unfortunately not caught on film. Needless to say Luis and Ashley won both races. The physical tax from running up and down a mountain that day had just been too much for Nick and Lorilei. After that we decided to call it a night so we headed back to the hostel to turn in so that we could wake up to another day in Beijing.
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