Goodbye Beijing

Goodbye Beijing, originally uploaded by ericdues.

It is that time... I have seen all I am going to see, done all I am
going to do, and bought all of the stuff I am going to buy... and I
loved every minute of it! The picture above is of the courtyard in
the hostel I am staying at, the Peking International Youth Hostel
(which I highly recommend). I am beginning writing this after going on
my last shopping spree at the Yashow market.

I have loved this city and would love to spend more time here; I will
be back in the future.

Last night, Nicks friend (Dom) from Australia brought us into some
back alley resturaunt that was the best food that I have had while
here (Chinese duck in Beijing with three Aussies, how much more
authentic thanksgiving can you get). Tonight we are participating in a
dumpling party at the hostel then going out to some bars recommended
by Dom.

Beijing:
-It is huge
-The sights are great (although I did not even get close to seeing it
all)
-The people are generally nice and helpful
-The traffic is nuts (I am writing this because I need to kill some
time to key the traffic die down so that the taxi isn't so expensive)
-The food is great... The best of the trip
-It is pretty cheap

After spending 5 days here in this city, and realizing that I really
need 15 days here and another 90 in the country, I have no doubt that
the upcoming Olympics will be amazing. There is construction
everywhere right now, and today we went to see the Olympic stadium
park and site... It is huge and progressing nicely.

I do think, that in about 2-3 years I will likely hop on a cheap
flight here and stock up on clothes, the savings (especially if you
buy good stuff like suites) is enough to pay for the flight and hotel
(if you were going to buy that stuff anyway)... if you bargain hard!
I did the final fitting of my suites today, and they are awesome, and
worth 10x what I paid.

The people I meet, even in the countryside, were nice and helpful to
me, the dumb white hairy guy.

I am now sending this after the dumpling party, and in 12 hours I jump
on an Air China flight home... I wish I had more time.

In short, good food, nice people, and cheap stuff makes for great place.

Beijing: I'll be back!

- The Dues