We headed up North of the city to the Olympic Park for a look around taking the metro - which was really easy to navigate and buy tickets at the machine in English. After wandering around the site we got a ticket which meant we could look around the stadium and also go up on the roof called the 'Air corridor'. Up there you got a really good view of the City and landscape - whilst bracing the cold!! The tour itself was self guided, so we wandered around the stadium looking at the different sports set up to remind you of what went on! It was so quiet as it was cold and out of season so it was a bit eerie!! And then some extra ones with the preparation for the 2022 Winter Olympics being held in China. I believe the 'Water Cube' which hosted the swimming is going to be the home of The Curling events as it turns into the 'Ice Cube'!!

Elaine and I won on the dinner choice tonight and took the reluctant men off to a very lovely Vegan restaurant. Veg Tiger Veg Food 
https://www.facebook.com/pages/素虎素食-Vege-Tiger-Vege-Food/357369331029445
Given that we can't eat dairy this was a great place to not worry about the menu and it was in English! I have never eaten at a Vegan restaurant and it was amazing. Such tasty flavours and food which changed some minds of our company!! Rob and Tav you would be proud of us...

You enter the Forbidden city through the gate with Chairman Mao on and then purchase a ticket from the smallest kiosk place to the right of where you enter the Forbidden City. I think you could probably purchase them online in advance and they just validate your entry through your passport - you actually don't get a ticket. So make sure you take your passport everywhere with you in China as you need it for a lot of tourist things!

For me this was probably one of my favourite things to see in Beijing even though it was COLD. We went from 27 degrees to single figures...not quite what we were expecting! But looking around this place is huge and just goes off into more and more courtyards and exhibitions (including clocks, jewellery and treasures)that you see which I did not expect. 

And there were so many great photo opportunities for any avid photographers, probably on a day with bright blue skies!! But I will show you a few of mine...

A 2 hour flight and we were up at Beijing ready to explore the sites in the new age China Political capital. Our hotel was tucked away off the main street and was very Chinese - the people on the desk did not even speak Chinese! However, it was going to do a job and was very clean and close to the areas we wanted to explore and thank goodness they had Western style toilets!! That afternoon we went for an explore around Tiananmen Square, which was only a 10-15min walk from where we were staying and found the way to the Forbidden City which we would venture to at some point this week. 
The weather was pretty warm at 27 degrees but the air quality was not very good at all as you can tell by the hazy picture...oh how we had no idea that this was the warmest it would be here!

Our Didi driver pointed out a Peking duck restaurant near our hotel so we headed there on his recommendation and actually it turned out to be amazing! It was in the top of a big building near the metro and it was quite the tourist spot with a trip advisor rating above the door! Up in the restaurant area, it looks like an old ballroom type room with a lot of big round tables centred around the chef's area where they cut up your duck ready for you to roll up in your pancakes!!

With some attempt at charades and pigeon Chinese we did end up working out how to order and the waiter showed us how we 'should' make our duck pancake with all the trimmings...i'm not sure he would have been as impressed with our attempts!! It was absolutely delicious and I would thoroughly recommend going and experiencing this Beijing cuisine. It was so good- we went back a few days later!! And because it was nice and close and it was hammering down with rain that night!!

You can even see them carefully carve up your duck and receive information about where it was farmed. Are they specialist Oven Roast Duck Chef's I hear you ask?!! Yes. Yes they are. Who knew that was a career path you could take?!

This is a highlight in the guides when visiting Xian and I am glad that we saw the hustling bustling area of the Muslim Quarter. Here there are many many food stores down narrow alleys and walk ways with a variety of home cooked food and treats to be had. As well dangling carcass of meat!! There is a real buzz in this area with tourists, residents and the frequent motor bikes trying to squeeze past you! A must see if you are in Xian.

We ended up coming out by the Bell Tower and then the Drum Tower, both lovely old buildings in the city. So it was nice to see them but not ones that we actually looked inside.

Living in China we have the Didi app (China's version of Uber) which was useful for getting places and worked out cheaper than letting the hotel organise it. Saying that if you are visiting, our hotel charged 600RMB (around £70) to take the 4 of us to the site which was about an hour outside of the city and wait until you are finished and take you home. So still a reasonable way to do it. We have found that admission fees are quite reasonable in comparison to things back in the UK and with this in mind we paid for a guide (200 RMB), Sindy, who spoke to us by the ticket office. It was well worth getting a guide as she was so knowledgeable (as one would hope!) about the Terracotta warriors, the site and importantly the history behind it all. As well as showing us where to get cash out and things to make the process a lot smoother. For a country so advanced and looking to go cashless in the next few years it was a surprise at the number of places which you would have to pay cash for to get into the attractions, so bear this in mind!

The site itself is situated in lovely fields, farmed on for many years before a farmer discovered parts of the warriors before it was dug up. The best pit to see the expanse and awe of the excavation is Pit 1, the largest of the 3 pits and has the most soldiers and horses in. When they were first dug up it was a massive jigsaw as they were all in pieces and needed to be reconstructed, which is crazy!! The only one found whole so far is the kneeling archer, known as 'the lucky one'. They are still piecing some bits together and have a 'hospital' section where the archaeologists are working on warriors or soldiers. Emperor Qin really did build himself a huge army ready for the after life. As well as building the Great Wall, making everyone speak the same language in China and many more things...
This place is well worth a visit and notice all the warriors are so different, even down to the detail in their faces. I am sure google can offer a much better explanation of it all than me, so I will let my attempt at photography depict the rest of the story... enjoy and if you come to China this is a must see to appreciate the extent of the work and the history here.