Hi everyone

It's been a few days since our last blog, due to travelling and a 12 hour train ride, so there's a fair bit to update you on!

Back to our second day in Beijing, we spent the day at the Summer Palace, where Emperors went in the Summer when they'd had enough of the heat of the big city. Well worth seeing.. Not so much a palace as a collection of mini palaces spread over a giant park complex by a lake.. Nice for some! I won't go into detail.. We'll make you watch all 1000 or so pics later!

But Esther's status as a celeb continued unabated.. No sooner had a group of schoolgirls had a photo than a Japanese guy wanted a few snaps too 'you are very beautiful', he said.. I could only agree!

Yes..this wanting a picture with me is all harmless and in good fun :-) but I do worry about the older generation who are surprised to see a foreigner like me, as they look as if they are about to have a heart attack! and fall off their bicycles! I was glad to be in the summer palace...as I found some parts tranquil,away from the busy Beijing streets. Still can't get used to the constant spitting on the streets!!

Yesterday was Great Wall day.. I had this grand plan taken from Lonely Planet to get a bus near to the bit of wall we wanted to visit, then get a taxi/minibus to the wall itself. I must emphasise that I had also read loads of traveller accounts of how easy it was etc.. But as it turned out, Saturday must be 'get out of town day' as the bus queue snaked out of the bus station and down the road! So after a period of calm adjustment to the situation, we decided to take a taxi... Not cheap, but it got us there!

Yes..what Cathal means by 'calm adjustment' is bashing the Lonely Planet book against a fence,in full view of the local police! Once at the wall we took the cable car took us up past the mountains...great view :-) So far the weather here has not been that warm..well until now! So glad Cathal was able to get us both a pair of decent trail shoes...wouldn't have got as far as I did in my converse trainers! :-/
We passed through Watch Towers, walked up and down stairs but the worst part was yet to come....

Yep, the one day we're faced with a very long steep climb up the Great Wall of China, the temperature decides to hike 10 degrees! I made it most of the way, Esther called it a halt a bit earlier! Still, it's an impressive wall, and the view is great.. It goes without saying that Esther had several more photo calls en route...

Back in Beijing, it was time to catch our overnight train to Pingyao, a well preserved old Chinese city. We made it to the train ok.. Neither of us were quite prepared for the fact that our beds didn't have curtains so weren't private! We were sharing with a policeman (who tried to make us feel welcome, bought us noodles etc nice guy) and some other guy.. Would have been nice to have some privacy. But we made the best of it, watched a movie on the iPod, and fielded the many questions from our fellow traveller!

12 hours later, at 7.30 this morning, we arrived from the train to find a taxi waiting to take us to our hotel, which was very welcome! We had a decent breakfast, after which the hotel had decided to give us a suite as they were pretty full.. All good! Feels like we're staying in a museum! :-) This place is a beautiful 18th century courtyard house, now used as a hotel, but we're not sure much has changed! Our bed is mad.. Really!

We've spent the day wandering around the town, taking in the scenery, doing the usual celebrity snapshots for people! The town hasn't changed in hundreds of years, it's something else! The streets are lit with red lanterns... We've just for back from dinner, feeling very tired! Some more sights tomorrow, then overnight to Xi'an to see the Terracotta Army...C&E

PS: Oh...by the time it's morning here...it will be Cathal's 36th Birthday! :-) Please
If you can...send me old man birthday greetings!
Cheers,
Esther x