I attempted to get up early to go to Forbidden city this morning, but to no avail, my alarm went off and I just went back to sleep. I ended up waking up around 10am yet again.

I got up and dressed and trudged off on my 2km walk from the hotel to Forbidden city. When hotels say online that something is near or with in walking distance, I often wonder whose walking distance this is supposed to be? I don't consider 2km with in most people's idea of walking distance. Lucky I don't really mind walking.

I walked through Tiananmen Square and bought my ticket to go in to Forbidden City. Forbidden City….the irony, it was one of the most crowded places I've ever been. I don't know what it is with me, but I wasn't that impressed. Maybe its because I've already seen so much. I mean it was pretty cool, but it was nothing on the Pyramids, Red Square, Venice or the Eiffel Tower. I actually found the Mother Temple that I recently visited in Bali more interesting.

Forbidden city is immense, all the buildings are built in the Chinese style with green pagoda roofs and red pillars. After you've been past one of them, they all look pretty much the same. The only part I really did like was the garden and rockery at the back of the city. The smaller temples and pagodas were nestled in amongst large bonsai style trees and bamboo and there were certainly less people. There was a cool breeze blowing and this part of the place could have actually passed for serene.

After I back tracked through the whole of Forbidden city I went to check out the Beijing Central Railway station where the Trans Mongolian Railway leaves from, upon which I will be leading 12 unsuspecting travelers on Wednesday. The station is huge and very confusing, it actually looks more like an airport. You can not access the platforms, I think you need to wait in your designated lounge until it is time for you train to board.

After the station I got back on the metro intent on going back to the hotel for a rest. I got about half way before I spotted a massage place called Dragonfly and went in for a traditional Chinese massage, which after the past three weeks I think I thoroughly deserved. The whole place was dimly lit by candles along the halls and had a very modern feel to it, what I would expect of a spa in a five star hotel. It was actually one of the best massages I have ever had….or maybe I just needed it more than I ever had.

I finally managed to get back to the hotel and hung out and did some paper work for a bit, before going down to Wangfujing street to get KFC and try my hand at bargaining at the markets. On the way I had to go past all the sellers, hawking scorpions and other bugs on sticks. As much as this makes my skin crawl, I couldn't help looking at the various creepy crawlies many of whom were still alive, impaled on kebab sticks. In the end I had to cross the road so I couldn't look.

I went back into the night markets and down the alley with all the souvenirs. Bargaining here is the easiest I've ever experienced…and the most physical. If you try to walk away here, they run after you and drag you back, which is quite funny. Walking off is definitely the key here. I had a lovely embroidered paining go from 400 to 120 by doing that. I also bought 4 silk wall hangings, one with lovely orange Chinese goldfish on it like they have in the hotel.

After the markets I went back to the hotel, tomorrow I am going to spend the day trying to book my Greece trip.