We headed out this morning with a group of people from the hostel for the Summer Palace just outside of the city. This was the place that the Emperor's went to to relax in the summer and they certainly did a good job of creating a stunning and huge place...no beach huts for them! There were some fantastic buildings and beautiful architecture abound. They are really into their rockeries on a big scale and it was a good place to climb and hide in the little caves....kids would love it. I (Claire) knew that the day wasn't going to go my way when I tripped on some steps and fell backwards leaving a rather impressive bruise on my bottom. After a bit more exploring we came across a circular stone doorway and I decided to demonstrate to my new found friends how to pose like a star shape - unfortunately great shame was to follow as my left leg failed to cooperate when I jumped into a star shape and after a lovely popping sound from my knee I ended up in a heap on the floor! I put on a brave face despite wanting to vomit and eventually got up - Steve was not that helpful as he was also in a heap on the floor laughing his head off! We managed to get around a bit more of the palace, the lake was completely frozen and covered in people crossing to the central island. Steve and I opted not to get on the ice for fear that I would do myself some serious harm, so we set off back to the hostel so I could rest my knee. The following morning we headed off to see the doctor with a trusty interpreter from the hostel in tow. An hour later we got to see the doctor - no chance of a private consultation as the next patient also sat at the desk with us!!!! I got some interesting Chinese pills to take and was told to rest which I haven't actually managed to do yet...hey its New Years Eve tonight, there's things to do! As the Chinese relations descended on the hostel and the building was decorated with red good luck symbols, we got a big group together and headed out for a pizza. The fireworks started outside in earnest and all across the city you could hear and see rockets and firecrackers going off. We joined the staff and family back at the hostel for a lesson in dumpling making - very impressed with our little effort as you'll be able to see from the photos. We then joined the family to watch fireworks out on the street with tons of other people. Health and safety regulations do not feature at all in Chinese firework "displays" - there is no standing at a safe distance and certainly no rule that children are not to play with fireworks.....it was mental to watch but the fireworks they had particularly the firecrackers were amazing to watch. All in all new year's eve was a great event and it was a real bonus to be able to share in some of the family celebrations....the dumplings tasted great by the way!