This morning after breakfast we checked out of the Howard Johnsson Hotel and headed to the Beijing Zoo. The Beijing Zoo has a special Panda enclosure where it houses 6 pandas. Our guide previously has not had any luck when taking people there as the pandas have always been asleep but luckily for us they were awake and we came at feeding time so we got to see them in eating action. After the pandas we went and checked out some of the other areas of the zoo. There were animals we had never even heard of. It was great. It was probably one of the best zoos for variety of animals we've ever been too.

Next stop was a Chinese banquet for lunch. The food kept coming and there was no way we could possibly eat it all. It was some of the best Chinese we had ever had.

After lunch we were off to the Summer Palace. The Summer Palace or Yiheyuan ("Garden of Nurtured Harmony") is a palace in Beijing, China. The Summer Palace is mainly dominated by Longevity Hill (60 meters high) and the Kunming Lake. It covers an expanse of 2.9 square kilometers, three quarters of which is water. The central Kunming Lake covering 2.2 square kilometers was entirely man made and the excavated soil was used to build Longevity Hill. In its compact 70,000 square metres of building space, one finds a variety of palaces, gardens, and other classical-style architectural structures.

This place was absolutely amazing and is a must see if you are ever in China. We only had a couple of hours there but you could easily spend days there roaming around the beautiful gardens, pagodas, and temples. The Long Corridor walk is hundreds of metres long with paintings and murals on every beam (more than 14,000 of them).

The Long Corridor was first built in 1750, when the Qianlong Emperor commissioned work to convert the area into an imperial garden. The corridor was constructed so that the emperor's mother could enjoy a walk through the gardens protected from the elements. Like most of the Summer Palace, the Long Corridor was severely damaged by fire which Anglo-French allied forces laid in 1860 during the Second Opium War (the only time the Frogs and the Poms got along). It was rebuilt in 1886. As you walk along it you can easily imagine the empress walking long with her maidens. The breezes that come off the lake are lovely and cool on hot summer days.

At the end of the Long Corridor is the Marble Boat. It was first erected in 1755 during the reign of the Qianlong Emperor. The original pavilion was made from a base of large stone blocks which supported a wooden superstructure done in a traditional Chinese design.

In 1860, during the Second Opium War, the pavilion was destroyed by Anglo-French forces. It was restored in 1893 on order of the Empress Dowager Cixi. In this restoration, a new two-story superstructure was designed which incorporated elements of European architecture. Like its predecessor, the new superstructure is made out of wood but it was painted to imitate marble. On each "deck", there is a large mirror to reflect the waters of the lake and give an impression of total immersion in the aquatic environment. Imitation paddlewheels on each side of the pavilion makes it look like a paddle steamer. The pavilion has a sophisticated drainage system which channels rain water through four hollow pillars. The water is finally released into the lake through the mouths of four dragonheads.

The Marble Boat is often seen as an ironic commentary on the fact that the money used to restore the Summer Palace largely came from funds originally earmarked for building up a new imperial navy. The controller of the Admiralty, the 1st Prince Chun, owed much of his social standing as well as his appointment to the Empress Dowager, who had adopted his oldest son to become the Guangxu Emperor. Because of this, he probably saw no other choice than to condone the embezzlement.

At the Marble Boat we got on a boat of our own to go across to Nanhu Island where the Seventeen-Arch bridge joins the island back to the mainland. The views from the boat are extraordinary. Looking back towards the palace high on the hill is the Buddist Monks temple. It is an impressive sight.

Connecting the eastern shore of Kunming Lake in the east and Nanhu Island in the west, the Seventeen-Arch Bridge was built during the reign of Emperor Qianlong (1711-1799); with a length of 150 meters (164 yards) and a width of 8 meters (8.75 yards). It is the longest bridge in the Summer Palace.

The unique scenery is but one of the stunning landscapes in the Summer Palace. Seventeen Arch Bridge looks like a rainbow arching over the water. On the column of the parapets are 544 distinctive carved white marble lions. On each end of the bridge is a carved bizarre beast. With the biggest arch in the midst of the bridge flanked by eight others, visitors can count nine arches on either side. According to ancient thought, the number nine symbolizes good fortune and safety; and the meticulous design of the bridge embodies it perfectly.

Unbelievably we have only been in China 2 1/2 days but have seen so much. We definitely want go back to China again.