Ni Hao. Is there a cardiologist at the top?

Today we had our first guided tour.  We joined with another couple and hit the town in a comfortable van.  On our way to the Great Wall, we stopped at a Jade gallery and enjoyed seeing the process of making statues and jewelry for about 10 minutes before they turned us loose in the show room.  Some of the work is breathtaking.  There was a giant battleship that took three years to build and some tall floor vases that were truly gorgeous.  We were able to find a few gifts a little more appropriate to our budget.

Then, on to the Great Wall.  What else are you going to say?  It is one of the seven wonders of the world.  Okay - here's something you can say; it is steep.

Here's something else; it's a long way up.  But it's the Great Wall - you have to keep climbing.  And so we did and it is a lifetime memory.

Max, of course, zoomed up; leaving his parents well behind and yelling as best we could to wait up as we attempted to gather enough oxygen to yell.

 In fact, Nina did the yelling, while I did the panting.  Zumba has done a lot for her.

From there, we went to the Summer Palace, which is remarkable, as well.  It is a massive and beautiful lakeside retreat that was only for the use of the Empress Dowager Cexi and her family.  It's a lot of square footage for just a few folks.  We walked along the Long Corridor and took a motorized Dragon Boat back to the entrance.

After that, it was time for tea.  We were brought to a tea store and enjoyed a tea ceremony during which we sampled oolong, jasmine, peur and fruit tea from tiny little cups.

 Max was delighted by the Chinese Tea Ceremony version of a tchotchke - a statue of a naked baby boy that when you pour water over it, it sprays off the penis.  It was free with our purchase.

After a quick stop at our hotel, we went off for a hotpot dinner.  Each of us had a different broth into which we placed raw shrimp and thinly sliced fish along with dumplings and raw vegetables.  Quite good - particularly Nina's very spicy soup which gave the meat and vegetables a great flavor.