China > Storm in Beijing

The wind blew strongly during the night. Outside the hotel, I could hear objects falling and rattling. Strangely enough, the storm seems to have died down in the morning. When I open the curtains, the trees outside the window barely move. Meanwhile, the first reports from the Netherlands about the storm in China start to come through. The situation in China is also in the news back home. At half past eight, we gather in the lobby. Frank has inquired, but all tourist attractions are closed today. Tourist buses are not allowed to run, and even the double-decker buses in public transport are not operating. This means there is not much to do. Frank suggests checking again at noon to see how the situation is. Then we can also have lunch and possibly visit a department store. If the Summer Palace or the Temple of Heaven open, we might still visit those places. With some fellow travelers, I cross the street to Starbucks. It’s noticeably much colder outside. The temperature has dropped about twenty degrees. I pull my jacket tighter around me. At Starbucks, I order a cappuccino and a ham and cheese croissant. Afterwards, I retreat to the hotel room. I take time to update the travel report and sort through my photos. It’s nice to relax a bit. Around noon, everyone is downstairs again. Unfortunately, no attractions have opened yet. The wind seems milder, but there are still occasional strong gusts. We take bus line 6 toward the park of the Temple of Heaven. We get off exactly on the other side. There is a traditional restaurant here where we can eat Peking duck. We are led to a private room on the second floor. Soon various dishes appear on the large glass turntable. It takes some coordination to know who takes what and when to turn the turntable. The duck is served on ceramic plates shaped like a duck. Frank shows how to spread sauce on a thin wrap and then place pieces of duck and optionally some vegetables on it. Then the wrap is folded and ready to eat. Not only the duck is delicious, but also all the other dishes on the table. Although there is a lot of food for just a lunch, nearly all the plates are finished. After lunch, I walk with a few fellow travelers to a shopping mall. Other members of the group take the bus. We walk along the wall of the Temple of Heaven. The entrance is hermetically sealed. The security present says the park will also be closed tomorrow. Further on, workers are sawing two cherry blossom trees into pieces. The trees were blown down. There isn’t much other damage, though. However, there are scooters and bicycles knocked over everywhere.

China - The old workers’ houses in the Hutongs of Beijing

We have the wind at our backs. Now and then a strong gust follows. We turn off at a Hutong, an old residential area. The houses here stand very close together and the streets look messy. This Hutong looks more authentic than the area we were in yesterday. When we arrive at the shopping mall, more tour groups show up. Probably a visit to the department store is one of the few activities still possible today. Vendors immediately try to sell everything. What am I supposed to do with a lady’s handbag? On the third floor are the souvenir shops. I look at the souvenirs and watch other tourists bargaining over prices. From the shopping mall, it’s about a ten-minute walk back to the hotel. In a restaurant next to the hotel, we order a beer. There is no better location. Because we ate heavily this afternoon, we decide to eat something simple in the vicinity of the hotel in the evening. The waitress doesn’t understand why we order the same meal twice. In China, dishes come in the middle of the table and are shared. In the end, a total of five dishes arrive on the table. It tastes great.