Tian An Men Square

Forbidden City
Forbidden City

In the Forbidden City

The Great Wall

(Due to technical issues I am redoing what I attempted to do before I went to bed – the internet knows it’s me even in China)

Today was an awesome day. We were able to visit Tian An Men Square, the Forbidden City, and the Great Wall. I am struck again at the longevity of Chinese history. The Forbidden City was built from 1406-1420 – years before Columbus sailed that infamous ocean blue. In China the present and the past mingle in a most curious way. So there we were in the Forbidden City when Ethan had to go to the bathroom – bad. So I asked our guide Rui where it was and she gave me reasonably good instructions and we sprinted in the general direction of the bathroom. It was several courtyards away and I got a little nervous at first (this is the first time I have traveled somewhere where I couldn’t speak enough of the language to get my basic needs across). As we were frantically (by this point) searching for the bathroom I came upon a Chinese man who was trying to draw customers into a coffee bar. It was Starbucks! There in a corner of the Forbidden City – the same as we have on corners all over the US – crazy. Unfortunately, I wasn’t carrying the money and Ethan certainly didn’t need anymore liquid in him, so we passed it up still looking for the bathroom. Apparently the Pee Pee Dance is universally recognizable because the man then pointed us to the bathroom (which was just around the corner from Starbucks). After reuniting with the group (and acquiring funds) I got a Caramel Machiato from Starbucks and can report that it tastes the same half way around the world. I am sure that the Emperor who had the Forbidden City built couldn’t have imagined this scenario in his wildest dreams. After lunch we went to the Great Wall (which I will write about in Ethan’s blog). It was a truly awesome experience that words can’t really describe. In 11 hours from this writing at 3:30 pm (1:30 am Texas time) we will receive our daughter. In that light even the Great Wall will look small :) Looking forward to telling y’all all about it.