Today is my last day in Beijing, and my last day of secured internet access. Tonight I shall board a night train for Datong. After this I shall be spending lots of time on trains, in caves, climbing mountains, and seeing old stuff. I can't say that I am particularly disappointed to be leaving Beijing. It was a nice city to visit, but I don't think I could stand more than two weeks here. The smog was the worst, I think. I am looking forward to the countryside, to old temples, and beautiful mountains.
A few final thoughts on Beijing:
-Everything is cheap, but Starbucks is more expensive than the US.
-There are people whose entire job is to sit in the back of the city bus and make sure you put your money in the slot.
-If you come to Beijing, I suggest the winter. Everything that was supposed to be crowded, wasn't.
-Don't come to Beijing before 2008. They are in the process of redoing everything for the Olympics. This means that some famous places are under scaffolding, or closed. But at the same time, half of what exists now will be knocked down by the time 2008 rolls around.
-The biggest and most impressive embassies are the Communist ones.
-Try the duck, eat the dumplings, and stay away from foreign food that costs three times as much.
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