China Anniversary Trip: Day 1

We flew from Auckland, NZ to Sydney, Australia and then had a long wait at the airport for our flight to Beijing, China but we kept ourselves entertained.  I didn't quite realise how long the flight to China would be, anything less than the 30 hour journeys to visit family in Scotland seems short!  I also didn't realise just how big Australia is, it took hours to fly over it.

We arrived at Beijing airport quite late at night and the trains stop running about 11pm but we had planned to get a taxi anyway.  Happily the signs were in English as well as Chinese so we followed the directions to get the official taxi ranks.  We had the name of the hotel written down in Chinese so we could show the driver and we were able to just relax and enjoy our midnight ride into Beijing CBD.

Our hotel was amazing and modernly fancy with big LCD screens in lobby.  This was definitely a very special vacation.

The next day, feeling refreshed and ready to start our adventure, we decided to take a walk around and get to know our surroundings a bit better.

Our hotel is part of the World Trade Centre, with a fancy shopping mall underneath and lots of nice restaurants and eateries.  And right outside is the CCTV building.

We came across a figure skating competition happening in the ice rink that was in the mall.  The kids were so cute and Kane and I were reminded of our own ice skating lessons.

People (family members, I presume) would through teddy bears and other stuffed toys onto the ice as the skater took their bows.

We found a grocery store and picked up some breakfast and light meal supplies then after dropping them off in our room we went to the Temple of the Sun Park.

The road along to the Temple of the Sun houses lots and lots of embassies and Kane and I had fun identifying all the flags.

Turns out you're not supposed to take pictures.

Being here made me so happy; listening to the sounds of music and watching people having fun.

 

  I found out that this bird is a type of magpie and I just loved its colours.

 

The park was full of different activities, from these ladies dancing, to people singing to playing mahjong, cards, chess, table tennis to using the exercise equipment and climbing wall.

After wandering around fully soaking up the sights and sounds we headed back to our hotel and the pub to have a nice beer and get ready for our first tour the following day.

Easter Weekend

I had a lovely Easter weekend with my hubby and accomplished everything I wanted to.

Thursday

The weather was horrid with torrential rain from ex-cyclone Ita.  Although there was a lot of rain, it was still quite warm too.

 (More on the weather can be read in this article on the NZ Herald website > http://bit.ly/1nn0iy1)

Thankfully it had cleared up in the afternoon and it was quite sunny again when we went to our ice skating lesson - the last one of this term.  I got to test out my new skates and my instructor was very impressed that I had got such new skates for a bargain price.  I got my skates on trademe and they had only been worn about twice.

My first steps on the ice with my new skates were marvelous! But after a short time they began to feel a bit tight around the width of my foot.  I had previously baked my skates in the oven and I think that really helped since I didn't have any issues around the ankles and at the end of the lesson I didn't have any blisters but I think it will take a few more wears before they stretch out more at the toes.  Before my next skate I think I will make 2 rice bags, heat them in the microwave and put them in my skates to see if heating them before wear will help.

Friday

We had a relaxed day spending lots of time together then in the evening we went to the Easter Show.  I had been really looking forward to the carnival and wanted to go into the Haunted House and then eat a toffee apple.  We had a look around and watched people playing some of the side show games then we went into the haunted house it was not so scary but it was fun.

One of things I had been really looking forward to was a toffee apple!  I had been craving one for weeks.  The first stall I went to was all sold out!  I panicked, but thankfully we found another stall that had them and I was a very happy bunny :)  I munched on that while we wandered around the arts and craft stalls and then into the farm animals section.  We saw some lovely animals and some super cute yellow chicks and ducks.  We saw some Alpacas but since I was eating I didn't pet any of the animals.  There were some spinning wheels and a stall selling alpaca yarn and goods.

We passed the main stage and decided to have a go on a ghost train - the imagery and strobe lighting made for a thrilling experience and I was keen to give the other ghost train a go to see how it compared.  We made our way to the other one via the market place where I very nearly bought a Maple Leafs hockey jersey.  The second ghost train was a much better ride with bumps and jolts but didn't have as scary imagery as the first one but the spray of water took us by surprise at the end and we exited laughing and wiping water from our faces.

By this time the fireworks were about due so we took a seat on the grass and watched the fire dancers on the stage before the sky was light up in a lovely display.  A perfect end to a perfect day.

Saturday

The day was mostly spent pottering around before heading out to Waikaraka speedway for the Easter Spectacular.  We watched midgets, sprints, super stocks, super saloons and derby cars.  The different types of race cars were really interesting and some of the races were closely contended.  

Then there was a big fireworks display before ending with the demolition derby.  

The demolition derby was really funny as car after car packed in, it did have to stop part way through so that a car on fire could be dealt with but then it was back to the action.  

At the end, the winner got out of his car to receive his trophy and was wearing a purple onesie - it made me laugh!

Sunday

I managed to get my game on a little bit on Sunday before it was time to be social and we went to a friends house to watch a couple of movies.  We watched Pacific Rim and then Enders Game.  I've recently read the book and was keen to see the movie and I enjoyed both.

A small side note: Orson Scott Card is the author of the book and co-producer of the movie and I strongly disagree with his homophobic beliefs.  Sometimes it is difficult to separate the work from the person and I did not want to  financially support him.  In this particular case I personally did not have to pay to read the book or watch the movie so have avoided the issue this time.

Monday

From morning 'til night I was encapsulated in my own world playing a computer game, hubby was in another room doing the same thing and I think we only said about a dozen words to each the whole day!