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We awake late, still not yet adapted to the time zone, and make a brief stop at a realtor where Stephen had some business that needed doing. It's a rather odd scene as two women have a table set-up in an as-yet unused shopping centre and nobody really seems to know what's going on, least of all me who has a rather gigantic language barrier obscuring the view. I do, however, manage to figure out that the estate agent who eventually turns up is most disappointed that I am taller than him. One gets the feeling that he had, at 5'11" previously thought himself something close on the World's Tallest Man.
Once it's dealt with we make for the Summer Palace located in Beijing's North. The wide calm lake sits in the foreground with the dominant presence of Longevity Hill in the background, on which the intricately designed Tower of Buddha is located. It isn't as peaceful as it could and should be however, as armies of Chinese tourists descend on the site. I don't use the 'armies' analogy lightly: it would appear that most Chinese tour groups stipulate that their clients must all wear matching baseball caps, and that they must devotedly follow their flag carrying group leader at all times. One group even goes a notch further and wear all-red tracksuits. The people are mostly in their 70s and if I didn't know better I would guess it was a reunion for the Chinese gymnastics team of the 1952 Helsinki Olympics. This particular group won't stomach any dawdling either; I'm promptly scrimmaged out as I attempt to spend a few seconds to take a picture.
The Tower of Buddha is closed for the evening, although a short walk atop the adjacent hill affords spectacular views as the sun sets over the tower, lake and famous 17-arch bridge. Other attractions include the 'marble boat' (which needs little further description) and the 'Long Corridor' (again...), although the Corridor is particularly impressive as each of the beams that line it is painted with a different scene from the palace grounds.
The evening's meal is provided by Beijing's original Peking Duck restaurant: Quan Ju De. It is as much about the spectacle as it is about the delicious food, as a masked chef brings forth the duck and chops it in front of us. I am later presented with a certificate informing me it is the 115,364,132nd duck served in the restaurant since it's opening in 1864. A parrot sits in the corner of the restaurant, still wishing the guests a "Happy New Year" in Chinese, only 2 months too late. It is impressive nonetheless as this bird brain can speak better Mandarin than I can. My vocabulary currently consists of 'chi' meaning eat, 'hue' meaning drink and, most importantly, 'ganbe' meaning 'cheers' or, more literally, 'down in one'...
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