Let’s finish this up!!!

Since we have been back home for 2 days that  means that it is time to finish up this trip AND this blog

Our last 10 days in China were fairly quiet.  We enjoyed several relaxing days in Kunming after the Dali debacle, although I caught a cold and didn’t feel wonderful.   We had ideas to do a bit of sightseeing while we were relaxing, but the weather did not cooperate so we mostly stayed inside, although we did enjoy a morning of shopping at a local Antique market.

We bought a few fun pieces but our favorite was this metal monstrosity….

We stood in the shop looking at it for a long time and finally the shop keeper picked it up and indicated that it was a pipe!!!   Well, it had to come home with us!!

On Sunday we flew to Beijing for Michael to do his last work session.  That evening, his hosts took us to a “traditional” hot pot restaurant that used Copper pots with coals in the center to heat the water…..

The menu was a huge book and JiangFeng and Chaoqun spent several minutes trying to decide exactly what we would cook in our hot pot…..

….but eventually they decided and the food started to arrive.   First came thin sliced meat…..

….and trays of mushrooms and greens…..

All of these were put into the pot to cook……and then “chop-sticked” out, dipped in a Sesame sauce and happily eaten!!  It was a fun meal and the one mile walk back to the hotel was good for our swollen tummies!!

Unfortunately Michael woke up very sick the next morning….probably from the food he ate on the plane to Beijing.  We spent a tense Monday with me force feeding him crackers (1/4 at a time) every 15 minutes.   The people at the Beijing Forestry University were super sweet and told him to take all of Tuesday off as well!!  So, since he had yet to do any work for them, we changed our plans for the end of the week and stayed an extra day with them.   On Wednesday he was able to spend the entire day at the University and the day was celebrated in the usual way…..a banquet for all the dignitaries…..

I spent all that day in our room working on a hand-work project that I have been enjoying!! 

On Thursday we moved to the Grand Hyatt in downtown Beijing and spent our last two days in sheer comfort…..

The only time that we left the hotel was to do a bit of shopping at the Beijing Pearl Market, once again visiting Lynn’s shop on the 4th floor, coming out with full shopping bags and empty wallets.

There were two or three “quilty” ideas that caught my eye at our Beijing hotels.   The first was a light in the elevator…..

When I first looked at it, I saw the inset circles and thought that it looked interesting.   But, when I looked again, I realized that the circles were not just lines but had depth as well and that, when you looked at it from different angles, the design changed…..

Every time I stepped in it to travel between floors, I was madly taking photos trying to get different angles on the shots!!

I also liked these “walls” in the dining hall….

….and this carpet in the last hotel…..

We left on Saturday morning and made the 11 hours  flight into Seattle.   It was a super easy flight and went really fast.  We enjoyed a meal in Seattle and caught our last Delta flight to Atlanta.

Our sweet Son and Daughter-in-law brought our car to the airport and dropped it off so we were able to hop in and make a fast no-traffic trip home!!

Now let me say that this trip has been different from previous ones.  We had more time to ourselves and had some really fun times, but also had some near disasters.   We have learned more about how to travel in China and will be sure to follow these new “guidelines” in future travels.

Right now, we are enjoying sleeping in our own bed, showering in our own shower and eating our own food!!!

Thanks for traveling with us!!