8 Days in Beijing - Day 8

Date of travel: 19.02.2013

Day 1 click HERE

Day 2 (part 1) click HERE

Day 2 (part 2) click HERE

Day 3 (part 1) click HERE

Day 3 (part 2) click HERE
Day 4 click HERE
Day 5 click HERE

Day 6 click HERE

Day 7 click HERE

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Day 8 Highlight

秀水街 Silk Street

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Last day in Beijing, took some quiet moment at window.   I didn't want to go home.
不舍得心情，难以掩饰。

OOTD - Pink wool coat from Wang Fu Jing 王府井 RMB199.

The detachable fur collar is super soft and doesn't fall off.

Contact lens doing wonders to my pea size eyes >.<

Pea size eyes looking outside the window.

It was a great mistake to scrimp, should had just called for the bell boy to help us with the luggages.  Merely pulled the luggage out of the door, that funny severe pain came back at my right wrist.   Doubled up the injury from the fall a few days ago, I was quite sure that I needed a doctor once back to Singapore.  I told hubby about my painful wrist, perhaps I sounded too calm that time, he ignored me.  He gave me that shock expression when I went to the doctor the next day -___-|||  He said he thought I was joking then.

Anyway, back to the topic.....

Breakfast at 9am.  I filled up the bowl with oatmeal porridge.  I am missing it so much now T____T

Marriott Beijing City Wall Hotel has got the best oatmeal porridge ever!!!

After breakfast was shopping at 秀水街 Silk Street.  A few years ago, the tenants runs their stalls on a street.  Some upgrading was made and the tenants moved their stalls into this building.  Thus, although it's obviously a building, it's still called a "street".

The mall was bright and clean with rows and rows of shops.  Again, high bargaining skills was required.

The kids gotten t-shirts, a replica Nike down jacket size for good for Darren, Luis and me.

 Myself, gotten a knitted sweater and a thin cardi suitable for our climate.  Also bought a wool dress which I wore straight away.

Lunch.

Ate this dish before when we visited Hunan a few years back.  Filled up the hole of savoury bun with preserved salted veg/minced meat and nom nom nom...... nice!

After dinner, we wasted time idling in a tourist shop selling jade and pearls.

Bought 2 sets of pearls (ear studs + necklace) at about S$20 each set.

Dinner.  It's supposed to be a Brazilian Barbeque Buffet, but it was just china style bbq buffet.

The tour agency's brochure made this meal a highlight and the tour guide made a big hoo-haa out of it.  Expectation went very high and fell heavily with disappointment.....

Buffet counters with cakes, salad and chinese dishes.

Brazilian BBQ, in presentation only.

Prawns were very small, everything just did not meet our expectation, chicken wings weren't too bad though.

Our tour guide bought us beer, such a big mug and was really shiok.  Shared it with hubby, I couldn't possibly finish it by myself >.<

There was this "Hold the mug" contest, a sporting tour mate participated.

That capable guy won dining vouchers and a beer mug which he gave it to our tour guide ^^  HAPPY!

After dinner was time to leave for the airport.

Here's Beijing Capital International Airport.

Took a 11.30pm night flight.  I slept my way through giving airplane meal a miss.  Hubby and kids ate but they didn't take any photos.

Reached Singapore at wee morning 6am.

The first thing I did when reached home was to drop dead on my bed.  Woke up in the noon, went to the doctor to get my wrist bandage, then rushed off to work at Copthorne King's Hotel.

I hid my bandage under the orange sweater but I over estimated myself and aggravated the injury.

Stupid wrist took about 3 weeks to be fully recovered, as a result I took more than a month to pack up the luggages >.<

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How I feel about the trip

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When our friends knew that we were travelling to Beijing in Dec, ALL gave the same comment :

"Waaaaa....... but it's very cold there, you all not scared arh?"

Weird.  Maybe people prefer familiar summer weather although it's not comfortable.  I had asked a few friends why they don't travel during winter, gotten these 2 main reasons:

* Attire problem
Purchase of winter wears means extra cost.  Not able to wear them locally makes them feel even more "heartache".  Putting money aside, most of them really have no idea what to wear at all, they rather not put themselves at "risk".

* Health
They are worried they may fall sick during the trip if their body cannot get use to the weather.

We love winter like mad actually, except Darren, he prefers autumn.  The above "problems" aren't problems to me.  I had gotten everybody in my family lightly but warmly dressed with thermal, sweater and outer jacket.  3 pieces, enough.  The trick is to keep our feet warm with wool socks and winter boots.  If your feet is cold, wear 5 layers of clothes also not enough.

People often complain travelling during winter is troublesome with heavy luggages, I do agree with that.  But the "beauty" is that we don't have to bath everyday during winter.  Oh yes, for 8 good days I need not and did not shave my armpits, heeheehee....

The only regret for this trip was that the cold we braved through was in vain as it didn't snow.  Since I missed snow in 2013, saddens me a little that I don't know when will I see snow again.  It's unlikely I'll get to travel in winter this year, unless miracle happen, I can't see my 钱途 at this moment.

Another common comment:

"Heard that their air very bad one leh, very hazy everyday like PSI 250....."

We must be lucky or something, we saw clear blue skies for 8 good days throughout our stay.

Despite of all those compulsory tourist shops we had to pull through, this Beijing trip was a valuable experience to Forbidden City and The Great Wall.

Like my fellow Singaporeans, I love to travel.  The love is enough to make it my religion.  Travelling allows me to explore into different countries' beauty.  No country is perfect, so taking away the flaws, I put all the beautiful parts together in my mind to form a PERFECT PLACE for living.

Example:

Lots of supply of affordable skincare & makeup (Korea)

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Cultured and civilisation (Japan)

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Cheap cheap shopping (Bangkok)

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Quiet, clean and peaceful (Australia)

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More pets friendly environment (Taiwan)

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Breath taking mountains and rivers (China)

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4 season weather (a lot of places)
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Stable and safe (Singapore)

Travelling to Bangkok in March, in a mist of booking a local tour to the waterfalls.  Yes, Bangkok has waterfalls!   7 waterfalls to be specific.  It's gonna be a very special blog entry then!

Thank you for reading my 8 long Beijing blog posts ^^
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