Beijing Before the Trek

On arrival at The Peking International Youth Hostel we checked in and it was a relief to get our rucksacks off our backs and flop onto a bed. It was around 1pm when we got there and the first thing on my mind was sleep but we decided to get work through the jet lag and try and adjust to China time. After a nice shower we felt a bit more human and decided to explore Beijing. For some odd reason I decided to wear some pretty new pumps for walking around Beijing, a decision I would live to regret! Anyway we headed out to the shops and just took in the surreal surroundings. My first thoughts were that it wasn't anywhere near as polluted as it is portrayed in the media, Beijing is a wonderfully architecturally stunning city and it is simply huge. After a couple of hours we decided to get some lunch/dinner so we wandered into a shopping mall (mostly to get out of the stifling heat and into an air conditioned haven) and stumbled across a friendly looking restaurant names Shanghai. Being novices of eating out in China we didn't realise that A) The portions are huge, B) They bring out food when it's ready not all at the same time and C) Chinese food in the UK is not the same! We each ordered 3 things and my they were big! I also discovered that I am not coordinated enough to handle chopsticks with ease so the next three weeks would be fun!
After some food we had a bit of a second wind so headed back to the hostel for a quick change where I discovered my feet had been shredded to bits by my pumps! Not good considering the challenge that lay ahead. I managed to patch them up and we went out for an evening walk to some local parks. Our hostel was really near the Forbidden City but we knew that after the trek there was a day tour of Beijing including Forbidden City so instead we went to Beihai Park, £1 to get in and stunning lake and a bar where we samples the local beer for the first time It was pretty good and a bargain at two for £2!
After our refreshment we went to Jingshan Park and climbed up a lot of stairs (would prove to bode well for the week) to find a stunning view across the Forbidden City as dusk fell, a truly awesome sight. After a few minutes we realised it was getting dark fairly rapidly so we decided to head back down the steps and home to the hostel. The odd thing was that even in such a huge city where we stuck out of the crowd we didn't ever feel in any danger. I knew then I was going to love China.