Beijing Day 3

Things started out really slow for me this morning. I had trouble sleeping last night for the third day in a row and fatigue had just about got the best of me. After several minutes of trying to clear the fog in my head, I headed down to the spa to do my daily push ups. I followed that with some weight lifting with the hopes that I would wake up. Much to my surprise, the endorphins kicked in helping me feel like I was ready to tackle the day. I will have to admit that if I don't sleep tonight, things are going to be a little hairy for our big "gotcha day" on Monday. Our Bethany adoption group got started at 9am this morning with a trip to Tienanmen square and the Forbidden City. After a short bus ride from our hotel, we found ourselves amidst thousands of Asians all headed to the same place we wanted to go, Tienanmen square. Most of the Asians we encountered were getting in line to see and pay respect to their president who had died in the mid 1970s. His memorial is placed right in the middle of the square. Tienanmen square is also known as the "Gate of Heavenly Peace" Ironically, the name "Gate of Heavenly Peace" did not fit the events that unfolded, June 4th, 1989. That day, the Chinese government gave an order to the military to take back Tienanmen square at all costs. Supported by tanks and other armored vehicles, soldiers moved into Tienanmen Square and other Beijing neighborhoods late Saturday June 3, 1989. In the early morning hours the next day, the military raged war on the students, chasing them and others from the square. An estimated 5,000 citizens were killed that day in Beijing, silencing students protests who wanted democracy and human-rights. After a brief visit and some pictures, we headed across the street to the Forbidden City. The Forbidden City was served as the Chinese imperial palace from the Ming Dynasty to the end of the Qing Dynasty. It is located in the middle of Beijing and now houses the Palace Museum. For almost five centuries, it served as the home of the Emperor, as well as the ceremonial and political center of the Chinese government. After walking the entire length of the Forbidden City, south to north, we headed to an old section of Beijing known as a Hutong. Here we boarded rickshaws and toured its famous narrow alleys. A hutong is a traditional courtyard residences were the main buildings were arranged in quadrangles--a building complex formed by four houses around a quadrangular courtyard. The quadrangles varied in size and design according to the social status of the residents. Our tour guide, Robin, named after Robin Hood, to us to a traditional hutong for a closer look. After the rickshaw ride, we had traditional Chinese tea at a Chinese tea house then boarded the bus an took in an amazing Chinese Acrobatic show. The night ended with a small group of people from Virginia and South Dakota heading to a local Chinese restaurant for some awesome cuisine. Tomorrow we will have some free time and visit the Temple of Heaven. We also had the opportunity to share our own adoption story and the impact of God in each of our lives.

Brett