A day in the life....
So today proved to be yet another amazing experience. We woke up bright and early with hopes of being able to see the Great Wall one last time before we left China. We left the hotel around 7am and headed for the train station. As we approached the train I realized this train was far less advanced as the train we took to Beijing. After we found seats the conductor allowed us to move to another car so we could sit near each other.
We continued along when Rena began speaking with the conductors... After a while she mentioned that the Great Wall tickets would be more expensive today due to the national holiday. She then explained that it was going to take a few hours just to reach the wall. After long consideration the group (10 of us) decided to hop off the train and head back toward Tianjin. The second we stepped off the train and the train left I realized we were in for a good ride back to Tianjin. Dahui always tells us to follow the Chinese; so we did just that. We followed a group of them into a small town. There was a square with buildings surrounding it, but only a few individuals present. It was close to a ghost town. Rena then spoke with some of the individuals to the town and she set up a bus for us to take back to our hotel. As soon as the "bus" rolled up we realized we would be riding in a van. Yet another mode of transportation... The van ride back to our hotel was similar to a four-wheeler ride. We switched from dirt road to pavement a number of different times. Eventually we made it back to our hotel and I was relieved to feel solid ground.
After we returned Bryn, Meghan, Shannon and I headed out for some American food and shopping. What else would we do on a holiday?? We enjoyed some food at TGIF's and spent little and bought a lot at Ancient Culture street.
The next week should move quickly for us. We only have a few days left in Tianjin and we have a lot to accomplish within these days! I am looking forward to hearing everyones presentations!