Trip to Beijing, China

It is very quiet outside as I write this post. Every Cambodian is visiting their home province for Khmer New Year this week. Normally scooters are whizzing by our house but today all is calm. We are happy to be home, unpacking, after a great five day trip to Beijing. We have always wanted to visit China, S just studied structures at school and learned a lot about the Great Wall and E just started a unit about journeys. All good reasons for a trip. We stayed with our Dutch friend Mike and his girlfriend Vivienne. Mike teaches in Beijing and we know him from Cairo.
It was very cold while we were in Beijing--we were prepared though with hats and jackets. One day the high was 9C. Of course Phnom Penh was baking in its steady 35C so our bodies were in a bit of a shock. The cool temperatures reminded the girls of Holland.

We took a rickshaw ride through the traditional Hutong alleys of Beijing near Hohai Lake. E is wearing a panda hat that we bought her on Tiannaman Square the first day and that she wore every minute we were outside after that. S favored a french barret that she wore even inside.