Chinese New Year 2006

The Year of the Dog! I spent the New Year weekend in Nashville w/family and friends.

Me and my friend Rachel. 

Mom, Dad, friend Laura. 

Chinese people can really eat. 

Would YOU buy anything from this drink menu? "Cures dyspepsia and constipation," "Stimulant AND Sedative," and more. Yum. 

The traditional Lion Dance. Two lions, several drummers, etc., crowd into a Chinese restaurant seating hundreds.

 

The lions onstage, trying to eat the "money" on the pole for good luck. 

Beijing Trip 2005

Warning: there are a LOT of pictures. Sift through at your own risk.

View from the plane once we started our descent.

Beijing is one of the Top 10 Most Polluted Cities. Last I heard, it was tied for first. Either way, every day was gray. This is the Haidian District, where Ryan lived.

On the campus of Beijing Language and Culture University. 

Found this pile of toilets in the street.

Summer Palace

The Emperor and Empress built this massive place to get away from the summer heat. Takes an entire day to really see everything.

At the entrance to the Summer Palace. This place is huge.

The dragon and the phoenix. 

Chinese rock formations, designed to represent mountain scenes. 

I think we're huddled in a cave for warmth. 

A cool pagoda (thousands of tiny Buddhas carved into it).

 

NEAR....... 

Far...... (we set the self-timer on the camera and ran for it) 

The entrance/gateway to Suzhou Street. 

The Empress built Suzhou Street, a little shopping district, inside the grounds. 

Tibetan Buddhist temple inside the Summer Palace grounds.

View from the top of the temple.