My boss qualified for 3 tickets to Beijing this August and he was very generous as to give 1 of his ticket to me. That's how I got a free 5D 4 N trip to Beijing. :) Not sure if it's a good thing becos 2 weeks before the trip, I got to work like shit! But I really enjoyed the trip as I got to see and leart a lot of their history.
My office driver came to fetch me up at 6.10am on Mon (17 Sept '07) to the Airport. My God! He was half an hour late when he picked me up. Claimed that he couldn't find the place but when I gave him the directions to my place, he claimed that he was back at the same spot. This type of people just don't know how to lie... sigh.. After picking me up, rushed to pick my boss and after which to pick his Mentor cum boss at Joo Chiat and headed straight down to Airport. We were supposed to reach the airport by 6.50am but we reached there around 7.10am. Still not that bad as my driver was driving all the way at the speed of 110.
Took SQ flight to Beijing.. Good service as usual. But we met 3 turbulence on the way to Beijing. It was quite bad and scary and it happened during our meal onboard. Thank God, we managed to reach Beijing safely and on time at 3pm. Their Airport was quite small and it was not air-conditioned. Weather was very hazy then and it was around 24 Degree Celsius. We got to travel for 1 hour in order to reach our Hotel - Park Plaza Beijing Wangfujing. It is a new hotel, around 30 mins walk to Forbidden City, 10 mins to Wangfujing Shi Jie (Roadside stalls).
By the time we reached our Hotel, checked-in, freshen up, we were out for our appreciation dinner at Diaoyutai State Guest House. Nice scenery but when we arrived there at 8pm, it was raining and quite dark. Don't want to take the risk of taking photos out in dark in case I see "something". ;P. The Guesthouse is renowned for the culinary feats of its kitchens. But then, maybe it was not up to my taste buds.. not really fancy the food. Mostly were soups, at the end of the meal, you will find that your stomach is bloated with water. :( After dinner, we went back to the hotel to put our door gift, which was one of the Olympics Fu Wa. I met up again with my boss, 5 of my colleagues and another 3 FAs from other coys to go drinking. We went to a pub called Suzy Wong, which is just like our Mdm Wong here but on a smaller scale. A lot of Ang Mohs in there, sound system sucks. We finished a bottle of Chivas, 2 bottles of beer in like 2 hours and we headed back to hotel for the night as we had to wake up early the next day.
Day 2, we went to the Insurer's business office for a visit. No choice, we got to go as this was TM AsiaLife's incentive trip. We were there for like 2 hrs and during their speech, I was dozing away. ;P After the visit, we went for our Peking Duck Lunch. Every dishes were cooked using Duck. Just the Peking Duck itself, we had 2 and a half duck to each table. Scared of eating duck after that. After lunch, we started our first sight-seeing trip - Tian Tan (Temple of Heaven). It is much bigger than the Forbidden City and smaller than the Summer Palace, built during the Ming Dynasty for the Emperor to offer sacrifice to Heaven. When I walked into the Temple, I was so shocked by how big compound was. We were also showed the place where the Emperor will stand and pray to the Heaven. After Tian Tan, it was time for dinner. Travelling again took 1 hr to reach the place. This time round, we went for an Imperial Dinner at Beihai Park. Another fantastic park with scenery. Food wise, sucks again. They piled the dishes up as if they were feeding pigs. After the dinner, back to hotel again. Met my boss at the lobby as he did not attend the dinner earlier. He got to go down to the Airport to make payment for his air ticket as he has to come back to Sin latest on Friday morning. We decided to go to Yaxiu Shopping Centre for shopping. When we reached the shopping centre, it was already 8.15pm. We didn't realised that shopping centres in Beijing actually close at 9pm! So early!! * sob sob* Didn't get to shop much then. Only went to 3 stores and grab whatever fits me. Bought 1 Olympic Polo shirt, 2 sets of Chinese Silk clothes for Jonathan and Rachel and 2 knitted tops for myself. Since the shop closed at 9pm, we decided to go to their Wangfujing Food street for supper. For myself, I don't dare to eat at those roadside stall for fear of stomach upset later. Seeing the rest eating so deliciously, I did try to take a few spoonful of the soup. Nice, spicy and hot. :9 After the supper, we headed back to the hotel, and the rest went for their part 3 programme - massage, I went back to my room to rest for the night.
Day 3, we climbed the Great Wall of China (Juyongguan Pass) which is 72 km, which is also the shortest of The Wall. Well, while in Singapore, I'm already exhausted when I climbed the overhead bridge! Of course, I did try to reach the 1st Tower! Bravo! Initially when we walked up the slope, we were still shooting video, taking pictures and still joking. Less than half way up, we were panting like a dog, holding on to the side bar and dragged ourselves up. One of my colleagues, Jessica, was so comical. She actually brought a tripod stand, cosmetic bag, vitamins pills all in her bag up the Great Wall. She had a bad time climbing up of course. We joked that she wanted to build the Great Wall. And that she brought along bricks and cement so that when she reached the Tower, she can put her own bricks there. :) The scenery there is really awesome! So beautiful... When we were up at Tower 1, we started to wonder how did the soldiers climbed up with their armour on and carrying all those weapons? Must be really a tough job!
After the Great Wall of China, we went to the Ming Tomb. That's where the 13 Emperors of the Ming Dynasty were buried. Well, not sure if our Guide was scared to go in or what as she mentioned that the place is very 'Yin". We did not get the chance to really explore the whole place. She only merely showed us in to the Museum to see what was buried with the Emperors. Me and 2 other advisers, Jessica and Celia, went to explore on our own. We went up to the Soul Tower, joined in other tour groups where their tour guides were giving an explanation of the place. Before we left the Soul Tower, there's a Chinese practice which all must follows.. That is, to stamp our feet hard on the ground, cross over the barrier (guy - left foot, ladies - right foot first) and shout as loud as you can : I'm back (in Chinese) and never turn back. According to them, this is to tell your soul that you are going back home.
After Ming Tomb, we went for Foot Reflexology in a Sports School. They claimed that they only massage the States' athletes but due to the building of the new Olympic Stadium, all the athletes were transferred to other places to train. So for the time being, this centre is open to tourist. During the massage, they will try to sell you their herbs bag and services, e.g. removal of dead skin, corns, clearing of fungus nails etc. Cost is only 60 RMB (S$12). I did the removal of dead skin and I'm very satisfied with the end result. After the Foot Reflexology, we went for Shanxi Dinner. Overall, I find the meal very salty. Got to drink lots of water after the meals.
On the 3rd night, we went to Hou Hai, which is like our Boat Quay. Except that the weather is much much cooler in Beijing and you wont feel sticky after sitting there for your drinks. We had a bottle of Red Wine. I took less than half a glass of it as I'm not a Red Wine drinker. We paid 100 RMB each for the Wine and snacks. That's quite cheap. After the Wine, we went to Queen at Worker's Stadium to join my Boss for drinks and dance. I don't really like that place as it was playing Techno type of songs. We finished a bottle of Martelle quite fast and ordered another 5 bottles of Heineken. By the time we finished all the drinks, it was only 2am and we headed back to the Hotel as the disco closed at 2.30am.
Day 4 we went to Forbidden City. Beautiful and majestic place! Really envy the Emperor and their family... staying in such a huge place, and the Empress and Concubines, nothing to do whole day! According to our tour guide, the only show that was filmed in Forbidden City itself is "The Last Emperor". Actually, there's nothing much to see inside. Went in through The Meridian Gate, Wumen in Chinese (southern entrance of the Forbidden City). Once inside, you will see 5 bridges with a courtyard beyond. We walked throught the central bridge that was used exclusively by the emperor. So on that particular day, we were all Emperor and Empress. After that we saw Zhonghedian (The Hall of Central Harmony), Baohedian (The Hall of Preserved Harmony), the huge marble relief of nine dragons playing with pearls. Pass through Qianqingmen (The Gate of Celestial Purity) we will see Qianqinggong (The Palace of Celestial Purity) which was the sleeping quarters of the emperors. After that Kunninggong (Palace of Terrestrial tranquility) which was empress' bedroom. newly wed emperor and empress lived in the East Warmth Chamber of this palace for just a few days. After this time, the emperor would move to the Hall of Mental Cultivation and the empress would move to another palace. The emperor's bridal suite in the East Warmth Chamber was painted red and the palace lamps were decorated with red Double Happiness symbols to create a warm and happy atmosphere. Next was the Yuhuayuan (the Imperial Garden) and just behind the garden end of the garden is Shenwumen, the Gate of Divine Might and the rear exit from the Forbidden City. When the last Emperor, Pu Yi, was driven out of the Palace, he left through this gate. Just for visiting the above places, just to look / see and take pictures, it already took us 2 hours.
After leaving the Forbidden City, we head straight to Summer Palace for our lunch and tour. This garden was built during the Jin and Qing Dynasty. the rampages of the Anglo-French allied force and was destroyed by fire. In 1888, Empress Dowager Cixi embezzled navy funds to reconstruct it for her own benefit, changing its name to Summer Palace (Yiheyuan). She spent most of her later years there, dealing with state affairs and entertaining. In 1900, it suffered again, being ransacked by the Eight-Power Allied Force. ans subsequently it was opened to the public. This place is famous for it's Long Gallery (728 m) and the different painting along it. We also took a boat ride out in the Kunming Lake. During Winter time, the Lake becomes Beijing's biggest ice-skating ring! After the boat ride, we managed to take a look of how Li Lian Ying, Empress Dowager Cixi's fav Eunuch's room look like. It's a very very small room! Guess what? Over at Summer Palace, I met my mum's friends! They were there for their holidays too! I bought a bag from their Souvenior Shop, costing only RMB 45 (S$9). :)
After the tour, we were supposed to go to TeaHouse. Another place where the Guide get to earn their commissions. As I have told my Director, Yoke Koon, the night before that my roommate and I will not be joining this TeaHouse trip as I prefer to go shopping, he decided that the whole group of us dropped off from here. Hurray! Finally get to do my shopping. We took a cab to Xidan, their local shopping centre. Their clothes there just don't suits me.. so ah lian! We took our dinner at MacDonald and took a train to Dongsishitiao which is near to another shopping centre, Yaxiu. Over there, I managed to buy Rachel and Jon a pairs of shoes, jeans for myself and they were about to close shop! My God! Can't they just close later???? :(
Since they were closing up, we got no choice but to go back to our Hotel to meet our Director for supper. When we met up, he said that he was not going to join us for supper, so the 4 of us (me, Jessica - my roommate, Wendy and Jason - couple) went to Gui jie for BBQ food. Fantastic and simply delicious. Especially their BBQ Mushroom. We ordered like 20 sticks of BBQ - beef, squid, mushrooms, meat balls, Chou Dou Fu, and 2 plates of the Shan Bei.. it cost only RMB 130 (S$26) only!! After supper, we went back to the hotel to pack up for departure the next day.
When I reach my hotel room, there was a note to us saying that on Day 5, our departure day, we will check out early at 9.30am and proceed to Yaxiu for 2 hours of shopping before heading down to the Airport. I was so happy then.. another 2 hours of shopping. On day 5, I bought 2 sets of pants & shirts for Jon, 1 Snow White long pants, 2 dresses, 3 t-shirts, a pair of Puma shoes for Rachel, a bag for my mum and a pair of Puma shoes (same design as Rachel's) for myself. Time's up, happily left Yaxiu for Airport.
Flight back to Sin was at 4pm, so after check-in, we went for a quick lunch and me, continued my shopping at their Olympics shop. Bought 2 t-shirts and some magnets back for my family. :) So fast, 5 days trip gone just like that. During these 5 days, I got to know one of our Directors, Yoke Koon, and other advisers, Celia, Jessica, Wendy, Sydney, Noel, Xiangling and Kelvin. Except for Yoke Koon, who is 2 yrs older than me, the rest are all younger than me! My God! I felt so old to be with them. :( Also, with these group of people, I can also see who my boss likes and don't likes. Well, too bad I have been mixing with the group of people whom he don't like during the trip. :) To me, I find them much more fun to be with, as we had our own drinking session and joking around with no boundaries in Beijing.
I'm glad to be back home with my darling Rachel. How I missed her! Luckily she called me every night and I got to hear her voice. I woke her up when I reached home at around 11pm. She was happily ransacking and clearing my luggage bag for her gifts! Well, home sweet home is still the best!
My office driver came to fetch me up at 6.10am on Mon (17 Sept '07) to the Airport. My God! He was half an hour late when he picked me up. Claimed that he couldn't find the place but when I gave him the directions to my place, he claimed that he was back at the same spot. This type of people just don't know how to lie... sigh.. After picking me up, rushed to pick my boss and after which to pick his Mentor cum boss at Joo Chiat and headed straight down to Airport. We were supposed to reach the airport by 6.50am but we reached there around 7.10am. Still not that bad as my driver was driving all the way at the speed of 110.
Took SQ flight to Beijing.. Good service as usual. But we met 3 turbulence on the way to Beijing. It was quite bad and scary and it happened during our meal onboard. Thank God, we managed to reach Beijing safely and on time at 3pm. Their Airport was quite small and it was not air-conditioned. Weather was very hazy then and it was around 24 Degree Celsius. We got to travel for 1 hour in order to reach our Hotel - Park Plaza Beijing Wangfujing. It is a new hotel, around 30 mins walk to Forbidden City, 10 mins to Wangfujing Shi Jie (Roadside stalls).
By the time we reached our Hotel, checked-in, freshen up, we were out for our appreciation dinner at Diaoyutai State Guest House. Nice scenery but when we arrived there at 8pm, it was raining and quite dark. Don't want to take the risk of taking photos out in dark in case I see "something". ;P. The Guesthouse is renowned for the culinary feats of its kitchens. But then, maybe it was not up to my taste buds.. not really fancy the food. Mostly were soups, at the end of the meal, you will find that your stomach is bloated with water. :( After dinner, we went back to the hotel to put our door gift, which was one of the Olympics Fu Wa. I met up again with my boss, 5 of my colleagues and another 3 FAs from other coys to go drinking. We went to a pub called Suzy Wong, which is just like our Mdm Wong here but on a smaller scale. A lot of Ang Mohs in there, sound system sucks. We finished a bottle of Chivas, 2 bottles of beer in like 2 hours and we headed back to hotel for the night as we had to wake up early the next day.
Day 2, we went to the Insurer's business office for a visit. No choice, we got to go as this was TM AsiaLife's incentive trip. We were there for like 2 hrs and during their speech, I was dozing away. ;P After the visit, we went for our Peking Duck Lunch. Every dishes were cooked using Duck. Just the Peking Duck itself, we had 2 and a half duck to each table. Scared of eating duck after that. After lunch, we started our first sight-seeing trip - Tian Tan (Temple of Heaven). It is much bigger than the Forbidden City and smaller than the Summer Palace, built during the Ming Dynasty for the Emperor to offer sacrifice to Heaven. When I walked into the Temple, I was so shocked by how big compound was. We were also showed the place where the Emperor will stand and pray to the Heaven. After Tian Tan, it was time for dinner. Travelling again took 1 hr to reach the place. This time round, we went for an Imperial Dinner at Beihai Park. Another fantastic park with scenery. Food wise, sucks again. They piled the dishes up as if they were feeding pigs. After the dinner, back to hotel again. Met my boss at the lobby as he did not attend the dinner earlier. He got to go down to the Airport to make payment for his air ticket as he has to come back to Sin latest on Friday morning. We decided to go to Yaxiu Shopping Centre for shopping. When we reached the shopping centre, it was already 8.15pm. We didn't realised that shopping centres in Beijing actually close at 9pm! So early!! * sob sob* Didn't get to shop much then. Only went to 3 stores and grab whatever fits me. Bought 1 Olympic Polo shirt, 2 sets of Chinese Silk clothes for Jonathan and Rachel and 2 knitted tops for myself. Since the shop closed at 9pm, we decided to go to their Wangfujing Food street for supper. For myself, I don't dare to eat at those roadside stall for fear of stomach upset later. Seeing the rest eating so deliciously, I did try to take a few spoonful of the soup. Nice, spicy and hot. :9 After the supper, we headed back to the hotel, and the rest went for their part 3 programme - massage, I went back to my room to rest for the night.
Day 3, we climbed the Great Wall of China (Juyongguan Pass) which is 72 km, which is also the shortest of The Wall. Well, while in Singapore, I'm already exhausted when I climbed the overhead bridge! Of course, I did try to reach the 1st Tower! Bravo! Initially when we walked up the slope, we were still shooting video, taking pictures and still joking. Less than half way up, we were panting like a dog, holding on to the side bar and dragged ourselves up. One of my colleagues, Jessica, was so comical. She actually brought a tripod stand, cosmetic bag, vitamins pills all in her bag up the Great Wall. She had a bad time climbing up of course. We joked that she wanted to build the Great Wall. And that she brought along bricks and cement so that when she reached the Tower, she can put her own bricks there. :) The scenery there is really awesome! So beautiful... When we were up at Tower 1, we started to wonder how did the soldiers climbed up with their armour on and carrying all those weapons? Must be really a tough job!
After the Great Wall of China, we went to the Ming Tomb. That's where the 13 Emperors of the Ming Dynasty were buried. Well, not sure if our Guide was scared to go in or what as she mentioned that the place is very 'Yin". We did not get the chance to really explore the whole place. She only merely showed us in to the Museum to see what was buried with the Emperors. Me and 2 other advisers, Jessica and Celia, went to explore on our own. We went up to the Soul Tower, joined in other tour groups where their tour guides were giving an explanation of the place. Before we left the Soul Tower, there's a Chinese practice which all must follows.. That is, to stamp our feet hard on the ground, cross over the barrier (guy - left foot, ladies - right foot first) and shout as loud as you can : I'm back (in Chinese) and never turn back. According to them, this is to tell your soul that you are going back home.
After Ming Tomb, we went for Foot Reflexology in a Sports School. They claimed that they only massage the States' athletes but due to the building of the new Olympic Stadium, all the athletes were transferred to other places to train. So for the time being, this centre is open to tourist. During the massage, they will try to sell you their herbs bag and services, e.g. removal of dead skin, corns, clearing of fungus nails etc. Cost is only 60 RMB (S$12). I did the removal of dead skin and I'm very satisfied with the end result. After the Foot Reflexology, we went for Shanxi Dinner. Overall, I find the meal very salty. Got to drink lots of water after the meals.
On the 3rd night, we went to Hou Hai, which is like our Boat Quay. Except that the weather is much much cooler in Beijing and you wont feel sticky after sitting there for your drinks. We had a bottle of Red Wine. I took less than half a glass of it as I'm not a Red Wine drinker. We paid 100 RMB each for the Wine and snacks. That's quite cheap. After the Wine, we went to Queen at Worker's Stadium to join my Boss for drinks and dance. I don't really like that place as it was playing Techno type of songs. We finished a bottle of Martelle quite fast and ordered another 5 bottles of Heineken. By the time we finished all the drinks, it was only 2am and we headed back to the Hotel as the disco closed at 2.30am.
Day 4 we went to Forbidden City. Beautiful and majestic place! Really envy the Emperor and their family... staying in such a huge place, and the Empress and Concubines, nothing to do whole day! According to our tour guide, the only show that was filmed in Forbidden City itself is "The Last Emperor". Actually, there's nothing much to see inside. Went in through The Meridian Gate, Wumen in Chinese (southern entrance of the Forbidden City). Once inside, you will see 5 bridges with a courtyard beyond. We walked throught the central bridge that was used exclusively by the emperor. So on that particular day, we were all Emperor and Empress. After that we saw Zhonghedian (The Hall of Central Harmony), Baohedian (The Hall of Preserved Harmony), the huge marble relief of nine dragons playing with pearls. Pass through Qianqingmen (The Gate of Celestial Purity) we will see Qianqinggong (The Palace of Celestial Purity) which was the sleeping quarters of the emperors. After that Kunninggong (Palace of Terrestrial tranquility) which was empress' bedroom. newly wed emperor and empress lived in the East Warmth Chamber of this palace for just a few days. After this time, the emperor would move to the Hall of Mental Cultivation and the empress would move to another palace. The emperor's bridal suite in the East Warmth Chamber was painted red and the palace lamps were decorated with red Double Happiness symbols to create a warm and happy atmosphere. Next was the Yuhuayuan (the Imperial Garden) and just behind the garden end of the garden is Shenwumen, the Gate of Divine Might and the rear exit from the Forbidden City. When the last Emperor, Pu Yi, was driven out of the Palace, he left through this gate. Just for visiting the above places, just to look / see and take pictures, it already took us 2 hours.
After leaving the Forbidden City, we head straight to Summer Palace for our lunch and tour. This garden was built during the Jin and Qing Dynasty. the rampages of the Anglo-French allied force and was destroyed by fire. In 1888, Empress Dowager Cixi embezzled navy funds to reconstruct it for her own benefit, changing its name to Summer Palace (Yiheyuan). She spent most of her later years there, dealing with state affairs and entertaining. In 1900, it suffered again, being ransacked by the Eight-Power Allied Force. ans subsequently it was opened to the public. This place is famous for it's Long Gallery (728 m) and the different painting along it. We also took a boat ride out in the Kunming Lake. During Winter time, the Lake becomes Beijing's biggest ice-skating ring! After the boat ride, we managed to take a look of how Li Lian Ying, Empress Dowager Cixi's fav Eunuch's room look like. It's a very very small room! Guess what? Over at Summer Palace, I met my mum's friends! They were there for their holidays too! I bought a bag from their Souvenior Shop, costing only RMB 45 (S$9). :)
After the tour, we were supposed to go to TeaHouse. Another place where the Guide get to earn their commissions. As I have told my Director, Yoke Koon, the night before that my roommate and I will not be joining this TeaHouse trip as I prefer to go shopping, he decided that the whole group of us dropped off from here. Hurray! Finally get to do my shopping. We took a cab to Xidan, their local shopping centre. Their clothes there just don't suits me.. so ah lian! We took our dinner at MacDonald and took a train to Dongsishitiao which is near to another shopping centre, Yaxiu. Over there, I managed to buy Rachel and Jon a pairs of shoes, jeans for myself and they were about to close shop! My God! Can't they just close later???? :(
Since they were closing up, we got no choice but to go back to our Hotel to meet our Director for supper. When we met up, he said that he was not going to join us for supper, so the 4 of us (me, Jessica - my roommate, Wendy and Jason - couple) went to Gui jie for BBQ food. Fantastic and simply delicious. Especially their BBQ Mushroom. We ordered like 20 sticks of BBQ - beef, squid, mushrooms, meat balls, Chou Dou Fu, and 2 plates of the Shan Bei.. it cost only RMB 130 (S$26) only!! After supper, we went back to the hotel to pack up for departure the next day.
When I reach my hotel room, there was a note to us saying that on Day 5, our departure day, we will check out early at 9.30am and proceed to Yaxiu for 2 hours of shopping before heading down to the Airport. I was so happy then.. another 2 hours of shopping. On day 5, I bought 2 sets of pants & shirts for Jon, 1 Snow White long pants, 2 dresses, 3 t-shirts, a pair of Puma shoes for Rachel, a bag for my mum and a pair of Puma shoes (same design as Rachel's) for myself. Time's up, happily left Yaxiu for Airport.
Flight back to Sin was at 4pm, so after check-in, we went for a quick lunch and me, continued my shopping at their Olympics shop. Bought 2 t-shirts and some magnets back for my family. :) So fast, 5 days trip gone just like that. During these 5 days, I got to know one of our Directors, Yoke Koon, and other advisers, Celia, Jessica, Wendy, Sydney, Noel, Xiangling and Kelvin. Except for Yoke Koon, who is 2 yrs older than me, the rest are all younger than me! My God! I felt so old to be with them. :( Also, with these group of people, I can also see who my boss likes and don't likes. Well, too bad I have been mixing with the group of people whom he don't like during the trip. :) To me, I find them much more fun to be with, as we had our own drinking session and joking around with no boundaries in Beijing.
I'm glad to be back home with my darling Rachel. How I missed her! Luckily she called me every night and I got to hear her voice. I woke her up when I reached home at around 11pm. She was happily ransacking and clearing my luggage bag for her gifts! Well, home sweet home is still the best!
