Flights and first day.

Hello!

Finally, I am in Beijing and able to sit and write for a second before going to sleep. The journey has been incredibly tiring, and I've found myself going 48 hours with barely three of sleep. On the other hand, I've also discovered that London's airport is incredibly boring if you have four hours to wait and are not feeling that well.

The flight from London to Beijing in itself was quite fine, since I got to see a few films and relax for a while. And also, sleep. I didn't sleep more than one hour in intervals of fifteen minutes, but well... At least I got some rest. When we finally arrived after the most horrible breakfast I have ever had the displeasure to taste, Beijing's airport was a gate to hell. Suffocating heat and crushing humidity, added to my asthma... Does not give good results. We waited for a while in a long queue that could have lead to customs or to Narnia, we weren't exactly sure, and finally picked up out luggage and met the guide who drove us to the hotel. He was pretty nice and told us a few curiosities about Beijing, such as the population, the number of bicycles and the fact that , to buy a car in Beijing, you have to win something like a lottery. Also, depending on the last number of the plate, you can't use your car a certain day of the week.

We finally got to the hotel and, though it was exactly as described and showed in photos, I was not disappointed with neither the hotel nor the neighbourhood. We're staying at Hua Qiao Beijing, in a hutong neighbourhood. It is indeed an interesting sight and way of life, since everything seems so common and taken out of the last century.

When we left our suitcases in our rooms, we immediately went back down to  have lunch without any rest. We had lunch at a rather fancy restaurant and took a walk around the main street of the neighbourhood, crowded with vendors, shops and people in general. After that, we finally went back to the hotel to get some well-deserved rest at around 3.30pm, until 6pm. 

After that, we went out again and visited Xidan, which left me astounded. Never have I seen so many shops, advertisings and huge shopping centres in the same place. Everything was rather expensive though, so I didn't buy a thing. I've seen a huge lot of things I like though, so I'll keep looking for similar clothes a bit cheaper. When we went back, I made the discovery of the day, that actually wasn't such, because I knew if its existence, but... I did not expect what I found inside.

We decided to have a look at the 7 eleven that was on our way back to the hotel, and I was pleased to find some milk at a good price (yay for midnight tea!), facial products to which I am yet to identify their use and... Pocky! It was the last thing I expected to find here in China, and two boxes for only 14 yuan... It's my dream made true, I know what will my suitcase be filled of when I come back. 

So, that's all for today, I'll try to make a post about today's and tomorrow's food and purchases as soon as possible.

I hope you enjoyed this, and see you soon!