Hi All,
Early start and off to the airport. The hostel hailed a taxi and negotiated a price which was probably more than the meter but we were grateful. Vanessa said that the driver was micro napping all the way and the price didn't include the road toll but it wasn't a bad price considering all up it cost us 150 yen (AUD 25) for 40 km drive.
We got to the airport earlier than expected as the hostel said it would take 1.5hr and it took 45 min. I didn't mind as I expected problems with our eticket but it all went remarkably well and quite streamlined. We heard an announcement starting with 'we regret to inform you that flight CA1670'. Oh no. Our flight. Luckily it was just a gate change. Phew.
Quite a nice flight, even got a hot chinese meal,and we also flew over the great wall late in the trip.
We had planned ahead and had printed the hostel details in chinese. It was slightly more expensive to get a taxi than the train and significantly more convenient. We got the taxi on meter and the driver dropped us right near the alley where the hostel was located. The hostel is located in a maze of lanes about 100m from the back wall of the forbidden city. Excellent location.
Rick and Rachel run the hostel and tin tin the dog supervises when not chasing the ball.
We found a big supermarket so are set for restocking for Tibet.
Went for a walk up to the drum tower and past a frozen lake with lots of chinese people having lots of fun.
Found that the hostel had food and ordered a few plates as we hadn't eaten well over the last couple of days. Turned out that one plate was enough and we had three! Very filling and we couldn't finish. Not bad for 65 yen (AUD 11).
Bye,
David and Vanessa
