Summers in the palace

Typhoons in Hong Kong closed the airport for two days and my whole life has been disrupted. I think I’ve heard somewhere that men are particularly sensitive to changes in plans but I’m not sure if that’s true or not. I know I absolutely hate change of plans. I don’t mind the actual process of planning, but once I have a plan it feels like a burden, a constriction of my qi- the loss of possibility. To then have these plans changed and stop the momentum in my soul… this is one of the greatest pains I know. Not to over-dramatize, but you know, this is how I feel, man.
Anyways, the limbo I’m now in gave me the opportunity to tick one more item in my Beijing to-do list. I checked out the Summer Palace, originally built to entertain the ugly and evil empress of yore during the summer. Now it is a massive tourist destination, almost with the feel of a theme park. It took almost an hours walk before we got far enough from the crowds to really take in the experience of the massive grounds, a beautiful lake and a scenery of hills and palaces. Yet another remarkable experience in Beijing, yet another reason why I really don’t want to leave.

Having said that, I think you can see what I mean by Beijing being dirty... Imagine how beautiful the first photo would be if it wasn't covered in smog!