We're really enjoying Beijing

On the first day of the Beijing Olympics, Shenchahai was filled with the noise of crowds and neon lights. Gabriella, who works in the tourism industry in Germany, brought her 69 year-old mother to Beijing to watch the Olympics, and that night they decided to go to Shenchahai to rest.

Gabriella and her mother are both in China for the first time. To Gabriella's surprise, Shenchahai has many quaint, unique teahouses and bars. She said, "I hadn't imagined that Beijing would be so modern, even more modern than many European cities."

Gabriella has been snapping pictures with her camera the whole way, exclaiming, "Beautiful! Beautiful!" She has taken many pictures of beautiful scenery and of average Beijing citizens going about their daily lives. She says she will bring these pictures back to Germany and allow her friends in Berlin to understand China as well.

At night she ate Chinese food with Chinese friends and asked the name and explanation of every dish, continuously praising the food: "This tastes so good." Although she had only been in Beijing for two or three days, Gabriella quickly became skilled at using chopsticks.

Gabriella says there were just too many places to go in Beijing. She thinks the five days she has planned to spend in Beijing are too short a span of time. She also plans to see the Forbidden City and Yonghegong Lama Temple, and if she has time she will explore some hutongs and see a Beijing opera performance in an old theater to experience the culture of old Beijing.

Before Gabriella and her mother came to China, some people told her that Beijing might be "unsafe." After a few days of seeing and hearing for herself, she thinks Beijing is very safe and unique. She told her friends in Germany, "We're enjoying every day in Beijing, and every place we go we see friendly smiles."

Source People's Daily Online