China Day 2 - Beijing

Ni Hao everyone!!!! Day 2 in China was really packed, as we hit up some major sites like the Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square and ate the eponymous Peking Duck. Hear it from the travelers themselves:

I had authentic Peking Duck for the first time ever today. It was radical.
-Jack B.

Great architecture. Great food. Great people. An overall excellent day.
-Nick G

Had my first dumpling in china today it was fab!
-Taylor

The duck did not taste like chicken at all like they said, it was great!!! This Jet Lag sucks...
-Paul

I really enjoyed the Scavenger hunt we did in Beijing this afternoon (even though there was no reward for the winning team). It gave me a chance to take in the city and communicate with locals more even though I do not speak Chinese. Matthew Lu wants me to tell you all how tired we are and that being 12 hrs ahead is harder than I thought.
-KDAWG

had a busy day visiting the forbidden palace and Tiananmen Square, but long periods of walking were interrupted with delicious Peking duck and food from a Chinese family's home.
-Jacob

Had fun in the more "trendy" houtangs, which are just narrow streets. There was a Mexican restaurant, a cat petting cafe, and plenty of very cute dogs. People here don't keep their dogs on leashes! They just walk around and are trained well enough to stay by their owner's side.
-Jocelyn

So much new food in my short time hear I've had three different meals, and all have been delicious. I never knew that there were so many kinds of chines food each with a unique flavor and textures.
Robert

My favorite part of the day was when we visited the garden in the Forbidden City. The trees were unlike any foliage I have ever come across
- Josiah

I have had rice and tea with every meal. Not complaining.
-Tom

Anyone who knows me at all knows that I love plants.  Like, I LOVE plants and gardens, so I was kind of disappointed when we went to the Forbidden City and it was all buildings and open brick yards; I had expected the emperor's residence to be more serene and not so governmental...THEN we found our way to the garden in the residential section of the Forbidden City and the Rock structures, trees, and pavilion/gazebos were absolutely gorgeous! I also loved seeing a traditional time-keeping drum performance and catching some jaw-dropping panoramic views of Beijing from the ancient drum tower.
-Nicki G

The peking duck dinner at the restaurant was the best duck I had ever had, and the other dishes afterwards were great as well. The expanse of the forbidden city was unbelievable, and the drum performance was very memorable.
-Matthew M

The drum thingy performance in the tall tower with weird steps was really cool. Being in the forbidden city was cool because my family hasn't been there before and my dad has only been in Tian'men square when he was a kid. I liked the lunch in the Hutong place; I talked to the bird. The Peking duck dinner was tasty!! I liked how they did the tofu and eggplant. It was cool :D
- Matthew Lu

The Houtang part of Beijing was very interesting because we were able to see how real Chinese people live when we ate lunch in the home of some residents who had lived in the area for over 200 years. We were served delicious food, and we also leashed about Chinese life in this ancient portion of the city. Also in the Houtang area we saw massive bell and drum towers dating from the Ming Dynasty, and also an ancient college and Confucian temple.
Sam