Settling in...

There is a pattern that many foreigners experience when they travel to a new country. Initially, we are mesmerized by all the new sights, smells and sounds. Settling into a new job, an apartment, mode of travel and everything else, has been interesting, as well as a little bit of work. Everything has an added challenge, as not knowing the language adds another dimension. (I have become pretty adept at charades). Work is busy for sure, but it is important to take advantage and sight see, eat out, and enjoy the flavor of the area. We’ve been lucky as we have had great weather and have been out boating, shopping (China’s unrecognized national sport), eating great food, and meeting a lot of other foreigners. I have a gym in the area where I live and this in itself is pretty unusual, as going to the gym is a fairly Western habit. I know that this phase might settle into the work-a-day world we all live, but for now, its pretty brilliant!Beijing itself is an easy city to navigate. The subway, which costs 60 cents to ride anywhere in the city, is safe, seamless and fast. Rush hour means passengers are literally packed into the subway. Employees stand at the door and shove the riders into the subway so the door can close. Let’s just say it’s an experience. If you have problems with proximity to others, maybe travel outside of those times.We have made it a bit of a habit to head out on the weekends and look for Western style restaurants as we eat Chinese food throughout the week. As there are a lot of foreigners here, Beijing offers lots of excellent restaurants. It’s just a matter of exploring, getting out, asking around and finding them.As Saturday is our exploring day, we went to The Forbidden City located just behind Tiananmen Square. It’s phenomenal to see, as the architecture is mind-boggling. The air quality was pretty good, offering lots of photo ops. This is not always the case, but more on that later. For now, we walk the Hutongs of Beijing, find good food and take advantage of everything this city, country, and opportunity has to offer.