Catching up on Beijing photos..and introducing my new camera

Thanks to my friend Linda we now have some more photos of Beijing. Above is the mandatory 40th birthday dinner shot...



And particularly photo-worthy was the Summer Palace, although it was a hazy day, you can still appreciate the serenity of this imperial getaway. It was a quiet place to visit in the winter time --in the summer the grounds are lush and beautiful -- but the frozen lake gave it an eerie quality I quite liked.

The "stone boat" was a must see -- it is a stone (marble maybe?) boat on the edge of Kunming Lake on the Summer Palace grounds...as our friend Yoni pointed out, "its what the Empress Dowager built instead of modernizing the Chinese navy".

One day while we were in Beijing, Thomas went with Linda and her sons to the Great Wall. Michael had meetings that day and I opted not to go back to the wall in February with a toddler (and we had no baby back pack anyway). But Thomas had a terrific time, and here he is with Tal and Noam and some invaders (or defenders?) of the Wall that they met. When somebody dons a costume like that and asks for a little money to take their picture (a common occurrence) it is usually worth it!

I have some more photos from Beijing upcoming from other sources.. in the mean time, I bit the bullet and purchased a new camera. After my unsuccessful attempt to get the other one fixed in Beijing, I was still 200 RMB in the hole, and the camera store in Xiamen wanted another 500 RMB (about $65) for a second attempt...for about double that I bought a new one -- not quite as good a camera, but maybe I can still get the old one fixed back in the US where I can understand what is wrong with it a little better. I guess these digital cameras have a shelf life, and mine has been pretty overworked this year..A lot of things are cheaper in China, but generally not electronics.

I was playing with the new camera on the way to church today -- a very nice clear day (its actually been pleasant since we got back) to see Gulanyu in all its colonial era glory..





Finally a picture Michael has been trying to get me to take for a while...we have a regular lunch spot on the island, a friendly, family -owned restaurant. The bathroom is upstairs, near the living quarters, and we pass the porch where the family laundry is hung..and usually a few other items are out to dry as well, such as a duck and some pigs feet...it is good to keep this stuff handy!