China- Beijing Day 2, Jade Factory, the Summer Palace and Peking Duck

After our adventure filled trip to the Juyongguan Great Wall Fort, we loaded the bus and headed to lunch. The location of our lunch, was also part of the Jade Factory we were going to tour. Just as I've previously stated and will state again and again, the food was amazing. Real authentic Chinese food is delicious. American Chinese food, gross!

Upon devouring our lunch, we were escorted down into the factory for our tour and souvenir shopping.

We weren't planning on buying any souvenirs while here, but like always M's little face catches the eye of the sales person. M kept eyeballing the small turtle figurines so the lady proceeded to take her around and show her ALL the stuff. We are truly suckers when it comes down to it and so we let the kids pick something small. I found a small Buddha who is now displayed in our living room. After what felt like more time spent at the souvenir shop then the Great Wall, we loaded back onto the bus and headed to the Summer Palace.

The Summer Palace is a gorgeous spot and a must see if you are in Beijing. I would say this is another spot where we did not have as much time as I would have liked. There was so much we did not see as we only walked the grounds.

We were fortunate to get there as the sun was setting which made for a gorgeous sight at the end of the day.

As the sun finally set, we made our way back through the gardens and out to the bus. For dinner we were going to have Peking Duck and Chinese Fire Water. The duck was delicious and the fire water was, intense. I don't think I'll ever drink it again.

After dinner we went back to the hotel and we're welcomed with the beautiful sounds of musicians. I snapped a few pictures of the kids in front of the giant christmas tree and then headed to our room to pack.  The following day we would be going to see the Giant Panda's at the zoo, Hutong village and then catch a flight to X'ian. We eventually made our way down into the underground mall to get some ice cream for the kids before calling it a night.