Ed said that the Eagles Nest, the home of the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics,
was as cool looking in person, as we all thought it was watching events there on TV
not too long ago. There wasn't a sporting event taking place inside,
but Ed went in to check it out anyway, and found it full of snow.
They had filled it with snow hills for kids to go there sledding and snow-sculpture making.
Although Ed was half-way across the world, he couldn't escape from the winter weather.We were having blizzards back home in North Dakota while he was gone,
but at the same time they were shoveling the snow
out of the Beijing city streets. At least Ed didn't have to get too
homesick and miss all the fluffy fun.
The Chinese New Year was about to take place at the end of Ed's time there. He was supposed to be in China for work for 4 weeks, but knowing his final week would have been spent sitting in his hotel or participating in the local festivities, he opted to come home a week early (I had been having a horrible time while he was gone with everything from Noah with pneumonia to the vehicle breaking down). Below you can see lots of red festive decorations for the upcoming parties. Also, notice the extensive system of cables above the roadway... they use many cable cars for their mass transit in Beijing.
Ed poses in front of one of the Palaces at the Forbidden City in Beijing.
In his Beijing hotel, Ed was able to soak in the jetted bathtub, while watching TV through the "window" from his bathroom into the sleeping area
of his hotel room. I think I'd have "privacy issues" with that,
but I guess that's what the mini blinds are for.
A very unique feature I'd never heard of before.
You can see where the Great Wall of China goes into the sea. It's an amazing structure that defies comprehension...
it took over 1,000 years to construct, and to think of the tools
and techniques that must have been used all those years ago....
boggles the mind.
The Forbidden City
The Great Wall of China
The Forbidden City
The Great Wall of China
Ed hams it up for the camera on a golden horse statue at the Great Wall. He wasn't the only one, his escorts and new friends from the LM Plant, China,
were also sitting on the statues, laughing at their antics.
1 comment:
I just got done reading your entire blog and I must say it is very inspiring. It sounds as though you have many blessings in your life despite a difficult past.
I am a woman trying to find herself. My first husband was an absolutely wonderful man. Unfortunately, I just didn't realize it at the time. I took him and our marriage for granted. We were both very young when we married and I listened to the advice of a counselor (to this day I am still not fond of social workers) telling us we would be better off divorced. Maybe, but 20 yrs later I continue to think of him and the wonderful man I know he still has to be. We had a young daughter, 7 mos, at the time.
After divorcing my second husband 7years later, I found out my first husband had recently remarried--I was devasted. I finally realized what I had lost and my hopes at a second chance had died. I was still in love with him , but tried to be happy for him because he was happy. Isn't that what a good christian is supposed to do?
Another marriage later and a victim of abuse, I realize that I was and am broken. I probably would not have been good for anyone past or for the present until I fix me. So here I am... trying to discover who I really am and find my way home with renewed faith in our lord Christ so I can be good for my now 3 daughters (ages 18, 16, and 2). I hope and pray that someday I will again be blessed with a parnter as strong, loving, caring, protective, and loyal as my first husband was.
Thank you for sharing...I wish you many continued blessings and look forward to reading more of your inspiring writings.
BTW, I've copied down a saying of yours I really liked, "So instead of walking through life counting the stones that have littered our path, we can gather those stones, put them together, and build a rock garden with what we learn from it all." I'm going to put that in my journal as words of encouragement for my journey and on my FB page to helpfully inspire others. Again, thank you!
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