Nine million bicycles in Beijing

Nine million bicycles can no longer be seen in Beijing today. This has changed significantly since the 80s. Instead, millions of cars clog the city streets. It took us over 1.5 hours to travel the approximately 40 kilometers from the airport to the hotel. The traffic is so congested that two license plates (the last number is decisive) are not allowed to drive each day. The remaining cyclists have now been upgraded to electric power and silently chase unsuspecting tourists taking photos in the narrow streets of the old city.

If you ignore the signs, Beijing doesn't look much different at first glance than any other major city in Europe, just much, much larger. After all, 22 million inhabitants have to be accommodated in the 'Great City in the North', as Beijing is translated.

The city was probably founded over 3,000 years ago. In addition to thousands of skyscrapers, there is also a beautiful old town, which was partially restored last year.
You can already tell who owns the house at the front door. If there are stone blocks on the right and left, it is a civil servant's family. The stone blocks symbolize a stamp. If the stones are round, they represent drums and indicate that a soldier's family lives behind the door. The highlighted beams above the door also make it clear what rank the family holds. One or two beams indicate a lower or middle service grade, while the owner of four beams has taken the higher civil service career path or is a general. When the door knocker is struck three times, friends ask for admission, family members only need to knock once.
After strolling through the old town, we walked along the shopping street, which used to be reserved for the emperor. Elaborately decorated facades and passages where different craftsmen create souvenirs for tourists invite you to stroll.
Northern China is known for its wood carvings, jade production, and pearls, while silk is best bought in Shanghai.
Our first day in China was rounded off by enjoying Peking Duck and a thousand other delicacies that the northern cuisine is known for.
By the way, we also saw dogs on the streets... with and without leashes...

The bright blue sky at around 11 degrees made the day perfect.

Our hotel, the Beijing West Riverside, made a good impression. The rooms are spacious and clean, the beds are large and not too soft.
We just have to get used to the room temperatures. We were already freezing in the café at the airport, it wasn't any warmer on the bus, and even the hotel room was chilly.

Oh, and one more tip: If you want to withdraw money from an ATM in China, it's worth looking under the privacy cover of the keypad. The numbers are arranged differently here than they are in our country. The number 1 is located in the bottom left corner, not the top left. If you are also distracted by the Chinese ATM voice that you don't understand and enter the wrong PIN three times because you are sure you have the right number in your head...

But that's just a side note! It's now 10:15 pm here and we are going to bed satisfied but tired. The next excursion is scheduled for 8 am. Then we will go to the center of Beijing and the Forbidden City.

PS: If you haven't tried it yet, you can click on the photos, then a caption will appear and you can easily swipe through them.