Tuesday, May 31st - Another teaching day!

On Tuesday's my classes are also in the morning - HR and Business Communications. I think they went well? We are working on a HR plan for the K-TV bar that we are going to start up (K-TV is a Karaoke bar...these are hugely popular with the kids here!!!!) as well as a customer solicitation letter for our "start-up" touring company (Communism is not the right term for the economy here!) Anyway, I am looking forward to seeing what they produce.

The nice thing about morning classes is that they leave afternoons and evenings to look around. I decided that this afternoon might be a good opportunity to try and re-do my Sunday plan.....namely heading to Bedaihe to see the park there.

I will say that I sure wish my family (or friends) were here seeing this stuff with me....it is not as much fun travelling alone (I find myself to be so-so company). I am also pretty sure that I will be one lonely camper by the end June - especially once Gis leaves in a couple of weeks. If anyone feels the urge to jump on a plane to Beijing, I can offer them a free place to stay, a quasi-tour guide and find them all the $2 meals (with beer) they can eat!!!!

Bedaihe is considered a summer resort town, and starting in late June begins to get many tourists from Eastern Russia. I am told Russia has no Eastern "ocean" coastline, and that this is the closest hot/beach/ocean/vacation type city for them. Further, a number of "upper and middle-class" tourists also come from Beijing trying to escape the summer heat (Beijing is suppose to get stupidly humid and hot in July and August).

Bedaihe is technically listed as a "different city", but is really part of Qinhuangdao. There is also a boardwalk that runs along the back of the beach between the two places which makes it quite a nice way to see the countryside/ocean.

My initial plan was to go to the park, then into town and shop a little and then head back on the bus...however, I got distracted and ended up trying to see the famous (in this part of China anyway) pagoda in Pigeon Park as well as the "Bedaihe bathing area"....I will have to go back again to wander through the town/shopping areas.....but here are the pictures from today.

P.S. In terms of pictures, it is difficult to take a photo of something far away because there is a haze everywhere. This might be ocean fog, but I think it is coal dust. Even on windy days it is still there, and the only time it seems to clear up a bit is if it rains.....anyway, that is why the pigeon park pagoda photo (say that 5 times fast) is blurry.

Also, the fancy place in the pictures is a beach club about 1/2 way between the two cities. It looks like it is used to hold fancy dinners and weddings (....and appears to be pretty swanky!!!!).

I took the picture of the girls on the bikes as that is also very common here. You see many people doubling on a bike with the back person sitting side saddle on the back "book rack"!  

Lastly, like everywhere here, the whole place seems to be under construction. I am told that the new leader likes Russian architecture, and so they are adding domes to buildings and changing the town to look more "Russian" (I am serious, and it sure looks to be true!). The students tell me many high ranking gov't officials come to Bedaihe over the summer and therefore it gets a lot of attention. Lots of flowers, new paint, cleaned up....and going forward, lots of buildings that will look Russian.