Today’s post is a throwback to my trip to Beijing- one I thought would actually never happen. I made the trip last May, and while it wasn’t one of my beautiful beach vacations, it’s near the top as one of my favorites. Visiting the Great Wall of China was always on my bucket list, but who in their lifetime actually gets the chance to go?
The preparation for the trip was quite a headache (and a bit more expensive than anticipated). For some reason when applying for my visa while living in Korea, it made the cost nearly double and I ended up paying a whopping $230 (more expensive than the flight itself). I also had a bit of an issue because my IDs didn’t say the “same name”… and by this I mean my passport says “Flynn, Megan R.” and my license says “Flynn, Megan R” …I mean, seriously? I bet you had to go back and look. The visa was submitted but I wasn’t going to find out if it was approved until a few days before my departure. Fingers crossed, it was approved and we left a few days later!
After a short 2 hour flight from Seoul, we made it through customs and hopped in a cab to take to our hotel. We stayed at the PentaHotel (highly recommended) in the most perfect location! We were in the heart of a large shopping district equidistant to everything we wanted to see- The Forbidden City, Tiananmen Square, Silk Market, Pearl Market, Wangfujing Food Street, Temple of Heaven, etc. After checking in, we turned in for the night and quickly connected to our VPNs so we could use Google to plan out our next few days (Yes, it’s true. Google/Facebook/ Instagram are blocked in China).
DAY ONE
SHOPPING & EATING: WANGFUJING FOOD STREET
Yes, I did eat scorpion on stick.
DAY TWO
TIANANMEN SQUARE 
FORBIDDEN CITY
DAY THREE
GREAT WALL OF CHINA
For more photos of the Great Wall, check out my Black and White Gallery
DAY FOUR
Our last day was a bit rushed so I focused more on getting gifts for my family instead of pulling my camera out. After checking out of our hotel, we walked to the Pearl Market and unfortunately got lost along the way (the whole no Google maps thing was a pain), so we didn’t have a much time there as we wanted. The market was dozens of floors filled with electronics, make-up, clothing, jewelry, toys, pretty much anything (and everything) that has ever had a “made in China” label on it. It was so overwhelming!
We bought our trinkets and headed off to the airport where it was much more difficult getting out of the country than in. I had to go through a few extra screenings as well as have my entire suitcase dumped on the metal counter at security. No hesitation- they unzipped it and dumped it. I wasn’t pleased to say the least. We made it through, bags in hand, and headed back to our lovely homes in Seoul.
Dear Flynn, Megan R., (yes I had to look 3 or 4 times), Beijing is exciting, but the ‘real thrill is You’ and your writings, pictures and taking ‘us’ along in your travel backpack!
Love all your pictures but not necessarily all your food choices.
Hope your knee is fully rehabbed.
Loving you and loving email and any way you post or stay in touch! ❤💜 g/p
Sent from my iPhone
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Love you so much GG and Paw Paw!! I’m so happy I can share these experiences with you- only wish I started writing these earlier. I’ll have to play catch up for awhile 🙂
Well written blogpost
Great pic galley, thanks.
Megan, I ADORED reading this post!!!! China is one of those places at the top of my bucket list. I would love to go someday, but for now I will settle with living vicariously through you! Haha. You are the cutest and these pictures are incredible. I’m glad you were able to go- what a crazy time crunch with the passport! I also love that your grandparents commented on this. SO precious. Have a great rest of your week, love!
Mackenzie you are too kind!!! I’ve been slow to post, but comments like these really motivate me to get my writing done. Thank you so much!!! ❤️❤️❤️
Aww, of course, girlfriend!!! Life is so crazy- we will take what we can get from ya! All your posts are wonderful and worth the wait!