Sarah Marquis

I arrived in Beijing to a freezing dark day with lots and lots of snow, which is pretty unusual for here. How the plane landed I do not know. You really couldn’t see a thing! After a treacherous taxi ride I arrived safely at my hotel. I was more than relieved when the taxi driver decided against trying to drive up the very steep hill at the side of the hotel. Sarah was already there so we had our usual cup of tea and a catch up ?

The next day we went to the Forbidden City where the Chinese Emperor used to live with his hundreds of concubines. Each evening the Emperor would choose one lucky lady to share his bed. His trusted unics would undress and bathe her then wrap her tightly in white silk (this way she could hide no weapons). She was then carried into the Emperor’s bedroom and placed on the floor where she had to escape her silk prison, like a butterfly emerging from its cocoon and crawl along the floor into his bed. She must remain beneath him at all times to show her submission. Once the act was over and depending on how he felt it went, the Emperor would decide whether or not to give the woman herbs to destroy any possibility of conception or allow the pregnancy to continue.

Today we wrapped ourselves up in our own makeshift cocoons (enormous, yellow arctic jackets) and headed for the Great Wall of China. We may look silly but damn they’re warm and we certainly needed them. It was a freezing cold -10 day and The Great Wall of China was covered in snow like a slice of iced cake. However, we had an almost cloudless, beautiful blue sky and lots of sunshine. It was even more spectacular than I could ever have imagined. It was a truly unforgettable experience.

Tomorrow we are heading for pastures new.........Mongolia..........back soon.......