A place to lay my head

We arrived in Beijing last night after sitting on the runway in the plane for over an hour. It felt like a long trip. We arrived at a hotel illuminated with neon Budweiser signs. A bass drum beat filled the air. The lobby was full of men smoking and lounging around looking listless and hungry. We checked into our room which was dark and old. The grout in the bathroom was black and peeling. The place was a dive! Elizabeth and I double checked the dead bolt. This morning we made an executive decision to pursue an upgrade. Elizabeth called a friend from her church in LA who called her father who called his sister who called her daughter who is an influential engineer here in Beijing. She told us she would find us a new hotel. Several hour later she picked us up in her Audi and drove us to the hotel that the government uses to host foreign dignitaries. It is like a park. Lots of grass and open space (something rare so far in urban China). The interior is decorated with marble, crystal chandeliers, and rare works of art. This woman arranged for us to pay about $60 a night. We found a card in our room indicating that our room usually goes for $200 a night. It is all about the connections.

The woman, Lili, spent the evening with us. She took us out on the town which consisted of visiting several malls (complete with Chanel, Versace, and Chinese style clothing priced over $100), stopping in at Starbucks, and a huge meal that we could only eat half of. (Hmmm, just like America.) Beijing flaunts its development. The city is gearing up to host the Olympics in 2008 so there is building and beautification everywhere. I feel like I have yet to see the real China. The cities are veiled in a thick western make-up and you can't quite see the real face.