This morning, we departed at 8:30am to visit the Beijing Zoo. The pollution today was quite bad, so most of us wore masks for a portion of the day in preventative measures to protect our health. We arrived at the Zoo and visited the panda enclosure first, where we witnessed around three pandas. The pandas at the Zoo were not very active and mainly just sat around eating bamboo shoots and leaves. While this may seem rather dull, we were all relatively enthusiastic about the experience as pandas are singularly native to China and it was a first time experience to many of us. After visiting the pandas we had around an hour to explore the rest of the Zoo and buy souvenirs. Many of us were able to witness other exotic animals, such as polar bears, elephants, hippos, waterfowl, monkeys, etcetera.
Following the Zoo and lunch, we arrived at Summer Palace. This historical architecture has significant value to Chinese culture. With the amount of walking and stairs that we climbed, we got more than enough exercise but the experience paid off because the view at the top was spectacular. After we climbed back down the extensive amount of stairs, we then boarded a ferry and crossed the Kunming Lake. On the other side of the lake, we exited the park at the south entrance and embarked on our journey to the shopping district, where we then had a traditional Chinese dinner after our shopping experience.
By Wyatt, Travis, Jarvis, Jerry, Anna, and Jane
Following the Zoo and lunch, we arrived at Summer Palace. This historical architecture has significant value to Chinese culture. With the amount of walking and stairs that we climbed, we got more than enough exercise but the experience paid off because the view at the top was spectacular. After we climbed back down the extensive amount of stairs, we then boarded a ferry and crossed the Kunming Lake. On the other side of the lake, we exited the park at the south entrance and embarked on our journey to the shopping district, where we then had a traditional Chinese dinner after our shopping experience.
By Wyatt, Travis, Jarvis, Jerry, Anna, and Jane