Day 2 Beijing

Today my parents arrived in from the port their cruise ship docked, about two hours south of the city. Bill and I had a lazy morning until they arrived. Once they arrived we set off for lunch. We went to a local place near the HouToung Area. It was a hot noodle place. The food was good and VERY cheap. Next we took a rikashaw ride through the HouToung area and around the lake of Hou Hai. That was a scary experience. It is a fend for yourself when crossing the street. I can't tell you how many time we almost took someone out. We also stopped at a traditional HouToung home. It was neat to hear the history behind this area. The homes are 500 years old and generation after generation have lived here.
Afterwards we walked across the street to a park with another Lama Temple and saw the 9 dragon gates. It is so hard to comprehend that the things we are seeing are hundreds of years old.
After walking around the lake and temple we went to the old Bell tower and Drum tower. These towers were used to keep time during the Ming Dynasty.
At the bottom of the bell tower there was a tea house. We went in and enjoyed a traditional tea ceremony. It was very nice to taste all of the different types of tea.
After that we walked the million 1/2 stairs up the drum tower. We went up to see the views as well as see a drum performance. It was awesome. I love drums! I'll try to post the video I have.
After spending a couple of hours at the towers it was time to head back to the hotel. It had been a long busy day.
We had plans to head out on the town for dinner, but after a glass of wine, we all decided we were too tired!