Abstecher ins Abenteuer und Döner

That title translates to something like this: Walk on the Wild Side and Döner. Yes, Döner cannot be translated into Englisch. It is an inalienable part of German culture (yes, the Declaration of Independence just came to mind). I decided today that Döner is my favorite food in this world: a amazing combination of salat, lots of veggies, strange dressings, käse (cheese), and a kind of meat that is indescribable and varies from Döner-Shop to Döner-Shop. I have heard rumors that the meat is a hybrid of lamb and chicken, other places have said beef...all that really matters is that it is LECKER (tastes so so good). Usually the meat is placed at strategic places in the pita-like toasted bread, some on top and some at the bottom with all of the tasty goodness in the middle. Today, I had only my second Döner in my 2 weeks or so of being here in München thus far. And I decided that I have not had the proper amount of Döner one must eat if one lives here.

So lots of Abenteuer (adventure) happened this past week. After the mighty Eagles fell to Tennessee by a close margin (we were tied with 5 minutes left!) the adventures began. I have to say I'm proud of my school and my team for coming up so big and almost pulling off one of the greatest upsets in the history of the NCAA Tournament. Over the weekend I went out to Schloss Nymphenburg and had my first ever castle experience in Deutschland. This Schloss was gigantic, actually it is so big that it is a majority of the area of München by the same name. So I walked around with a friend for a few hours through the grounds, taking in the beautiful grounds. Later in the week, a friend and I went to see "Der Herr der Ringe" (the first Lord of the Rings film) with the entire Münchener Philharmonie and two choirs, the University Chor and a Children's Chor. But before we got in to the show, we had to get tickets. It was sold out, so we ended up writing a sign (Wir brauchen Karten...We need tickets!). Most people that walked past us and saw the sign laughed with their buddy and made jokes about it. It was definitely interesting to see people's reactions...I almost felt part of a pyschology experiment. About half of the concert-goers pointed out that people were selling tickets 5 feet away from us! Did they really think we didn't see people selling tickets?!? We needed 2 to go to the show, so 1 would not be good enough (which is what we told them). So one woman finally had 2 tickets she wanted to sell for a bit less than face value, but really far away from the stage. We decided to pass and see if we could get something better. Our luck seemed to fade away quickly when a couple rushed up to the woman and bought them off of her. I honestly thought it was the end and there was no hope left....until 5-10 minutes before show-time. A guy came up to us and offered his one ticket and we told him we needed two, but THEN one guy said he had 2 and they were great seats. We ended up getting them for less than half of the face value. These seats were dead center, one section back, just perfect seats. And the performance was beyond epic. I have never experienced anything like this and probably will not again. I had chills running down my spine for the whole film. I literally felt part of the movie and the music was really incredible. I had never sat down and listened to the LOTR soundtrack but in this setting I appreciated it so much more. The soloists were right on and the music matched and exceeded the epicness of an already epic film. All I can say is 2009 = The Two Towers in München.

The First Week+ in München

Ahh it really is great to be back in Germany. And München has so far lived up to the hype of being the most liveable city in the world. The first week was a lot of work and a bunch of information thrown at us all at once but now I feel like I am beginning to settle in. When I landed in München and got through customs and such, my friend Allyson was there to pick me up. We went straight to the Studentenstadt where we would be living this semester. At first I was in a bit of shock to be back in Germany again. I was really excited but for some reason nerves were crawling around in my stomach. I guess all of the anticipation was just coming to a head after I got off the plane.

Well, the first week was busy to say the least. But to start it off, my friend from AU and I walked through the Englischer Garten. It is one of the largest urban parks in the world, and it was beautiful. The park extends from our dorms all the way to Marienplazt, where the Rathaus is. We walked along the Isar River, eating some apples, enjoying the great weather (all of the other days have been either cold and cloudy or cold and rainy/snowy). It was packed with tours around different parts of the city and the Studentenstadt. The first of the tours was led by the program advisor, Hans-Peter Söder (a great guy), who brought us through the "downtown" area around the famous Rathaus. He took us into small markets, the Viktualienmarkt, which is an open pedestrian-only area that has lots of stalls, and lots of random places. The next day we went through the process of obtaining a permit to live in München (Anmeldung auf Deutsch) and filled out lots of paperwork for a variety of things. We learned about how to pick out classes and apply. In the early part of the week we went on a tour of the StuStadt by a student at the Uni. We all didn't understand much of what he said with a thick Bayrisch accent and lots of local slang. I guess I did learn a bit better about the services in our little town. The big news of the first few days I was in München was American University making the NCAA Tournament! I listened to the game with my friend from AU and we were both amazed this was the year we finally did it.

Over the weekend my friend Pete from high school came to visit with a friend from his school (they were traveling through Europe after a program in the Middle East). They came on the day of the big St. Patty's Day Parade and Celebration, which incidentely came on the day before the real St. Patty's Day for some reason. Anyway, it was a great time, complete with Irish bands and dance troupes. Odeonsplatz was packed with people and beer tents. We met some Germans there and went with them to an Irish pub later on. It was quite the day. They stayed for a few days so we went out a few times for dinner and hung out a bit. It was nice having company the first week or so, even though it was a bit stressful. I had not seen him for a while so it was great to see him again, especially in München. Earlier this week we went on a tour of the University and saw the Weiße Rose Memorial Museum inside the main building of the University. It was incredible to think that we were in the same building where one of the biggest student uprisings against the Nazi regime took place. Other than all of the homework and projects over this past week, we also had a night tour of München that was great. Our guide, Michael, told us of the history of München as a small village and then the boom it saw when salt was found in large quantities. We saw the residence of Ludwig I and a few churches along the way but it was mainly about the hip clubs and bars around the area. He showed us lots of great, cheap restaurants and other neat places. One place was a bar that only was lit by red light and had rows of fans running on the far wall. I guess it was used as a public bathing place in the old days. Haha. He also brought us to one of the most expensive hotels in München and we went to the rooftop which gave us a great view of the city by night. Well, this Easter weekend a friend and I tried to find some of the places on the tour and we were not too successful. The roads are all so similar and really confusing to navigate. Oh well, it was an adventure at least and we ended up having a good night after all. The rest of the weekend was a bunch of relaxing, seeing the AU NCAA tournament game and going to the Zoo (where we thought there was a big easter egg hunt but it turned out to be inside a small hut).

So the first week has been great so far! There have been a lot of adjustments, such as buying groceries and cooking (in China I didn't need to do any of this), getting to know the people in my program, and settling into the Studentenstadt. My German is improving every day and I'm confident I will be ready for when classes start.

Somewhere Over the Atlantic in Seat 31C

So here I am, as the great duo Simon and Garfunkel once said in a song called “The Only Living Boy in New York”. There are about 10 more hours until I arrive in München, but I will first be stopping in London for a long layover. Well, all my stuff ended up fitting in two compact bags and I should have everything I need. So this entry is about expectations and my general thoughts going into my program in München.
1. Food and Drink– namely Döner (a Turkish Gyro-type sandwich), Knappers (a German snack with a waffle outer layer and chocolate inner layer), Wurst, Schnitzel, Brotchen (German bread that is best for breakfast with various cold cuts on top), the great street food, Bier, Apfelschorle (think sparkling apple juice), and fresh milk. Also you can add pretty much every food and drink to this list. To put it simply, German food is the best and there are no arguments against that.
2. Speaking German everyday and improving my German – This is something that I have missed for some time. In China I could not practice my German with other people, excluding some rare instances (to be expected). Now I will be in Germany for the longest stretch of time yet, so I expect to improve my German a lot. Taking all of my classes in German will help toward this end and being with other students who are motivated to improve their own German.
3. Living in München – This will be great because I have thought of perhaps living in Germany in the future. I almost positive almost 5 months living in München will do nothing to dampen this dream of mine. I hope to explore southern Germany, as I have not been there before, excluding München. I guess München will be alright, it was just named the most livable city in the world for the second year in a row.
4. Meeting other Germans and reconnecting with past friends – I still keep in touch with my friends from GAPP (German American Partnership Program), an exchange program in high school, so I hope to see them during my time in Germany. I definitely want to visit my host family again and see how they are doing. At the Uni I want to meet as many people as I can and hang out with Germans. This is the way I can improve my German a lot and Germans are just cool.
5. Not looking forward to the Euro – At this point the Euro is at an all-time high against the dollar, $1.537 = 1 Euro right now. So this will be a harsh reality after the past six months I spent in China where everything was so cheap. I hope to limit expenses where I can and not buy/eat out too much.
6. Looking forward to a Semester full of challenges and adventures – This semester is going to be difficult. I knew that when I decided on this program. Most likely, all of my classes will be in German and I will be taking regular Uni classes with other Germans. The language program is challenging, as I have heard and will push me to improve my German quickly. This semester will be one of adventure as well. I will undoubtedly be going on lots of adventures in Bavaria and having many new experiences. This is the fun part really. Every day will be an experience and challenge me to do things I have never done before. And that is why I am excited most about this Semester.
One other thing before I get some sleep before we land…the Brits use strange words and seem to not like Scotland too much if British Airways is any indicatation.

Countdown to München

The Voyage (Part 3)

Day 9: From Chengdu to Yangshuo

Although I was running on fumes from the flight from Tibet, I did manage to stay awake for enough time to see the incredible landscape outside the windows of our bus. It really looked like something out of a Dr. Seuss book. Giant hills/mountains rising out of the ground everywhere in magnificent fashion. It was a sight that I was completely unlike anything I have seen before. In the afternoon, after we arrived, I walked around town and next to the Li River. The surroundings were gorgeous. This was one of the most beautiful places I have ever seen, be it on TV, in the media, or in film. Words can't really describe the beauty of Yangshuo. The weather was Florida-esce in December and the scenery was out of a beautiful Chinese landscape painting. I couldn't ask for more. But there was more. As I strolled alongside the Li River I spotted rafts in the distance and wild horses running in the grass on the water's edge. Everything seemed to be in slow motion after living in Beijing for so long. 

Day 10: Another Biking Adventure

In the morning, we all took a raft trip down the Li River. The trip was nice and relaxing, and the beauty of the area was really accentuated through riding along the river. Hills towered all around us as we slowly drifted along. Later on in the day, a few friends and I decided to rent some bikes and go on an adventure in the countryside. We rented really nice mountain bikes for a dollar or two for the day. These bikes were incredible to ride out in the countryside...we were all used to the crappy Beijing bikes that broke every time we rode them. Now we were speeding along the one-lane highway in the Yangshuo countryside with crop fields and giant hills all around us. We passed lots of farmers and one such farmer (most likely con-artist which we would say in the US but just another sly businesswoman) told us that she could take us to the "Assembling Dragon Caves", where we wanted to go to. So we let her lead us, and then the adventure really started. We ended up going into this town past where we wanted to go and our teacher, Xiao Laoshi, had his tire go on him. So we eventually found a biker (of the motorcycle type) who took Xiao back to Yangshuo with the bike attached to the back. It was pretty hilarious seeing our teacher with a little kiddy helmet riding on the back of a biker's back. We pressed on and Xiao came along to see the caves. The "Assembling Dragon Caves" was more of a marvel at modern Chinese tourism than anything else. The cave consisted of hundreds of neon lights creating a sort of psychedelic experience. Haha and that is not far from the truth. There was more electricity inside the caves than in the hostel in Yangshuo. Our "tour" also included two boat rides along the "canals" inside the caves. I have never heard of canals in caves, but it was humoress nonetheless. Most of the tour tried to create symbolic meaning out of the stalagtites. It was an incredible experience and worth everyone's ten dollars. 

Day 11: On top of the hill

Some of our group did what I hoped to do ever since we arrived in Yangshuo, which was hiking one of the hundreds of "hills". We did that and had an amazing view from the top. As far as the eye could see it was hills and more hills, with farmland and small villages far below. Earlier in the day, a small group of us went to the area pictured on the back of the 50 kuai bill, which was much like the views from all over Yangshuo. 

Day 12-end

The end of the trip was in Wuhan, of Hubei Province, which wasn't all that exciting. We went to a lecture on the current state of China's economy, but the lecturer did not have the best English. We did find a solid snack street with some tasty yangrou chuanr and mantou chuanr (lamb on a stick and bread on a stick). That chuanr is something I will always miss about China and the friendly chuanr workers who always strike up a great conversation. 

The Journey (Part 2)

Day 4 (continued)

So, after lots of waiting we finally boarded the train for Tibet. We were told the trip was going to last about 28 hours in all. In other words, we were ready to embark on a marathon journey on the highest elevated train in the world. The train to Lhasa, the largest city in Tibet and religious capital, was actually the nicest I encountered in my travels around China. Perhaps it was the simple fact that it was constructed in the past few years, thus everything was clean and new. The train actually had power outlets, which made everyone happy, as they could watch all of their bootleg movies and catch up on blog entries (I needed to do this pretty desperately). Another amazing thing about this train was the BATHROOMS. They were relatively clean compared to other trains where you would not dare enter. However everything inside the train was overshadowed by what was outside. The landscape was from another world, probably most reminiscent of the moon. I will probably see nothing that compares with the sheer beauty I experienced on that train. At points along the way the land became as flat as desert plains with paper mache mountains towering over us in the distance. At other times along the journey the landscape morphed into a lunar surface. Craters filled the landscape outside our train windows. Some of my friends told me that later on the train ride they saw the highest freshwater lake in the world. From the pictures they took of it, it was an incredible sight. Through the night our train covered the greatest incline in elevation, so everyone’s body naturally adjusted to the elevation. 

Day 5

The next night we made it into Lhasa, at around 9:30pm (China only has one time zone even though it covers about the entire width of Europe). As we got onto our buses to get to the hotel, our tour guide put a white cloth around our necks, which is a symbol of welcoming and good luck in Tibetan culture. 

Day 6

We all woke up early to go to the Potala Palace, the Dali Lama’s Winter Palace (when he was still allowed to freely live in Tibet). The Palace is elevated on the side of large hill overlooking all of Lhasa. It really is an incredible sight…check out my pictures of it in the links section where I link to all of my pictures. It is amazing that this Palace has stood for centuries and looks the way it does today. The Potala Palace was used as a governmental and religious center and continues to be used this way today. It is especially a place for Tibetan Buddhist pilgrims to visit. Some travel hundreds of miles, cowtowing by foot to get here. When we approached the Palace hundreds of pilgrams were cowtowing around it and spinning a wheel filed with religious scripture. Inside the Palace we saw the many rooms where past Dali Lama’s have used to pray and lots of Buddhas that were used for different purposes. We also were able to see the sarcophaguses of past Buddhas, which were covered in gold and money. The people of Tibet donated a lot of money for the burials of the past Buddhas. After the visit, I went with a few people to a traditional Tibetan restaurant. At the restaurant we had some delicious Yak Butter Tea along with other traditional fare such as food that had some sort of Yak product in it. Let me just tell you Tibetan food does not mix well with the Western taste. I did hear that the Yak burgers were tasty though. After lunch I walked around the bazaar surrounding the most important temple for Tibetan Buddhists. Everything and anything you can imagine was selling in this bazaar. Most of stuff for sale at the hundreds of stalls spread out over a wide area mostly around this temple and consisted of traditional Tibetan crafts and Buddhist souvenirs for the most part. Bargaining here was difficult since no one really spoke Chinese (Mandarin) or English. Somehow I was able to get across what I wanted in Chinese although most people had no idea what I was saying. Haha. Well after the bazaar experience a few friends and I decided to go into the temple although it had a steep 100-150 kuai fee. It turned out that I was really glad I decided to go! Inside were some of the most sacred relics of Tibetan Buddhism and we witnessed a ceremony that none of us will soon forget. We later discovered (with a little help from our tour guide) that the ceremony we saw was one in which people would pay to repaint and change the clothes of the Buddhas for the purpose of raising money. A procession of monks chanted prayers during the ceremony and we just looked on in awe. Later we went to roof of the temple and were able to see all of Lhasa, including the Potala Palace in the distance. At night we had a group dinner at a traditional Tibetan restaurant and watched traditional performances, including one that featured a yak composed of 2-3 people that proceeded to devour most of the people in the restaurant. Oh that meal involved a contest at our table of who could drink the most Yak Butter Tea. Yes, it was that bad. That night was a lot of wondering around the area, which turned into a ghost town excluding some kids playing soccer in the streets and pickup billiards games emerging from closed shop fronts. There were pool tables everywhere! And small pool halls that didn’t exist during the day suddenly emerged all around us. That night we stopped by a bar to try Tibetan beer (which turned out to be ridiculously strong since we were so high in elevation and our bodies weren’t yet adjusted) and I found a small CD shop to buy a few Tibetan records. The one I bought featured a man on the cover holding a guitar over his shoulder in front of the Potola Palace. Incredible.

Day 7

On the final morning in Lhasa I bargained for some last minute gifts and the grabbed lunch at a restaurant where one of the Dali Lamas famously stopped at to have a drink and met his lover at (which was a big controversy at the time as a Dali Lama is not supposed to do this sort of thing).  In the afternoon we were off to Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan Province, known for its spicy food. But before we arrived we had to fly there. In the airport in Lhasa, some passengers were ready to board when suddenly they announced the flight was cancelled for some reason. I really thought a brawl was going to break out. Angry passengers were screaming at the airlines personnel and a huge crowd formed around them (This always happens when some sort of altercation takes place in China. Everyone forms a circle around the situation and start to take pictures/video and stare.). On the plane, we had a couple sitting near us that must have had a lot of phlegm in their throats because they were spitting on the floor of the plane. I thought it was hilarious while everyone else was disgusted by it. It was amazing to me that Chinese people will really spit anywhere. I had thought that this was limited to land environments but I was proved wrong yet again. I should have known by now that if you need to do your business, you do it no matter where you are. Hahaha. Well, we finally did make it to Chengdu and had a great dinner that featured about 20 different kinds of jiaozi (dumplings). It was one of the best dinners I had during my time in China. Then it was out on the town to a street called Jieli Jie. Oh by the way, close to our hotel was a giant statue of Mao that must have been fifty feet tall. Anyway, Jieli Jie was pretty neat because it was made to look like it was from the 3 Kingdoms period but actually was really new. That night we met a Chinese kid who was in a freestyle rap competition and was obsessed with American rap music. I told him that if he ever came to the US I would DJ for him and make him famous. I think he believed me. 

Day 8: Pandas and more Pandas

Today we took a trip to the Panda Research Center. What did we see? You guessed it, lots and lots of pandas. I learned that there are red pandas that are much smaller than the pandas we think of and look really similar to raccoons. After seeing the pandas we went to a shrine in honor of three famous brothers in the Three Kingdoms period. The grounds were well kept and nicely restored. Later on we went to a different part of town to find a teahouse. At the teahouse we rented out a room with a TV (I have no clue why we did this) and watched The Monkey King, a famous Chinese TV show that is about the famous Monkey King legend. As with most Chinese TV shows the plot was absurd, as were the shots and camera effects. Luckily our professors found the show to be funny as well. Then we wondered outside (at night now) and came upon a stage with performers of all ages. One featured a few girls on roller skates doing tricks all while balancing on a small round platform. We then went out to dinner with Xiao Laoshi and had one of the best meals yet. I forget what we had that night but we talked about that meal for a long time afterwards. That dinner featured the famous “Talking Behind the Fuwuyuanrs Back Conversation” that was recorded by Xiao Laoshi. Even later that night, I witnessed a Chinese man play a basketball shootaround game for over 5 minutes and score over 500 points, while my best was around 100. I have to this day not seen a human being shoot a basketball as quick and accurately as that man on this day in Chengdu, China. 

***Part 3, the final and last part of the journey around China is on the way.

And now we come to the Epic Trip Around China (Part 1)

Finally, months after the actual trip took place I have a chance to put this trip on record. This is most definitely a concise version of what I wanted to write, but I will add to this later. For now I want to write basically what happened and what I was able to see in only a few weeks time. Before I leave for Germany, I'll post on expectations, worries, excitement and all the thoughts that come to mind before leaving the US for an extended period of time. For now, we'll go back in time to the Epic Adventure that was our end-of-program-trip. 

Day 1: We started the journey with a night train to Xi'an, home of the Terracotta Warriors (Bing Ma Yong). After not a lot of sleep we arrived in Xi'an, checked into our hotel, grabbed breakfast in the hotel and then we were off to see the T. Warriors. After all of the buildup and seeing lots of pictures of them before actually seeing the real deal, I was not as amazed as I probably would have been. Still it was an incredible sight, if only because the area was so huge. Imagine giant warehouses filled with formations of warriors individually, uniquely crafted. The lunch on the grounds was yang rou with man tou which is a speciallty of the region. It was just right for the windy, chilly, raw day. Next we had some free time in the afternoon so I ended up exploring the Muslim Quarter with Andrew and we ended up running into a man who spent a lot of time in the US. He actually knew more about US culture than we did (I don't know how this was possible, but he did). So this worker at his little shop brought us to his studio to show his artwork and other students in his class. Later in the day we had a group dinner, which turned out to be another banquet since we were traveling with such a huge group, around 72 kids in addition to the office staff. After dinner, we explored the Muslim Quarter in greater detail, eating lots of chanr along the way (meat cooked on a stick) and other muslim specialties of the region like a piece of mantou doused in lots of sesame seeds and sugar-like stuff that made it really sweet. I also picked up a Jianzi that night (a Chinese hacky-sack that implements five or so multicolored feathers and tin to give the hacky-sack some sort of "substance". The street food in Xi'an was incredible (actually it was great everywhere really because in the US we don't really have "street food" per se and this street food was QUALITY). 

Day 2: Waking up early, morning flight to Xining, which was the pit stop for Tibet (ie. If you can adjust to the altitude increase you go to Tibet, if not then you go ahead to Chengdu, as some in our group were forced to do). Our first day there was spent going to a mosque and hiking up Nanshan to a Daoist Temple. The temple was on the side of a mountain and really was an incredible scene. We could see all of Xining (mainly an industrial town, not that pretty) under us and lots of mountains in the distance. At night we spent some time at the big night snack/market in Xining that had lots of wild stuff. Ok, right now think of the wildest piece of meat that can be cooked and fried on a stick. What you are thinking of WAS at this snack street. The scene was incredible. Smoke billowing up into the air around us while the vendors stare at our small group, the vendors throwing in nuts into huge pots feet deep, fifty sticks with lamp skewered upon them over hot coals perpetually burning. The lamp chanr was definitley the best I had had up to that day. 

Day 3: After a group breakfast we were off to the Tibetan monastery which was an eye opening experience...seeing so many Chinese minority groups and religious people that were not to be found in Beijing...but more on that later in Tibet since this was a Tibetan Buddhist Monestary. Later on we had a lecture fom a Tibetan professor at Xining U. Everyone was so tired from the day, most took a nap during this time although he was fairely captivating, providing an intro to Tibetan culture and the like. After the lecture, we were off to Tibet! To the train station! For a 24 hour+ ride on the highest train in the world!

Day 4: In the train station we saw lots of minority groups carying satchels of stuff and Buddhist monks waiting for the moment the train would board. While we were waiting around, we heard English from a foreignor at of nowhere. It was one of the most unexpected occurances in a place so far removed from the Western world. A man probably in his late 20s practically yelled at us, "I HAVEN'T SEEN WHITE PEOPLE IN OVER A YEAR! WHO ARE YOU GUYS AND WHY ARE YOU HERE!?!?" Wow. We all cracked up when he told us this. Other then our group, I and some of my friends from the summer had not seen too many white people for 6 months. We could understand where this man was coming from. It is truely hard to imagine what it is like to be the minority group until you step out of your comfort zone into a country exclusively populated by a different race. The man seemed so relieved to find someone who looked like him and could relate to his life. We understood what this man was thinking. It is not easy assimilating with a completely different culture for an extended period of time.

The Weekend Before the 2.5 Week Trip (cont.)

The same day as the Underground City my pengyou men (friends) and I took a trip to Tiananmen Square, where we decided to try to visit some of the museums in the area. It turned out most were closed since we left later in the afternoon, so we went over to the People's Congress. This of course is where the CCP meets to implement laws and such for the party. It appeared that tourists like us (albeit Chinese ones, which I didn't notice at the time because when you are in China for a while you begin to forget that you look different from everyone else) were strolling into the Soviet-style architectural building with no trouble whatsoever. We took this sign as a green light to walk right in and see the inside of the mammoth building in front of us. There was a small, one foot high white fence around the entrance but we decided to ignore it and walk up to the steps. After walking past the parked cars inside the compound and passing lots of tourists without getting any stranger than normal looks (which are stares but not prolonged stares I have to say), we made it to the entrance. At this point, our friend Xiaomai (who is an American) was drinking tea and had to finish it, we were told by the friendly baoan (security guard). After he finished the tea, our baoan asked us if we were on the LIST. We told him (in Chinese of course) we had no idea there was a list. Uhh Ohh. This meant lots of mafan (TROUBLE). He got on his walkie-talkie and talked to his superiors. Now he started to lead us back to the entrance! He said that there was no way we could have made it to the doors without a permit of some kind. The head security guard then started the questioning. "How did you get to the doors? Did you pass this guard here by the opening of the gate or did you jump over the fence?!?" Our answer: "Of course we went through the opening and saw the guard right there. We didn't jump the fence. No, we didn't jump the fence." We said this of course to cover our backs because we had no idea what would happen if we said otherwise. The guard: "Did you fly over the fence then? Hahahahaha." We didn't think this was too funny although we were probably laughing inside. Our response: "No, no we didn't." After a long pause, he told us to run along and we said that we were sorry if we had done anything wrong (We honestly did not know we had done anything wrong before the baoan went on his walkie. There were no signs anywhere! How were we supposed to know?). So we walked quickly out of the entrance and went back to Beida. After the security guard told us to run along, I did spot security guards in both of the "entrances". Somehow when we walked over the short fence, there were no guards in sight and no one told us to stop what we were doing. Well, the rest of the weekend did not exceed the drama that we experienced at Tiananamen Square that day. In a few days, though, we would embark on an epic journey through the mountains and plains of China.