That was China

OMFG, we're going to Mongolia tomorrow. How on earth did that happen? Let me set the scene...

We arrived in Beijing yesterday, weary after a hard-sleeper train from Pingyao. Pressing on through the suddenly hideous weather, we realised that our hostel was in the arse end of nowhere. No matter, thought we, there are things that must be done. After dropping off our bags, we were back in the thick of it, searching for tickets out of China.

We're learning a lot on this trip. Yesterday, we discovered that you can't buy international train tickets from the train station. We also learned that a slightly misheard direction can cost you dearly in terms of expediency. After a fools errand to the other side of the city and back again, we discovered the place we needed...with a closed sign dangling from it's recently locked doors.

So, Hayley indulged in some retail therapy, and then we got drunk on fifty pence beers whilst Take That's Greatest Hits drawled on in an otherwise pleasant bar.

Morning comes, and once again, we fling ourselves into the madness of Beijing, ready to buy our tickets...one thing our trusty LP guides didn't tell us is that there's only two trains a week between Beijing & Ulan-bator...faced with a week of procrastinating in a massive and potentially expensive city (the decision was pondered over a five quid coffee each), we opted for the impulse border crossing. Bye-bye Beijing.

No Great Wall or Peking Duck, but at least we managed to see the Forbidden City, and description-defyingly-awesome it was at that. Photos to arrive upon discovery of a more cooperative computer.