Day 3, Beijing Zoo

On our third day in Beijing Jon and I decided to go off on our own and see if we could get to the zoo. We wanted to see if we could go scuba diving at the zoo too because it has been a few months since we have been down. We set out in the morning to grab a bite to eat before we tackled the subway. We grabbed some baozi (Bow - tsuh pictured below, it's a type of bread) and some bananas. 

Baozi 

After eating breakfast we got on the subway and navigated through three lines to the Beijing Zoo. Getting into the zoo was fairly inexpensive. We didn't have all day to walk through because our group was going to the olympic stadium later that afternoon and we did not want to miss that or the group dinner. So we went and saw the iconic national animal, the panda, and wandered around a few more exhibits.

The Reptile house

The first thing that we stopped in to see was the reptile house. It was really cool to wander through because a lot of the animals were awake and active (it was feeding time). We even got to see a boa with a mouse tail hanging from its mouth and a big bulge in its throat. 

This one looked like it was being charmed, but he was just trying to get extra food from the enclosre next to him. 

The Aquarium

The aquarium cost us a little bit more, but it was worth it in my point of view. I always love to see the aquariums in different cities, so to see one that was half way across the world was a different experience. We saw the dolphin show and had an amazing chicken nugget lunch there. :) Unfortunately, we could not go diving that day because the dive team was not there. It was a bummer, but hopefully we will get to dive soon. 

Giant sea turtle

One of the first things that we saw were the giant sea turtles feeding on some cabbage (they love cabbage we found out). When all of a sudden I heard this high-pitched screaming. My first thought was that it was a child (hence the pan up to the child standing on the wall in my video), turns out it was the beluga whale behind me. I knew they made sounds, but I would have never thought that they would scream so high, and so loud. 

Feeding time for the manta rays. :)

I wish this were me. Jon and I told each other
that we should claim this was us, but it's not.

Giant japanese spider crab.

Moray eel scratching his sides by the look of it. 

I loved how clear the water was in this tank, and
the camera didn't catch any glare!

Not sure what kind of fish this is. If you know let me know.

This is a giant puffer fish, which can actually also be found
in the river surrounding the city we currently teach at,  in Yongzhong.

I love to watch jellies. Actually, these are medusas, but it works. 

This is where the dolphin show was.

The aquarium from the outside.

The sun was so bright!

Coy fish which are very famous in China.

Soft shelled turtle. Sad to think that I have eaten one of these,
but more about that in a later post.

The finger of God touching Nemo.

Birds, Mammals, and Primates, oh my!

After seeing the underwater world, we explored the dryer side of life.  I have to say that the pandas were my favorite. We didn't have too much time, so we had to be selective about what we went to at this point. It really was just a typical zoo with a lot of beautiful scenery in the middle of Beijing. It was kind of nice to get away from the traffic and all the people, even after only being there for a short time. Culture shock is something I don't think anyone can prepare for fully. 

This whole sculpture was made from a common technique
we have seen often here. It is made by piling rocks
together and sticking them together with morter. When they are
not making sculptures, they make more natural rock formations
to break up the scenery. You may see some of this in my later posts.

A pond full of lily pads.

Napping pandas all over.

This one was actually eating, but I could not get a very good shot.

The Olympic Stadium

We hurried back to our hotel after the zoo so that we could meet up with the others to go see the Olympic Stadium. We bought a few trinkets to take home, but we weren't alloted a whole lot of time before dinner and the Kung Fu show. So we scouted out the place, foregoing the 'bird's nest' of the stadium because it was too far and too expensive. It was cool to see all of the kites floating about though. Several tied together to make a string of them floating in the air. It was pretty awesome. 

Kung Fu show

Technically I am not supposed to have pictures for this, but I snuck some in before I knew that you weren't supposed to take pictures. :) This show was not nearly as amazing as the acrrobatic show, but I liked how they told a story of a boy who became strong by listening to his master and following his heart. 

The outside of the theater is pretty.

After the show, we were exhausted from doing a lot in one day, so we went back to the hotel and fell right asleep. No jet lag that night.