The Summer Palace

The fact that I could not think of a clever title for this post speaks volumes about what this tourist spot was like ;)

In the afternoon we went to the Summer Palace, where the various Emperors of China would spend their summer months. It was a beautiful place with a nice setting, though the day was really hazy because the pollution in Beijing. But, to be honest, it wasn't all that impressive after our visit to the Forbidden City the day before. It was almost "Forbidden City Lite." There were lots of street vendors selling watches and the group continues to direct each of these vendors to me to see if I want to trade my Omega. No way!! The Omega is still working and it has been about 30 hours since I got it. The watch has become THE inside joke for the group, providing at least a half dozen moments of laughter a day.

Probably the most interesting thing to happen at the Summer Palace was when our trip guide, Mark, told a story about prostitution in China. He said that the way prostitutes often work is that they call hotel rooms and ask if you want a massage. If you say yes, they come to your room and give a "special massage." Anyway, Mark says that he gets called all the time and he always says "No!" very quickly when he gets the call. One time, he got a call and thought for a moment about asking the lady for the price – not because he wanted to use her services, he was just wondering what a prostitute would cost. But, affter half a second of hesitation, he said his usual, "No!" and was all ready to hang up the phone when the prostitute said, "Wait!" It was his wife! She was just calling him as a joke. He says he never would have been able to explain if he had asked what she was charging.

He had another story about a friend who's girlfriend called and asked if he wanted a massage. The man said "No" and the girlfriend later told him that it had been her calling him as a joke. So, that night, his phone rang and the person asked him if he wanted a massage. He replied, "yeah, send me two girls!" because he again thought it was his girlfriend playing a joke. 5 minutes later, 2 real prostitutes showed up at his door. Mark did not tell us how that story ended.

By the way, the attached pictures from the Summer Palace are me with Arthur and Ann Wichman pretending to scowl like the gargoyle behind us. The other one shows Kathy and Lisa Sheppard as the group was taking a Dragon Boat ride.