Wednesday April 10

We made it to Beijing ok and are just settling in.  It's almost midnight/Thursday morning here.  The first flight was really smooth and Maddie was terrific the whole way.  All in it took 20 hours flying to get here:  15 hours to Hong Kong, 2 hour lay over and then 3 hours to Beijing.  Finally got to catch up on movies on the flight so it was actually very relaxing (love Cathay Pacific!).  We got some noodle soup in the HK airport in between.  And now Maddie is eating her 2nd bowl of noodle soup from room service. Our hotel room is very nice - a suite with two bathrooms, living room/dining room and bedroom.  It is in a great location close to shops and sites.  We have a free day to explore tomorrow.  Then our agency FTIA arranged for some tours on Friday and Saturday.  We will leave Sunday to go to the provence where Emmie is!