Mariessa, Tom and JJ in Tiananmen Square

After a delicious buffet breakfast (with really good coffee) we were picked up at the hotel by our Pacific Delights tour guide Tom. He started off our tour of Beijing with Tiananmen Square and the enormous Forbidden City, which is the largest Palace complex in the world. Although it is November, and pretty chilly, these world famous attractions were packed with visitors from China and around the world. Apparently it is like this every day as thousands of people flock to experience the incredible history and scale of the Forbidden City…

Tom not only showed us the popular tourist attractions, but we also had a chance to experience some of the best local noodles and even have lunch at the home of a local family in the old town (Hutong) neighborhood. While there, we met a cricket champion, and of course we were under the impression that the British sport was very popular in China, but to our surprise we soon discovered that they meant cricket fighting champion!

We continued on over the next few days to the Summer Palace and to the Temple of Heaven, which is very popular among senior Beijingers as they gather in the mornings to play cards, Chinese checkers, badminton, Tai Chi and dance.

Stay tuned for our videos about Beijing and next blog about our experiences at the Great Wall and the Yangtze river cruise.

After we arrived at Beijing Capital International Airport and were picked up by our tour guide, we drove into downtown Beijing where our hotel was located. It just so happened that it was, as the airline Captain put it: “foggy/hazy” on the afternoon that we arrived. We quickly found out that it was a combination of smog and dark clouds. Visibility was so limited that we could only see buildings that were next to the highway and didn’t really get to see much of the city beyond 1000 feet or so. The highway was very new, smooth and wide, but there was still some traffic getting into the city. As the subway was heavily expanded for the Olympics there is a great express train that goes straight from the airport into the city and connects with the rest of the subway system. If you don’t have a lot of baggage, it might be a good way to go as it is very fast and comfortable. It costs 25 RMB for an airport express ticket and 2 RMB for a regular subway ticket.

New Subway Train on the #10 Line

We checked into the New World Hotel in downtown Beijing and it too was recently remodeled, although there is still remodelling going on so not all rooms have been updated. By the time we got settled in, it was already dark so we didn’t get to explore much on our first day and ended up having dinner at the hotel restaurant. We learned that many of the meals on the menu are actually for two people, so be sure to ask about the size of the portions so you don’t order too much (yes, we ordered two meals, which were meant for 4 people). The next day, we headed out to see the Forbidden City.

After a 12 hour flight from San Francisco to Beijing, we were exhausted and desperately needed showers. For flights of that length on an American carrier, I would highly recommend upgrading. Unfortunately the first and business class seats were all booked on our flight and the only remaining option was “Economy Plus”, which only offered a few extra inches of leg room… not really worth it if you are short.

Beijing Airport was very impressive, it is one of the largest terminals in the world and since it was built for the 2008 Olympics, it is very modern and functional. The customs lines were fairly long, even though they didn’t ask any questions like in the States or Canada. Each officer’s booth was equipped with a digital survey button panel where you could select your level of satisfaction with the process… although I’m not sure if I would ever select “dissatisfied”

We then proceeded to take a shuttle train to the baggage claim where we were met with a high tech carousel that detected if there was a space between bags on the carousel before dumping a new bag. Much better than the pile-o-bags functionality of typical baggage carousels. With luggage in hand, we headed to the exit and were met by our Pacific Delights tour guide: Tom, a local Beijing’er with several years of experience giving tours of his home city. His driver picked us up and we drove out of the airport towards Beijing’s downtown.

Mariessa and Tom

Just landed in San Francisco and made our way over to the international terminal to wait for our flight to Beijing. Although we have 3 hours to kill, it’s a bit risky to head into the city when it takes around 35 minutes by BART. 4 hours or more would be perfect, 2-3 hours is just too little time.

We just got our visas from the Chinese embassy, so our trip to China is confirmed. This Friday (yes, it was a very close call with the visas) we are flying out for a 9 day trip to Beijing and along the Yangtze river thanks to our friends at TripFilms.com, who set up this travel video assignment for us. We will be shooting videos about our experiences for our sponsor companies Pacific Delight Tours and Victoria Cruises, and try to keep everyone updated on the journey with photos and short clips on this blog.

Our first tip is to always check if a country you are traveling to requires a visa… and how much it is. Our visas to China cost $280 each because we needed them expedited and because we don’t live in a city with a Chinese consulate, so we had to use a Visa service to take care of this for us. It took less than a week for our passports to return with the visas, so everything worked out.

Stay tuned our blog and TripFilms.com as our China adventure begins!

Royal Caribbean International has just taken delivery of the world’s largest cruise ship: “Oasis of the Seas”. The ship is currently sailing to Florida where it will take on it’s first passengers. One of the most interesting things about the launch of this new ship is the extensive online video production that covers all aspects of the ship and includes a regularly updated Captain’s Log. You can watch the videos and find out more details about the ship, including it’s current position on their website www.oasisoftheseas.com.

Watch a clip from our Pasadena Old Town episode on this new promo compilation for TripFilms.com.. it’s the last one in the video

The FTC has recently made it a requirement for bloggers (and not mainsteam news outlets) to disclose if they receive samples, products or free trips during the writing of an article. When it comes to travel writing, does anyone really think that most bloggers can afford to pay for the costs of taking a few trips per month or even per year? Can you afford to take as many trips as a travel writer does on your salary? Would you prefer to read a first hand account of a trip or destination, or one written based on online research and press releases?

Here at Getting Around we have paid for some of our trips, but for our bigger excursions we simply would not be able to create videos and articles without some sort of discounts and expenses covered by our hosts or production partners.

Gadling, a travel blog we highly recommend, recently wrote an article about their position on this issue and we completely agree with them. Check out the full article at Gadling.com.

After hearing about Virgin’s new airline while watching the popular podcast Diggnation, produced by Revision3 (great use of new media to launch the airline BTW), I finally had the opportunity to fly on Virgin America on a trip from Seattle to Los Angeles.

The airline was being promoted as ‘making flying good again’ by providing more services while maintaining a low cost. Of course, this was aimed at the American market which, from personal experince, is pretty bad. So here is an account of my Virgin America experience so far (as I write this article mid flight on my iPhone WordPress app):

Booking a flight online is very simple, the website makes it easy to find the cheapest day to fly and the total cost is added up as you pick your flights (including all fees/taxes), but be aware that prices can change day to day and specials come up all the time. I paid $49 for the outgoing part my trip while the return flight was around $180 (checking in bags is $20 for the first bag, but that is pretty much standard on all domestic flights these days.) Customer service on the phone was also quick to help me out with a credit I had on the account. So far so good.

Wth a boarding pass printed, getting on the plane was quick and painless and we left right on time. The first and most obvious difference is the atmosphere and lighting, it looks and feels very modern and friendly. It’s amazing how much a little colored lighting can help.

Next the seats and entertainment system. The main cabin seats aren’t much bigger than on traditional airlines, but they do feel more comfortable and softer. Each seat has a touch screen entertainment and communication system, allowing you to watch movies, tv and podcasts, play games, chat with fellow passengers, and even order food. Instead of the typical food cart that slowly meanders through the isle, the flight attendents actually bring you your order, which kind of feels like you’re in first class. You can even select if you want cream and sugar in your complimentary coffee straight from the menu. If you have a regular main cabin ticket the tea, coffee, water and soft drinks are free, but snacks, meals and alcoholic beverages are not. Neither are the movies and on demand tv shows… Yes, that’s correct, you have to pay for your in-flight movie and the going price for mainstream films is $8! Do I get to keep the DVD with that?! Why are movies, a typically free offering, so expensive? I have flown on a lot of airlines, including ones with touch screens in each seat, but have never seen an airline charging for the entertainment. There are some free options though, like broadcast TV, podcasts and video games; and as amazing as it is that they offer podcasts, they don’t appear to be updated very often. I guess this system has yet to catch up with RSS.

You can also buy a few items on your flight, like headphones and a skin care kit filled with the Yes To Carrots product line (one of the safer and best quality skin and beauty product lines available. More details at Glamology.com)

Virgin America offers fleet-wide Wifi onboard, which runs $10, as well as power outlets for every seat, so you’ll never run out of juice. I suggest you bring your laptop and DVDs if you want to watch movies, you’ll save money and get to watch the movies you like.

Well, that’s pretty much all for now. I would definitely recommend taking a flight on Virgin America if you have a chance.

The Naturhotel, located near Innsbruck, is one of the most eco-friendly hotels we’ve ever seen. Everything from the construction to the use of natural sunlight makes this hotel an eco-traveler’s destination. Check out their website for more details: http://www.waldklause.at