China

It was sad saying good-bye to New Zealand:( Penny took us to the airport Tuesday morning and pretty soon we were on our way to Hong Kong. After an exhausting 12-hour flight from Auckland we arrived in Hong Kong and spent the night before boarding another flight this morning to Beijing -- the capital of China.

We met up with the Great Wall Marathon tour group and were brought to our hotel in downtown Beijing. There's definitely an excitement here about Beijing hosting the upcoming Olympic games. The city has this thick layer of smog so I can't really imagine bringing the world's top athletes here to perform their best.

Hopefully the air will be cleaner at the rural town we head off to tomorrow. We look forward to learning more about Chinese culture during our stay there and also when we return back to Beijing.

One thing's for sure: Chinese people (both men and women) love Ediza. Maybe it's the blonde hair or the big brown eyes, but they all just can't get enough of her. When I was signing in today for the tour, I look over in the middle of the hotel lobby and there's this group of employees huddled around Ediza watching her every move. One of the women even gave Ediza her pearl bracelet (she's wearing it in the photo below).

Want more proof? When we went out to eat late this afternoon the waitress, on her own, brought Ediza some watermelon and a baby cake for dessert. We'll see what she gets tomorrow.