This photo is of Ben standing in a bustling marketplace in Beijing, looking at the huge variety of foods and other wares.  We were grouped together in the Faculty Directed Practicum on a trip to visit students from the Beijing International School of Business.  On the way to the hotel, we spotted what appeared to be a market.  Rather than stick with the group, we decided to do some trailblazing of our own.  I think I got far more of the true lifestyle and flavor of China than from visiting all of the touristy monuments combined.  Not that the touristy monuments weren't the coolest thing I had ever seen - don't get me wrong, not much can top the Great Wall.  But this little side-trip made up for it's lack of magnificence with character.
 

   Before I had been to the great wall, my midwestern life had led me to picture the wall as stretching across a great flat plain.  Nope.  The wall stretches across the ridge of the mountains.  And, hence, there are stairs.  Lots and lots and lots of stairs.  I was pretty psyched, so I gunned it and led the group up to the Wall.  I paused here to snap a photo and catch a quick breather.
 

   Whew!  Made it!  The wall stretches both directions as far as the eye can see.  How anyone anytime ever could have built this just blows me away.  I think it was my friend Terry who first mentioned the fact that "When the chinese think, they think big."  That's the case here, without a doubt.  Also, I suppose you could add in the side note "and it usually doesn't work."  But it sure is cool!

(more pictures to come!)