After a long fourteen-hour flight, my mom, brother and I stepped off the plane and into Shanghai international airport. We had been waiting anxiously for almost three months to go to China, and the day was finally here. My best friend, Kate, who lives in Shanghai greeted us at baggage claim and we both scurried into the car where we swiftly drove through the city and back to her house. China exceeded my expectations on every level imaginable. Right when we got back to her house her mom told us that we were waking up at five in the morning the next day to catch our flight to Beijing for the day.

Still incredibly jet lagged, I still managed to jump out of bed and pack ym bag for the day in Beijing. The flight was close to three hours from Beijing to Shanghai and it was one of the most interesting flights of my life experiencing their culture. The second we landed we were escorted to our big sprinter van waiting for us along with a driver and a tour guide. Before we went to the great wall we went to the forbidden city, and Tiananmen Square, which were both amazing. It was close to one hundred degrees outside and insanely muggy so we were slowly running out of energy to continue walking around we went to lunch in a traditional Chinese restaurant where I ate undoubtedly, one of the best meals of my life.
After a long rest we got back in the car and headed for the great wall. It was all the way in the mountains so it took about two hours to get there but the car ride alone was breathtaking. As we slowly escaped the polluted and muggy city, we drove through green forests and over tall mountains. Again, this was not what I was expecting China to be like but I was not complaining. Everything about it was beautiful, even when it started raining; everything still seemed so fresh and open. When we got there we drove up a tiny hill to the bottom of the ski lifts that take you up to the wall. With our toes hanging above the tree tops and the grass, I was blown away by its beauty. The wall itself was astounding, it was one of the weirdest feelings standing on top of one of the most famous pieces of history, everything we did from attempting to see how far it goes to carving our names into the wall was a feeling I will never forget.
After we were done taking all of our pictures and riding down the mountain on the toboggan, we rewarded ourselves with some of the best nutella pancakes I have ever had from a small street vendor at the bottom of the mountain. After that we had a very peaceful ride back to the airport where we caught our flight heading back to Shanghai where we got to stay for another two weeks. The next two weeks came very close to topping my day in Beijing, China is one of the most beautiful countries I have ever been to. Everything from their culture to their architecture and lifestyle blew me away. My vacation was one I will never forget and I cant wait to go back someday.