Greetings from Beijing!

I'm not sure if this blog will post or not. I'm in Beijing, and the blog site is all in Chinese. Then when I try to view my blog, it won't come up since we are pretty sure that the government has a block on these blogs.

Anyway, I am having a good time in Beijing. It is nice being back to organized traffic...which if you would have asked my opinion on this a few months ago, I would have never have said that Beijing traffic is organized. In fact, when compared to traffic in the U.S., traffic in Beijing is absolutely horrible! There is no city in the U.S. (at least none that I have been too or seen on TV) that the traffic here can be compared to. However, after being in India for a month, the traffic here in Beijing is very organized and structured! Beijing just has a bunch of cars, bicycles, and people walking. Chennai has not only cars, bicycles, and people walking, but also millions of motorbikes and auto rickshaws who think that they can go wherever they can squeeze...thus making two lanes of traffic into 5 or 6 lanes. Plus in India, you have the cows, goats, dogs, and chickens in the streets. Not to mention, India drives on the wrong side of the road.

However, even though I'm enjoying the better traffic, the pollution has been absolutely horrible here in Beijing. I have been assured that right before I arrived this week that there were actually 2 clear days in a row (I don't know though...I think my friends may just be pulling my leg with this story).

Anyway, I am enjoying my time here...been doing some shopping and of course lots of eating! However, in a couple of days, I will be ready to go back to Chennai...after all that is my home now (even if we don't have a house yet)...and I think I'll take the horrible traffic over the pollution any day!