Bai Hai Park (Beijing)

After such a long morning in the Forbidden City, we needed some relaxation! There is no better place than Bai Hai park. Here paddle boats, picnics, music and dance are all the norm. So we brushed up on our Chinese for "we would like to rent a motor boat" and five minutes later we were on the water!

There are paddle boats and motor boats. Given that it was about 95 degrees in the middle of the afternoon, we opted for a motor boat!

Behind me is the Dagoba. It tops Jade island and is 36m high. It is a Tibetan style stupa built to honour the visit of the fifth Dalai Lama in 1651.

Jason at the wheel! We were expecting the wind to whip through our hair as we zipped around the lake, but at a top speed of 5 mph, it was more like a cool breeze. Still though -- it was a wonderful lake!

This is the Pavilion of Calligraphy. Inside it contains nearly 500 stone tablets engraved with the work oof famous Chinese calligraphers.

A little video of the water, our boat and of course -- us!