No Data In, No Data Out

      Well, I had hoped to have to update this blog a lot more than I am. Mike has run into problems getting on to the internet. So far he can't seem to figure out how to get the VPN to work leaving all of us me included a bit in the dark as to how things are going. I was able to get him on the phone yeaterday while he was on the train to Xi'an but it only lasted about 2 minutes and this morning I got a great connection with him but I had to leave to get to work so I only got a couple of minutes again and most of it was spent on fixing the VPN. Anyway, let me pass on what I do know. They arrived safely in Beijing, spent the night at the Fly By Night Hostel which Mike said was beautiful after his first impression of the neighborhood was that it was a bit sketchy. He got there in the evening so I think the dark made things even worse then what they were. That morning they went out to the Great Wall. They wanted to take the tram up and walk down to the alpine slide but the plans I think got lost in translation and the guide brought them to the chair lift instead. They ended up hiking up before going back down to the slide. Mike said that it was very steep and he kept misplacing his steps on the uneven ground and almost falling. He said Al told him if you break something up here we're in trouble so cut  it out. LOL Al texted me that he thought the wall was "awesome" and I'm sure thats true. They were able to take the slide down which Mike loved.
            The guide dropped them off at the train station early and they were lucky to find someone who spoke English who helped them find the waiting area. They were able to buy something to eat which Michael said was the first real meal they had since they left. (thank god, I packed tons of snacks) It was some green bean, meat and rice dish. Mike loved it and apparently it was big enough that they just split it. Once on the train they crashed pretty quickly and slept thru to Xi'an.
            Once the train arrived in Xi'an and got off the train. They were completely overewhelmed by the size of Xi'an and the sheer amount of people. Plans were that they were supposed to get to the hotel (The Bell Tower) on thier own but they were incredibly happy to find their WACAP guide holding a sign for them. After leaving the station and seeing the sheer size of the city Mike feared they really would have struggled to find their way. Not being a city guy ever in his life, this big city is quite the change for my little Vermont born country boy! They are currently safely at the hotel and were enjoying a free day today. Tomorrow they go to the Terra Cotta Warriors and Sunday at 4pm is MAREK TIME!

So that where we are at. Once we can get internet access I can get the posts that he has been writing and hopifully some pictures.