China

Beijing:

Things To Do:

The Great Wall of China: I would recommend visiting the Mutianyu portion of the wall. It’s much less crowded than the other areas. It’s approximately 2 hours from Beijing.
- Directions from Beijing: take the 916 Express bus to Beidajie (North Street) in Huairou District (about a one hour drive if there is no traffic). From there, cross the street and get on the H23, H35 or H36 and get off at the Mutianyu roundabout. From there it’s a short walk to the ticket office. Note, the buses only take cash. One way on both buses together costs ~25 CNY.

Do not take the taxis instead of the H bus. Those cabs are unofficial drivers and they will rip you off.
Taking local transport is complicated and takes longer than a private taxi from your hotel, but it’s much cheaper and it was a fun experience in itself!
Make sure you check the weather before you go, because on a day with a lot of smog it’s hard to see.

- I would recommend taking the Cable Car up to tower 14 and walk to tower 6 to take the louge down.
Acrobatic Show at Chaoyang Theater: an absolute must! Worth all $35.
Tiananmen Square
Forbidden City: the city is closed on Monday’s. Make sure you bring your passport when you come!
Olympic Park: buy the ticket to the Bird’s Nest that let’s you go to the top are the arena! Beautiful views of the field and the city! If you are a student, bring your student ID to get a discount.
Lama Temple: be conscious of the people who are observing at the temple.
Silk Road Market: the place to go for cheap knock-offs.

Accommodation:

Park Plaza Hotel: the hotel staff spoke great English and the hotel was in a good location. I would recommend staying in a nice hotel while in Beijing.

Food:

Sijiminfu: this restaurant was the best food I had in China. They are known for the Peking Duck, which is carved table-side. I would recommend ordering several dishes to share family style. I would recommend ordering the Peking Duck, noodles with deep fried soybean paste, bread with shallots and the cauliflower.

Notes:

There is a huge language barrier in Beijing. Most taxi drivers, servers and shop owners do not speak English.
Getting a taxi from the airport is confusing. You can either get a metered taxi (chances are they speak no English) or you can get a prepaid taxi which is going to cost much more.
The smog in Beijing is terrible. Check the smog levels everyday and buy a face mask if the smog particulate matter levels are high enough.
The Internet is highly regulated in China. Therefore, everyday apps such as Google, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat do not work. In order to use them, you need to download a VPN. I used “VPN Proxy Master – Wifi VPN.”
You cannot drink the water in China. Make sure to always bring bottled water with you!
A lot of places in Beijing don’t accept card. Make sure you carry ample amounts of cash, as a lot of the ATMs didn’t take US cards (VISA, Mastercard, etc.)
Traffic in Beijing is crazy. Crossing the street can be very complicated at times, as it feels like the mopeds will hit you. The traffic lights are not really abided by, so even when you have the green crossing sign, make sure you pay attention to cars and bikes from all directions!

Background photo taken at the Mutianyu portion of the Great Wall of China.