Our Hotels In Beijing, Baotou, Hohhot

I should start a series on accomodation, because some folk who talked to me during Sunday lunch have reeeeally, really strange ideas about where we slept when we go on m-trips. Who gave you those ideas, huh? Hudson Taylor? That's soooo 18th century! We're less than a year away from Beijing 2008 Olympics, man!

Our top class hotel in Beijing

Two trips to Beijing within 3 years, and both times, we stayed here, Capital Hotel, near Tiananmen Square. In between the 3 years, they built a new annex called Block B and that was where we stayed the 2nd time, so our rooms were very, very new! I remembered March 2003, when PP, Dr K and I caught a cab to get back here, and PP mispronounced the hotel name and gave the cab driver a shock. His Chinese wasn't very good at that time, and so instead of saying "Shou Tu Da Jiu Tian" (the five Chinese characters you see in the photo above) PP said something else, and the cab driver repeated it, Eh, what?? Where are you staying? Xiao Dong Da Jiu Tian? I had a good laugh in the back seat of the taxi. "Xiao dong" means "small hole" or "little cave", which some folk back home still think we cash-strapped mission trippers end up in!

In the lobby of Capital Hotel

I last shared about a blessed Sunday in Baotou (morning) and Hohhot City (afternoon) in inner Mongolia, visiting and meeting our spiritual brethren. We spent one night at the hot springs hotel, which was our third place of accomodation since the beginning of the trip, and except for coming out tasting saltish after a hot springs shower, our room was really very comfortable.

Our hot springs hotel in Hohhot inner Mongolia

The single beds in China hotels were much broader than the kind we're used to back home. Um...made for broader Americans, perhaps?

In the bathrooms, there was ample hot water, and the saltish hot springs water was an added bonus. As for the air-con, it wasn't too warm or too cold, not even in the strange 5 degree temperature control we found in our Baotou hotel.

Our hotel in Baotou, inner Mongolia

The breakfasts, though, were very different. Very western, continental breakfasts in Beijing (think church camp hotel breakfasts). More Chinese/Mongolian and less western breakfasts in Baotou. And finally... chopsticks, pickles and buns in Hohhot. We were okay with it, even the Americans. By that time, we were already acclimatized.

Three wonderful hotels with broad comfy beds, hot water, air-con, complimentary breakfasts... what more could we ask for?