Today we flew from Beijing to Chengdu with our Chinese friend Susan. It was a 2 hour flight. When we got off the plane there was a big change in the weather. It went from 15 degrees C (54 degrees F) in Beijing, to 30 degrees C (87 degrees F) in Chengdu. The time is the same throughout China. Chengdu is more like Portland than Beijing. Beijing has a drier climate so it is not as green as Portland or Chengdu. Chengdu is in Sichuan province. Chengdu used to be the capital of one of three kingdoms.

We are staying at a hotel called The Yinhe Dynasty hotel. It has 26 floors and we are on the 23rd
. 

In Chengdu they love spicy food (I don't). This is a dish that has red-hot chili peppers and, if you can find them, little bits of chicken. It is rather spicy! If there are more peppers then meat then it really is supposed to be spicy.

After dinner it was still around 70 degrees F so Susan, Mom, Mary and I went on a long walk in down town Chengdu. When we got tired and wanted to go back to the hotel we couldn't get a taxi or a rickshaw to stop for us, because they already had a full ride or they were going so fast they couldn't see us.