Best of China

Our trip home from China ended up clocking in around thirty-six hours by the time we got up in Guangzhou to checkout, headed to the airport to fly to Shanghai to connect to Chicago and Atlanta, went through customs and baggage checks in three airports, completed immigration in Chicago and then drove home from Atlanta. All of which gave us plenty of time to reflect on our trip together. So, if you missed some blogs or just want to catch the Reader's Digest version of our trip, read on ...

Coolest place we visited: Summer Palace (Beijing)

Best view: Great Wall

Most beautiful written language: Chinese

Site we didn't get to visit, but wanted to: Clay Warriors

Something we didn't see anywhere: Fortune cookies

Biggest surprises: Maia doesn't know how to use chopsticks, no one tips and taxi cabs are really cheap

Biggest fear: Riding in taxi cabs

Most overblown fear: H1N1 and being robbed or mugged (we really felt safe everywhere we went)

Biggest rip-off: $10 coffee in the Guangzhou airport

Best meal: Makye Ame Tibetan in Beijing (yak and a dinner show) and White Swan Banquet Hall in Guangzhou (relaxing dim sum lunch)

Strangest food we ate: Donkey and sweet fish (you have to see it to get the full effect, but we're told it's a delicacy)

Strangest food we didn't eat: Earthworms, water beetles, duck heads … (it's a long list)

Funniest Chinese saying: The Cantonese will eat anything that flies (except airplanes) and anything with four legs (except a table)

Funniest moment: Maia teaching Nancy to count in Mandarin (you can see the video on Facebook)

Less than the funniest moment: Reading in the local newspaper that the bottled water brand we've been consuming (to avoid the bad tap water) was cited for using polluted river water only fit for industrial use

Worst translation: Calling the front desk in Beijing for messages and having a woman from the hotel spa show up at our door ...

Default meaning for anything: It's for good luck

Interesting fact: Bats are considered a sign of fortune and good luck in Chinese folklore, not evil

Favorite airport: Shanghai International

Favorite hotel: The White Swan (overall ambience) and the Jinan Crown Plaza (most modern and best free breakfast buffet)

Favorite city for dining: Beijing

Favorite shopping: Shamien Island, Guangzhou (for souvenirs) and Jinan (a wide variety of stores and lower costs than Beijing)

Weirdest in-flight movie: High School Musical with Chinese subtitles (from Jinan to Guangzhou)

Worst part: The trip home

Best part: Getting Maia Fujing and meeting the other incredible families on the same journey