This week Lacey and I had the pleasure of hosting one of our old friends, Matt. He is an awesome fellow who used to live here in Beijing and has returned for the summer to backpack around China for seven weeks. Please check out his website: backpackinchina.com.
Matt must have worked some magic because as soon as he arrived the pollution index dropped to unprecedented levels. I'm talking about a 19 on the scale instead of the usual 150-200 range. Check out the current levels here to see what i'm talking about: BJ Air Quality.
This amazing weather prompted a much needed escape from the city to see Xiangshan, Fragrant Hill. This park outside of Beijing was first built by the Jin Dynasty in 1186 and gets its name from the giant incense burner at the top of the mountain.
As you can see from the above picture, it was in fact one of the most beautiful days I had ever seen in beijing. There were clear blue skys and amazing fresh air. Until we got to the top and looked back at Beijing. It seems that even on such an incredible day the City was still covered with a layer of nasty pollution.
Matt, Lacey and I still thoroughly enjoyed the Xiangshan and would recommend that anybody living in Beijing wait for a clear day to visit it. Otherwise you won't be able to se anything up there but a big grey blob.
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