Thursday was a rainy day and we had had our fill of temples for the time being. Upon consulting the guide book, we decided to see another of the "top 10." We visited the 798 Art District a little outside of the main part of town. This formerly industrial area was converted in 2001 into a series of modern and abstract art galleries and cafés that spans several blocks. The 798 Space pictured above is the first gallery to open and still contains Maoist graffiti on the ceiling.

Initially, the taxi driver dropped us in front of the Ullens Center for Contemporary Art. The current exhibit was called "Breaking through the Ice" and the entrance had a model of a sinking ship with many other symbolic components. Once we entered the main hall, we enjoyed an audio tour describing the various art installments arranged within the larger work of the entire hall crafted to look like the inside of a ship.

I think the art installations that will stick with us will be those that included dead animals. If you look closely at the interior picture, you can see the oxen cut in half and the "clouds" hanging from the ceiling filled with dead birds. We concluded the overall theme to be the downfall of industrialization to conquer nature. Yup.

This was a perfect excursion for a dreary day. There seemed to be over a hundred small and large galleries and about a third that many coffee shops. We explored a handful and enjoyed the large sculptures throughout the district. After getting overdosed on abstract art, we took a break in a café and debated our next adventure. We consulted our trusty guide book (I've never used one this much in my life) but had

a little trouble figuring out the details in how we would get to some spots without them being listed on our traveling translating card. So, we decided on shopping.

The Lady's Street Market is where we ended up after unsuccessfully trying to find the Grand World Electrical Market. This market certainly had a more local flare than the typical tourist traps we had been visiting. Besides a huge area of clothing sales, there is a large market for selling flowers, furniture, and fish.

During our wanderings in this region of the city, we found that we were in the embassy district. At one point we looked up and saw the Great Seal of the United States of America. When I pulled out my camera, the three Chinese guards immediately moved from their stoic poses and waved us away. Later I managed a sneaky picture from a distance.

We were still curious to find some electronics and took a taxi closer to our hotel where we knew there was a large electronics shopping area. As soon as we entered the building we were mobbed by sales people who know just the right amount of English for us to look in their direction. It was so overwhelming, it was kind of scary. We walked in just as they were closing, so we were identified as a potential last sale of the day. We escaped before buying anything.

We had a little difficulty getting a taxi back to the hotel, so we decided to walk. The rain and the darkness increased as time went on, but we knew we were close. I eventually identified the Microsoft building and we were able to better navigate. We impressively made it back without a single wrong turn. Whew!

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