Chinese Ethnic Culture Park

       Our last week’s forecast is all rain except for today.  So we went to the Chinese Ethnic Culture Park, it is right below the Olympic Park.  We got off at the subway stop right by the park with the lest amount of walking, since I knew we would be walking a ton inside.  They must’ve expanded on the exits out of the subway since on-line it said to exit D2.  In reality it said to exit F.  Which we had to walk around the corner to the entrance finding a closer exit of A right outside.  When we went back in via the closer A exit we could see it used to be the D2.  

         The park is rather expensive.  They left me get kid tickets so it was 300 yuan for the 4 of us.  Cheap. For an American park, but expensive for here.  This Park is about how the normal people lived, trying to preserve their history and implements.  Versus every other place you visit is about the rich, royalty, and emperor.

           All the signs are in English and Chinese.  They gave us a Chinese map and English map, there is also a map on the ticket.  The three where not consistent on restaurant locations.  I was expecting a food court to sample all the different types of food.  We couldn’t find any restaurants, except 1 right before we left and no one was there.  

         Because the park is so big they lock “museum” sections until they do a show in that section.  Now the show guide was only in chinese.  I found a show guide on line, but it was too hard to chase them around and see the 20 min show.  Mostly if we heard music we followed it and lucked out seeing a show.  We stopped trying to stress ourselves with finding it.  The park is just too big.  That is the only instance in which you need to have a Chinese speaking/reading person with you.  This park would not be good for older people.  Too big, too much walking and climbing.  Didn’t appear wheelchair friendly.  

            This is definitely recommended if you have time though, to see so many of the 56 Chinese cultures represented is amazing.  Plus there are never a lot of people here, so you can actually feel alone for once in Beijing.