Plans for travel

We are off to China in a couple of days! It is the first time I've had to prepare like a tourist because the previous times we went, we only went to visit our family in Shanghai. But not this time: This time we are also going to Beijing and to Xian. We can, because we think Damaris and Emil are big enough now to enjoy some sight-seeing, but of course we have made sure that at least one of the hotels has a pool.

These are the plans:
In Shanghai we'll have to find out how high the new tallest building has become since our last visit, and of course how tall our cousins Constantine and Amanda have become.
In Beijing we want to see the Forbidden City and the Great Wall.
In Xian we want to see the Terracotta Army, and it'll be very exciting because we will be without our family there, so we will have no help with the language...

Not too many specific plans because one of the important things is to try to soak up some of everyday life in the places we visit. In Shanghai we will try to take Constantine to school (this year our May vacation is longer than his) and see what his school is like. And we'll take Amanda to the playground and try to teach her some new Dutch words. When you live so far from your family it's really nice to experience some of what they do everyday. Have dinner with them, take their daily trips with them, play together. So that is still a big part of our plans, even if we are going to be tourists this time!