Day 5 in Beijing. Matt and Sid left this morning for the US. I have temporarily moved into the guest bedroom of my boss’s apartment while I look for apartments. This morning, I went for my physical which is required for all foreigners who want to get a work permit. I had to go to a Chinese hospital (hopefully I did not get SARS - we will find out in 2 - 12 days).

Day 3 in Beijing. I am currently in my new office doing some small things. I told the company I would start officially next Monday - provided I get the apartment thing squared away. I have several apartment possibilities, one of which I would be living alone, which sounds very nice.

Boy, was it cold at night! Gers are pretty neat. Our ger had three beds, a table, a couple of stools, and a wood stove for heat. Tending to the fire was fun. I only have a few photos of our trip to the wilderness as my camera batteries died shortly after we got there. Bummer. It was a very pretty place, though. The place we stayed at was a “tourist ger camp”, so it is like a hotel, but with gers.

Today, we will go into the wilderness, and spent two nights in a traditional Mongolian Ger.

Craziest 4 days ever! Yes, it was crazy. Technically, 6 days, but 4 full days, 5 nights. Day 1 We boarded the train at 10pm-ish - no problems, the tickets were fine. Our compartment was modistly sized, 4 beds (two bunks). The three of us entered our room and saw a women Mongolian in her late 30s to early 40s. Originially, we had hoped to have only the three of us in the room, but no such luck.

Check back soon (later today) for a story about our crazy Trans-Siberian adventure. Trust me, you won’t want to miss it.