Made it safe to Beijing. We had a multiple course family banquet shortly after I arrived. I'm still adjusting to the time difference (+15 hrs), so as I was awake in the middle of the night last night I spent an hour or so typing up a description of the dishes for you. Then I hit post, and the computer ate my Chinese banquet! I hope the electronic gods enjoyed the virtual meal. Suffice it to say, the real meal was varied and delicious, and certainly up to the very high standards of Beijing.
Air pollution is bad here now. The worst I've seen it. It's 90 degrees F and humid too. I'll be leaving the city Friday Beijing time.
Update - We'll be traveling to Urumchi in Xinjiang provence and the Turpan Basin, where the temps get up around 130.