Beijing, China (7,462 miles)

Chinese customs was a breeze. All that work at the Chinese Embassy in London paid off. We hopped a cab to the Hilton to drop our stuff. It was early, so we decided to head to Tiananmen Square. The subway system in Beijing is very easy to use. Although it early on a Saturday, the subway was already crowded. At Tiananmen Square we discover why -- every Chinese national is there. Apparently this is a big travel season.
They are were in groups and identified by their matching hats. (usually baseball hats -- but some got more creative. We especially liked this group with their stylish plaid.) Each group is led by a flag waving tour guide. They were proudly grouping for photos. The atmosphere was party like. We were taking it all in when we are approached by a Chinese gentleman giving the international sign for “Please take my picture in front of this historic landmark” We move to let him pose for his shot and he gets all flustered waving us back into the photo. Confused we step closer to him and he organizes us around him and his friend snapped the shot. Suddenly, we are part of their tour. We didn't think to get our picture with him.