Ronald wouldn’t dare to clown around in this unusually stately burger palace. Talk about food fit for a king, look at this marble-columned former bank building that now serves Big Macs along with native Norwegian specialties, including their newly-introduced McSalmon.

How can traditionally processed hamburgers compete with a brod (bread roll) stuffed with deliciously fresh salmon that were swimming in the Baltic Sea just hours earlier? And when you place your order, would a snooty, tuxedo-clad maitre d politely ask, “You want klubb og fett (fries) with that?

Ronald wouldn’t dare to clown around in this unusually stately burger palace. Talk about food fit for a king, look at this marble-columned former bank building that now serves Big Macs along with native Norwegian specialties, including their newly-introduced McSalmon.

How can traditionally processed hamburgers compete with a brod (bread roll) stuffed with deliciously fresh salmon that were swimming in the Baltic Sea just hours earlier? And when you place your order, would a snooty, tuxedo-clad maitre d politely ask, “You want klubb og fett (fries)

Any business or vacation traveler who has stayed at one of the 360 Crowne Plaza hotels in 60 countries worldwide (there are two in Beijing) expects first-quality accommodations and services. The Crowne Plaza Beijing, in the heart of the capital city of China, is no exception. Most international travel experts rate it with five stars.

Located conveniently in the city's center, hotel visitors have easy acccess to most of Beijing's business, shopping, art and historical sites. It's just 45 minutes by taxi or bus ride to Beijing International Airport, and a short 10-minute hop to the city's main railway station. A major station on Beijing's very efficient subway system is just a short walk away.

Natural Giant Panda habitats are in only a few areas of China today, and one is in the central mountain areas, primarily in the provinces of Sichuan, Shaanxi and Gansu. In order to preserve the highly-endangered animal, the Chinese government maintains a protected station, which includes a Giant Panda breeding facility and visitor center in the Bifeng Valley in Sichuan.

They're located in picturesque areas some 900 miles from Beijing. There are frequent flights, bus and train excursions from the nation's capital and other Chinese cities to the Bifeng Valley. There are also convenient hotels near the Giant Panda facility, including the Hongzhu, Beite Xingyue Binguan (Moonstar) and even a familiar-sounding Super 8 motel, called the Yibin Lu Neng.