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Margie and Luke are the first team to find the Travelocity gnome. They are informed that they must travel to Gu Gong Xi Bei Jiao where they will ride electric bicycles (these exist, apparently) past, I kid you not, the "forbidden city" to Dongdan Station (no, Dongdan is not a Freudian typo) to find their next clue. This whole thing sounds eerily similar to Jackie Chan's last movie, except for the fact that the electric bicycles were nuclear missiles.

Jaime has gone a full ten minutes without complaining about a foreigner and/or a cab driver. Recognizing that she has been too easy on the locals, she chooses this opportunity to play another round of The Amazing Racist. She berates her cab driver for not giving her the appropriate nod of the head when she gives him instructions. Apparently, this showing of deference is the only way for her to determine whether the person is following her evil wish. I pity the mirror that has the audacity to tell Jaime she is not the fairest of all.

Tammy, who hasn't had that many shenanigans this season, finally pulls a boner on the trip past Tiananmen Square. She is frustrated by her bicycle, complaining that she is having to pedal way too hard and despite all of her effort, it is not accelerating. At this point, Victor patiently and calmly explains to her that twisting the handlebar will help the vehicle go faster. After this, Tammy has a much easier ride. I wonder what would have happened if she had been on a motorcycle. Would she have just sat there waiting for it to move on its own? For how long?

The options for the challenge today involve opera and a restaurant. On the opera side, contestants must get a makeover that gives them just the right touch of face paint to make them look like the fat lady may sing about them. On the restaurant side, contestants must play the part of waiters at a restaurant, receiving orders from customers that must be relayed to the cooks in the kitchen. This leg would be a tremendous advantage for anyone who speaks the native language of Mandarin, but The Amazing Race would never give one team such a significant competitive...oh, let's just call this the Tammy and Victor half of the challenge. As Victor says (in Mandarin), "If we can't do this task, Mom and Dad will kill us."

Victor and Tammy fail the task on their first attempt, mainly because of Victor. What's the opposite of patricide/matricide? In their defense, they don't miss by much. Customers ask for: Good Luck Fish, Vegetarian Noodles, Fried Chicken, New Taste Beef and Golden Pork Spare Ribs. Apparently, the difference between Fish and Squid is negligible as that is the pronunciation the duo gives the chef when he rejects them. Victor seemed to shout down his sister, but he had the wrong linguistics. While I'm certain this small mistake will be quickly corrected, it reinforces the idea that if anyone who doesn't speak Mandarin attempts this challenge, they're going to be there from breakfast through supper.

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