Things around town

We made it to the capital city and were glad to be settled in one place for some time.The primary purpose of our trip was here. I have been busy teaching. It has been daddy and kids time and I have fit some things in when I have time.

Daddy took the kids to the zoo.

I asked Miss K where she went. She said, "zoo".

I asked her what she saw. She said, "panda". Then later she told me "tiger, dog". Interesting that neither daddy nor J saw those.

We had a rainy afternoon and so we  headed to the science museum. It was good considering where we are.

I took the kids to the Forbidden City. 3 years ago we took Miss K in the stroller and let's just say the Forbidden City was not built for strollers. I had her walk most of the time this year. I did bribe her with ice cream if she walked.



It has been fun to hear what the kids especially J has been learning on this trip. It really has been educational for him.

We have been here too long

J has mastered chopsticks.

Miss K is singing along with the TV.

The kids have a favorite cartoon.

The kids are dressing in traditional clothing.

Just for the picture. Miss K wanted to wear it to bed and then she decided she wanted to wear it to church.

Hello, my name is

Yoyo - I don't know if she is up and down all the time or not. She worked in the hotel.

Lion - Don't mess with the manager at Pizza Hut or he will roar at you.

First - "Do you want to go first?" asked the teacher. "First" said the student. "Yes, you can go first, what is your name." "First." That is his name.

These are just a few of the people that we have met.

Now before you think I am mean and picking on them because of the name they chose in English, I will tell you that my Chinese name means "silk shirt" so they can all laugh at me.

Signs around

At times we laugh and at times we just scratch our heads wondering exactly what they mean.

This one just seemed funny.

This one doesn't seem that funny.

until you realize that this was in the shower. Yes, the shower has a wet floor. I guess I should be careful.

On the night train

He looks pretty happy considering it is 2 hours past his bedtime.

We got to the train station at 9:00 or so and before we made it through security Miss K was asleep.

She woke up around 5:00.

It was an 8 hour train ride. We got on at 11:16 and arrived around 7:15. We made sure we got soft beds and we had a whole compartment to ourselves.

Third City

Really it was the third city in our three city tour but it was the fifth city in 5 days. We took the train to the south capital city. It was just 1.5 hour train ride. Again, when we arrived the fun began. We told them we had lots of luggage and they tried to put our group 8 people and all the luggage as well as 2 other people in the van. That did not work. Finally, we made it to the hotel after the other 2 people took another car.

We started that day at bridge crossing the Yangtze River. Up at the top where we can have the breeze of the vehicles blowing as well as the dust and dirt. Don't forget my dislike of open heights. We didn't stay up there long.

Our next stop was a lake and a park. We walked and enjoyed the view.

Next we went to the daily factory where they tried to sell you something. This time it was a jade factory but this time they gave us a small piece of jade.

Then we had lunch.For about 75 cents the kids and I ate.

We then went through the house and gardens of a general. I don't remember much more. It was hot and I was carrying Miss K.

We had our daily boat ride and visit to a temple. The kids and I just sat and drank some water.

Then we headed to a mountain after sitting in traffic. The kids were tired and so we didn't do much but buy some chips to eat. We had to look a bit to kind some that we would like -- we didn't buy blueberry, cucumber, lime, Italian tomato or kiwi but rather classic and Texas grilled meat which was like a BBQ chip.

It was a long day. We spent the night in that same city.

The next day we went to a lake and enjoyed a walk both in the morning and the evening.

The old city walls are along the lake.

That pretty much ended our tour. We were going to take the night train and be able to settle in one place for two weeks.

Next Stop

--Wuxi. So when I last blogged about our trip I mentioned that we made it from the bus terminal to our hotel. We had a tour guide walk us there - "it is just across the street" were his words. Not really down a block and across a 6 or 8 lane road. Oh and to make it more fun, it is rush hour. We spent the night in Wuxi and then the next day began our tour. I had no idea what was in Wuxi.

Our first stop was a movie set type place. I did remember that the Wu were part of the Warring States period but not much else about Wu. It was hot and we walked quite a bit. There was a life demonstration which was interesting.

I think the most exciting thing was the obstacle course. The kids had been looking for a playground which by the way we really have had a difficult time finding but the obstacle course gave them quite a bit of fun.

Miss K had to try too. I was impressed with her climbing.

The next stop was a lake. At times it seems like this was a lake tour or water but I told J that shows you how important water was in ancient times.

I know it is a bit of a gray picture but really that is about how it has been here.

We made a stop at a tea pot factory but we did not buy any. That was the sales pitch of the day.

Next we took the train to the south capital. Our adventure continued there.