Sam goes back to work and the girls and I have school.
One of those days the girls and I spend the afternoon at the Metro grocery store and surprisingly find a few Halloween costumes. We also purchase items to attempt fall baking later in the week.
Day 35 - Halloween!
I admit that I enjoy this day - I love letting the kids dress up and trick o treat (and we just moved into a new neighborhood full of kids - but next year). So the girls wear their costumes and we bake oatmeal raisin walnut cookies. It was quite the challenge to find things (and we did not find all the spices and vanilla. The brown sugar was unique and had some black chunks in it - I think it was spices??)
Thankfully our driver helps with the shopping!
Later that day the girls watch It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown and then they trick o treat in our apartment with Sam and I (mostly Sam) playing different characters. Pretty low key but the girls still had a great time. Our hotel had a Halloween event a few days prior while we were traveling. We were sorry to miss it - very considerate of a Chinese hotel to host such a thing!
Day 36 - Pumpkins and Haircuts
After school, the girls and I decide to start the process of making homemade pumpkin bread. There are no ready made mixes available (which are my go to for quick baking) and no cans of pureed pumpkin. So we bought a small pumpkin earlier in the week at Metro and used The Pioneer Woman's recipe for homemade pureed pumpkin. It ended up being pretty easy. Just cutting up, removing seeds and putting in the oven. After that was completed, the girls and I headed to the mall next door for haircuts. We would finish making the pumpkin bread the following day.
Getting haircuts for the girls ended up going ok. We went to a hair salon for kids. I brought along pictures, used lots of hand signals and the Google Translate App. We were able to figure out price (which ended up being very reasonable! For 12.99USD pp, the girls got a shampoo, cut and style!). The girls were very popular with the staff - they likely have not cut a lot of western kids hair.
That night was also our weekly date night! Woohoo no kids!! (for 3 hours at least haha). We tried a new western steak restaurant along the water. The food was very good but the restaurant was almost entirely empty - a site that we have found to be pretty common here. Here in China, all businesses are partially owned by the government. And there is a big push to develop and have lots of new restaurants, office buildings, apartment buildings, hotels, shops, etc. even if there is no demand. Please continue to pray for this country, it's leadership and it's citizens.
Day 37
Sam goes to work and the girls and I have school. After school, we make the homemade pumpkin bread with our pumpkin puree - turns out pretty good!
Later that evening we meet with Sam and his co workers and their families for dinner at a restaurant that actually has several large tanks with beluga whales and dolphins on display. They are amazing to see but I felt very conflicted at these poor animals being held in tanks while people ate their dinner. The kids were in awe and at one point I went to talk to the girls and saw a dolphin staring at me through the tank window. It was eerie to have it studying me so intently! I have read that dolphins are highly intelligent creatures - I believe it!
Day 38
I go shopping with several of Sam's female coworkers at a local Chinese Market. We find a lot of neat items for pretty low prices. I tried to purchase Sam some new shoes but even with a conversion chart from American to Chinese sizes, it was too small. While in a high end purse shop, they were also selling Viagra?? Afterwards we head to lunch and I get my first (and possibly last lol) hot pot. I ended up putting too many items in and when I went to grab some sauces, plates etc. my hot pot boils over and makes a giant mess. Even mommies make messes some times! haha. I think the Japanese businessmen next to me were unimpressed as well as the restaurant workers. Sigh.
I get back from the shopping marathon (did I mention I don't like shopping?) and Sam goes to get his first (and WAY overdue) haircut in China. For about $20USD, he got a shampoo before AND after the haircut, plus a style. Looks good to me!:)
Day 39 Sunday
We go to the fellowship for a wonderful church service (which now include watching sermons by J.D. Greear, pastor of Summit Church back in Raleigh/Durham NC! What a small world!)
Afterwards we head to an American friend's apartment for lunch and a small fall festival full of games, costumes, candy, treats and more trick o treating!). We (and the girls!) are thankful for the new friends!
By the way, I recently finished an AMAZING book called The Fall of Lucifer by Wendy Alec. It is an incredible perspective of Satan and what he may have been like before his fall and the time afterwards. Super creative and beautiful imagery throughout - it was so helpful to me as a not very creative person and gave me an idea of what heaven may be like. So powerful! I have a hard time finishing books, but I finished this one! Highly recommend! (sorry the photo is upside down!)
Days 40-44
Sam goes to work and the girls and I have school.
Day 41
Tuesday after school the girls and I head to a trampoline park in the mall next door. After much discussion with an employee (and Google Translate!) , we figure out pricing and get liability forms signed. The girls had a wonderful time! And I ended up speaking to a Chinese father (who knew English) and listened to him talk about similar issues I have heard from all other Chinese parents so far. Great anxiety over how to provide for their single children and sadness over the extreme work hours/work days. And dissatisfaction over their jobs. The father mentions he wonders what is the point to all the hard work. I shared my faith with the dad and told him I would pray for him and his family. He seemed taken aback but the Holy Spirit had prompted me to be bold.
We see so many Chinese workers working seemingly nonending shifts 7 days a week. The only reason the dad got to see his son at the trampoline park was because he took a vacation. Grandparents take care of children while both parents work very long work weeks. It is not uncommon for the Chinese to work 7 days a week.
Later that week when we go to Beijing, we spend one night at a hotel. Over that 24 hours, no matter when we walked by, we see the same security guard and same front desk employees. I don't know if they ever went home. The guard was very grumpy, miserable and tired. The front desk people had the same clothes on when we checked in and when we checked out (and were always sweet and helpful). I am so sad for these people!! People need breaks!
Day 43
Thursday Sam and I have our weekly heaven sent date night! We go back to our favorite French restaurant for a magnificent meal of a cheese plate, shared steak and potatoes and dessert! Soo good.
Day 44
Sam goes to work and the girls and I have school. After school, we start packing for a weekend trip to Beijing and the Great Wall.
While the girls are getting ready for their daily swim, a practice fire alarm goes off in the hotel (we are on the 20th floor!). It takes us a while to get all the clothes/coats/shoes on and then walk all the way down. If it was a real fire, we would be in trouble. When we reach the bottom, they have some Chinese firefighters demonstrating to the hotel staff how to use the fire extinguishers and let the girls have a turn too.
By 5:30pm, Sam is back and we head to the Dalian train station. We decide to travel by train this time - for the experience and also to save some money. It is about $400 round trip to take our whole family to Beijing on an 11 hour sleeper train - much cheaper than by airplane! We could have taken a 5 hour fast train (cost is about the same), but we decide that it might be fun to try a sleeper train (it was also recommended to us by several people). Plus we saved the hotel expense for 2 nights (first night and last night).
Would I do it again? Maybe not. It ended up being an older train and not so sure about the cleanliness of everything. And the bathrooms at the Dalian Train Station were HORRIBLE. I saw things I can never unsee lol. I may need to start a blog on all asian bathrooms to avoid. Awful stuff. I may never want to ride trains again after that experience. But Sam enjoyed it and the girls loved it. What kid doesn't like bunk beds? The train did not go too fast so we did get to see some neat things out the windows (although it was dark most of the time we were on the train).
And Penny was free since she shared a bunk with Annie. It was nice that we could fit our whole family in a compartment and did not have to share with strangers. Definitely needed to bring your own toilet paper and soap/hand sanitizer! There was no food train and only water available was boiled water (and we did not have thermos to hold them). But we did eat at a McDonalds at the station before boarding our train and had brought bottled water and a few snacks.
I do feel that I got to see a more rural China at the train stations and on the trains - not just a bunch of city folks. Many people carried their belongings in large grain sacks. We saw many farms and poverty between cities. Many people are leaving the Chinese farms and moving to the city. With the cheap cost of food in China, I am sure the farmers hardly make much money. Please be in prayer for the Chinese farmers and their families.
Day 45
Our train arrives in Beijing at 6:05 am. We get off, grab some breakfast and then walk to a Howard Johnson hotel across the street. At the hotel we meet our tour guide for a tour of the Ming Tombs and Great Wall. It ends up being not a great tour and really exhausting.
Like all other asian tours we have taken, they make us stop for shopping. Since it is China they make use visit a jade factory. The jade art is beautiful but we do not purchase anything. Then we head to the Ming Tombs. Several past kings/emperors have been buried here (as well as much of their jewelry/wealth). Interesting but with Penny, we can not keep up and miss a lot of what is being shared. Also sad to hear about so many people who tried to bring their wealth with them after death.
Reminds me of Matthew 6:19-21
"Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."
And
John 14:6 New International Version (NIV)
6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me."
Later the driver and tour guide start the long journey to the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall outside Beijing. It is a very fast, twisty journey up mountains and about 3/4 of the way, 2 of our kids get car sick and puke everywhere. Thats always a delight! Not. We eventually make it to our lunch destination and while everyone gets off the bus, we strip 2 of the kids and Sam changes as well (not only did he get vomited on, it was on his face too! ugh.) It is really chilly here - the high is 40's and we don't have back up jackets, but we have everyone wear multiple layers. I hear and see muliple asian ladies comment about the girls not having jackets on, but what can we do? They don't want to wear vomit jackets:(.
We got in the restaurant (which also has the worst restaurant rating that China is willing to admit to - a C) and ate very light. Rice, chicken, vegetables and boiled tea. Bathrooms here are not the worst I've seen. We are then given 2 hours to see the Great Wall and head back.
We specifically went to this section of the Great Wall because it was highly recommended for senior citizens and people with kids because it has a tram to the top. But from the restaurant, we still had to walk about halfway up the mountain to catch the tram! Would not recommend for senior citizens or disabled folks. We really struggled to get the kids up and a senior couple on our tour really struggled as well.
However once we get to the top, it was amazing! Lots of beautiful mountains and the Great Wall really is Great and a World Wonder! It is sooo long!! And we only saw a tiny potion of it! So many people died building the Great Wall - it is said it is partly made with human bones. Like 3 people died for every foot of wall. I can believe it - it was so hard to get up there, even with a tram, I can't imagine hauling building materials up the mountain.
Truly impressive feat by the Chinese. The portion we visited was built in the 1400's. The watchtowers still looked very sturdy and well built. We did not walk much of the wall since it was very uneven footing and we still had a long walk back to the tour bus (and yes we did have a tram for part of the way back). I will say that once we told the girls about "the fun ride" aka tram - they were in good spirits on the walk up and back. And they LOVED the tram - it was fun!
Before we left, we had another witnessing opportunity. I came back from grabbing a few souvenirs near the Wall and saw a very upset man next to Penny. He looked so depressed and sad. The Holy Spirit strongly prompted me to speak to him and pray with him. I don't think he knew English, but I asked him if he was OK, he gave a sad smile and said "Yes". I turned back to the girls and when I saw him again and he looked even more upset. So I eventually walked over to him, placed my hand on him and started praying for him. He looked taken aback but I really felt the Holy Spirit tell me not to ignore him.
Took the bus back to Beijing, visited a Chinese tea shop and sat for a tea ceremony and then got dropped off at our hotel. Yay - so thankful to the driver and tour guide that we didn't get dropped off at a train or sub station! We were so tired!
We eventually get checked into our hotel (like so many weird things in China, the hotel is part apartment complex and we eventually discover that the check in desk is on the 9th floor). Thankfully the clerk finds us confused and weary outside and shows us the way. We get checked in, the hotel is decent and has a washer/dryer and even clothes soap!! (We needed it after the earlier carsickness fiasco!). Thank you Lord for taking care of us again. Sam finds a nearby McDonald's and brings back dinner. We eat and pass out in exhaustion. I know I said this already, but TRAVELING WITH KIDS IS TOUGH. Good thing God gives us so much love for them. Ha.
We are scheduled to do another tour on Sunday but we cancel. We decide we will just go on our own slower, self paced tour - less stress (and cheaper).
Day 46 - Sunday Nov 11
I wake up from a dream of being at a church service and wake up saddened that we don't have church that day. So I decide to look up Christian Churches in Beijing and we find one! Find out that Sam had looked at that church online just the night before! Only expats can attend - no Chinese. It's called Beijing International Christian Fellowship. It is nondenominational and not far from our hotel.
We decide to check out the 11 am service. This church is massive! It has 2 services in English and like 5 or 6 services in other languages - French, Filipino, Japanese, Cantonese, International Mandarin (for expats who speak Chinese). We have to show our passports to get in and go through security to enter. The kids are dropped off in a floor at a hotel (and it was very full! Lots of kids - the girls were excited!) and then we walk across the street to a huge building/theater. It was amazing to attend service with people from 70 different nations! AMAZING to worship God the Father with people from all over the globe. It was interesting to see a church where much of the leadership is female. The Pastor is a man, however a lady gave the message that morning. The Children's Pastor is a lady. The ushers were mostly women. The Worship Pastor was a guy - the worship team was OUTSTANDING. Just a great morning! I was excited to see what the kids did while we were in service.
Extra bonus - we were able to purchase Chinese Bibles at the church bookshop! Please be in prayer for us as we gift these before we leave in the next few weeks. I had been praying for Chinese Bibles and was so upset with myself for not bringing some with me. Thank you Jesus! Please be in prayer for the recipients! That they would know Jesus and share the Good News with their families/friends/communities!
After church we find a great authentic Italian restaurant and have my favorite - caprese salad! And the girls find a real cheese pizza and Sam and I split a yummy gnocchi pasta dish with gorgonzola and walnuts - yum!
Then we grab a jumbo taxi (taxis in China are very reasonable - 30RMB (4.35USD) for 20 minute trip for 4 passengers or 60 RMB for a group of 5 or larger 20 min trip). Jumbo Taxis were very clean with good drivers.
Driver takes us to Tiananmen Square. Extremely huge - can hold up to 600,000 people!! We did a lot of walking and saw only a fraction of it. A popular site for public ceremonies - made popular by Mao Zedong. Original sections first built in the 1400's in the center of Beijing. The place where the founding of the People's Republic of China was first proclaimed (as well as the Tiananmen Square Massacre in 1989 when citizens tried to rebel against the government). Tons of monuments, museums, palaces and gardens inside the Square.
We eventually make it to a park on the side of the square (very cheap entrance fee - 6RMB total - less than 1USD). And they had a nice kids indoor play area (which was not as cheap - 20RMB per kid, which is still less than 3USD pp).
We eventually grab a jumbo taxi and head to the Beijing Railway Station (there are 4 but thankfully we went to the right place). We grab dinner at Mr. Lee's (an Asian fast food restaurant that actually started in LA, California). Quite tasty and liked by the kids. Clean. Fast. Friendly service.
Not sure if I have mentioned it before - but there is security and cameras EVERYWHERE in China!!
Then we go through comparatively light security and sit inside the train station and wait for our night sleeper train back to Dalian. The train was about the same as the one we came on. We were pretty comfortable this time since we knew what to expect.
Day 47
Slept on sleeper train and arrived in Dalian around 8am. Sam eventually heads to work and the girls and I spend the day on chores and recovering! No school today!
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