It's Saturday here, and although the plan was not to have a plan, we've been running most of the day. :)
One thing I did, because I didn't get to journal yesterday after we arrived, was to make a list of things that we have done...I may go into details later...or if anyone has questions....ask them of me and I'll try to answer them....
Friday:
J/J met us at the airport, they had hired a driver (taxi van) and he had waited with them for our flight to come in....which was late (of course!).
Our bags arrived with us.
I got to use a "squatty potty" at this airport (the other one had both SQ's and "western style" toilets....for which I was grateful....but no toilet paper....but J said that they don't use it here, so that was common).
If the Mississippi River is "ole muddy" then this is the city of mud. It was foggy/smoggy and there is mud everywhere. Not like thick mud, but similar to how it is after a snow...just sort of covered in yuck. There's a lot of pollution in the air on the roadways...and so much traffic.
Our driver is incredible...maneuvering in and out of traffic like a pro (well, he IS a pro!). I can't get over how it moves so quickly, yet so slowly, and how bumper to bumper it is.
Our van is really small...probably not much larger than our Focus at home! The seats have no padding, and you feel every bump or dip in the road. I'm both too tired and exhilarated to care. :)
I'm amazed at how there are gardens of vegetables growing on the sides of the road, as if they tiered the land up to the homes/apartments and just leveled it off and started planting. With all the ice and snow they had, I'm amazed to see anything growing at all.
We got to their home without incident. :)
After getting things up, unpacked a bit, and us oriented, we decided to go for a walk to get lunch. We went to the local noodle place they like to go to for "Muslim Noodles"....actually just Lan Zhou style noodles, which is a province with a high Muslim population, so that's how they've nicknamed them. Tasty noodles, handmade right there, with roast beef shaved off into them, served with beef broth, and cilantro (Chinese Parsley) and maybe green onion too. Mark and J2 also mix red pepper paste into theirs...I'll play it safe.
I'm amazed at how hilly the area is...they say that's why there are not many people on bicycles here.
There's more mud everywhere...not always thick, or deep, but covering everything. The fact that there is constant construction doesn't help.
We walk to the actual campus where they attend school, although it is closed for break still.
We also walk by one of the local parks, and to a friend's apartment to feed their cats.
On one of the streets by their house there is a street market (the morning market) where you can buy fruits and vegetables nearby. There's also people selling seeds (sunflower, etc) to snack on, and other wares.
Where we ate at is in a row of shops near where they live, not far past where the market street is. There is a real mod podge of sites, smells, and WE seem to be the oddest thing around!
We went to a little eating place on campus for dinner, they call it Gong Yu, sort of like a restaurant for the students. The building it's in used to house the foreign students, but then they built a different housing place for them. We ate some of their favorite dishes like miziqiezi: egg plant prepared with ground pork and chopped peppers and pepper sauce; ying jiang rousi: Peking duck style pork (little pieces) served with slivers of green onion; tang cu liji: sweet and sour pork; and tu dou ni: mashed potatoes prepared with onions, bell peppers and bacon. This was all served "family style" with white rice.
Yes, we've been using chop sticks to eat with!! Even the noodle dishes!! :)
TODAY - Saturday
Our "plan to have no plans" day consisted of going to lunch, and then going to market, and then coming home. For lunch we went to the city market and getting "jaozi", or dumplings, and we chose to go for fried ones rather than steamed ones. J1 is not a big dumpling fan, so we also went around the corner and got some fried chicken (REALLY!) on a stick!! J2 says that they can pretty much put anything on a stick here...and they do...and sell it on the street. It was funny at the dumpling place they give you a little plate with chopped green onion in it, and you can mix your own sauce to dip them in (think PF Chang's) with soy sauce (in a tea pot to serve), rice vinegar, sesame oil, and on a table across the way other seasonings that you can add to it (red pepper flakes). They were incredibly good....really yummy. The chicken was good too!
Going to market is crazy!! The large city market is full of people, in every imaginable kind of clothes. Women wear high heeled boots with everything. really. everything. People are in the street with every type of clothing, Sunday best, pj's, ethnic clothing. Lots of people smoke, and because it's so busy today there are a lot of cars on the road too...which means lots of pollution. There are many cars, large and small buses, carts, and motor bikes on the road. It's really busy, and even more so since the sun has come out. It got into the 50's, really nice for being outside, but since it was cool when we left the house, I've got my down coat on and long johns too!
J1 bought chicken and vegetables at the market, and then we looked in some other stores too, including a supermarket (not walmart), and an ethnic store that was really neat. We'll go back there (or to another ethnic store) to do some shopping before coming home.
Once we got home, we put up the groceries, and Mark and J2 worked on getting our laptop on line (it's not, so I have to borrow theirs), then Mark and J1 went to feed the cats and buy some milk (the only thing they didn't get earlier). I guess they got some fruit too, but I haven't seen it yet.
Now J1 is getting dinner ready (broccoli, chicken, rice in a skillet type meal), and Mark is grinding coffee for tomorrow morning (by hand).
Looking back at today, I'm amazed at what we have seen, and how empty the faces are around us have looked. People stare, and I can't blame them, but when I smile at them, rarely do they smile back. Even children seem like they are empty inside...there is no joy, or little joy, in their eyes.
Tomorrow we'll meet up with friends, and it seems that it will be another long day....so exciting and new!!
Until later....
Showing posts with label food. Show all posts
Showing posts with label food. Show all posts
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Sunday, 2/24/2008
I thought it would be better to go by date, rather than just entry, since they will post according to date anyways.
It's been a really long day, and it's hard for me to imagine that all has taken place in JUST a day! Mark and I have been crashing, dead tired, by 9 pm, but then waking up around 3 am, seemingly wide awake....but able to stay in bed and fall back asleep...then waking up several times between then and morning...between 7 and 9. Last night was no different, and we knew we'd have to get up on the earlier side for all of us to be ready to go to a meeting in the larger neighboring town (G2). We were able to get back to sleep, but woke up early...and got going to meet someone at the bus station here, who knew where the meeting was at. We all took the bus together, about a 30 minute ride, and walked from the bus stop point to the home where the meeting was being held.
It was funny, as we approached their home (an apartment, like most here have) several kids were coming by on skates saying hello to our "guide". I didn't realize that there would be so many kids there....or so many people...from all over the world. It was quite nice, a few hours long, and then we all went to lunch together (not everyone came to lunch, but there were 16 of us!) We had great food, and conversation, and it was fun to be challenged in new ways (like J2 getting 3 roasted peanuts, which have the shells on and are a bit slippery) on his chop sticks...and actually to his mouth!!
After lunch, one of the newer young couples joined J/J, Mark and I and we took other buses to another section of town, to the Bird and Flower Market. This was a much larger marketplace, and in addition to the food vendors we had seen closer to their home, this market had animal vendors (cats, dogs, birds and fish...as well as rats, mice, snakes, turtles...and a few we're not sure of!!), lots of floral vendors, plants, medicinal people who sold herbs (and mixed them according to your ailment), teas and other dried foods (mushrooms, herbs, etc), tofu (LOTS of tofu!), nuts, seeds, and other hand crafted items too...baskets, wind chimes, jewelry...and of course other manufactured things like tools and stuff.
The market was really large, and it was quite a site to see. We'll likely try to get back there one day later this week.
From there, we took other buses and went to one of the Walmart stores to get some items for around the house. Then we came back home (around 5:30??) on a CRAZY bus ride (Mark filmed parts of it, and will post it later this week). After putting groceries away at the apartment, we went over to a larger Muslim restaurant that is near the bus terminal, and we had a great meal of lamb on skewers and cooked over a fire (some of it quite spicy), seasoned bread, and a spicy noodle and vegetable dish. Sorry, I haven't gotten the names of those dishes yet. :)
J/J said that these people are from a different area than the others are, and they seemed more of a Mid Eastern group...their music, and even facial features were less Oriental than the other group. The food was really tasty, and it was good to sit down and eat after such a long day.
I'm working on posting the photos that we've taken so far, but I won't have much time to do editing yet...so bear with me on that. I'll get it sorted over the next few days, and if not then, once I get home. photos are at: http://picasaweb.google.com/MnMgo2
The weather has been really mild, and surprisingly warm (I figure if I continue to wear long underwear and my down coat it will stay warm the whole trip) :) Much of the mud has turned to dust and dirt, and especially in the city, where you feel it grip your lungs. Between the dust, car exhaust, and the coal smoke, I'm a mess at the end of the day and oh so grateful for my allergy meds.
That's it for now...I have no idea what tomorrow holds....guess we'll all have to wait and see...
marina
It's been a really long day, and it's hard for me to imagine that all has taken place in JUST a day! Mark and I have been crashing, dead tired, by 9 pm, but then waking up around 3 am, seemingly wide awake....but able to stay in bed and fall back asleep...then waking up several times between then and morning...between 7 and 9. Last night was no different, and we knew we'd have to get up on the earlier side for all of us to be ready to go to a meeting in the larger neighboring town (G2). We were able to get back to sleep, but woke up early...and got going to meet someone at the bus station here, who knew where the meeting was at. We all took the bus together, about a 30 minute ride, and walked from the bus stop point to the home where the meeting was being held.
It was funny, as we approached their home (an apartment, like most here have) several kids were coming by on skates saying hello to our "guide". I didn't realize that there would be so many kids there....or so many people...from all over the world. It was quite nice, a few hours long, and then we all went to lunch together (not everyone came to lunch, but there were 16 of us!) We had great food, and conversation, and it was fun to be challenged in new ways (like J2 getting 3 roasted peanuts, which have the shells on and are a bit slippery) on his chop sticks...and actually to his mouth!!
After lunch, one of the newer young couples joined J/J, Mark and I and we took other buses to another section of town, to the Bird and Flower Market. This was a much larger marketplace, and in addition to the food vendors we had seen closer to their home, this market had animal vendors (cats, dogs, birds and fish...as well as rats, mice, snakes, turtles...and a few we're not sure of!!), lots of floral vendors, plants, medicinal people who sold herbs (and mixed them according to your ailment), teas and other dried foods (mushrooms, herbs, etc), tofu (LOTS of tofu!), nuts, seeds, and other hand crafted items too...baskets, wind chimes, jewelry...and of course other manufactured things like tools and stuff.
The market was really large, and it was quite a site to see. We'll likely try to get back there one day later this week.
From there, we took other buses and went to one of the Walmart stores to get some items for around the house. Then we came back home (around 5:30??) on a CRAZY bus ride (Mark filmed parts of it, and will post it later this week). After putting groceries away at the apartment, we went over to a larger Muslim restaurant that is near the bus terminal, and we had a great meal of lamb on skewers and cooked over a fire (some of it quite spicy), seasoned bread, and a spicy noodle and vegetable dish. Sorry, I haven't gotten the names of those dishes yet. :)
J/J said that these people are from a different area than the others are, and they seemed more of a Mid Eastern group...their music, and even facial features were less Oriental than the other group. The food was really tasty, and it was good to sit down and eat after such a long day.
I'm working on posting the photos that we've taken so far, but I won't have much time to do editing yet...so bear with me on that. I'll get it sorted over the next few days, and if not then, once I get home. photos are at: http://picasaweb.google.com/MnMgo2
The weather has been really mild, and surprisingly warm (I figure if I continue to wear long underwear and my down coat it will stay warm the whole trip) :) Much of the mud has turned to dust and dirt, and especially in the city, where you feel it grip your lungs. Between the dust, car exhaust, and the coal smoke, I'm a mess at the end of the day and oh so grateful for my allergy meds.
That's it for now...I have no idea what tomorrow holds....guess we'll all have to wait and see...
marina
Friday, March 7, 2008
Tuesday 2/26/2008
Although it was REALLY cold today, it was really relaxing! I woke up late (around 10:30!) after a disrupted night's sleep....no problems, just didn't sleep well....well, I was coughing (lungs irritated about something) and just didn't rest well. I was grateful when I did get to sleep, and was clueless that everyone else was up and about....Mark even said he had gone in and out of the room and I didn't budge. :) That was a good thing.
We showered and got cleaned up, but didn't have anything on the schedule, knowing that the weather was going to be colder. Mark and J2 ran out for these special "burritos" that are made by one of the vendors down the road (look for a video post soon) and they brought them back here for us to eat for lunch. After getting that cleaned up, we all ventured out to go to the local police station to "register". It's supposed to be done upon arrival in the area, but we had heard that we may be able to do it in the school foreign affairs office, and had some difficulty hooking up with them, and then when we did he said that we should just go to the police dept. since he was so busy. So we did. It just took a few minutes to walk to the office, and then about 10 minutes worth of us filling out the form and the officer doing her part to certify us. No biggie. It was a really cold walk though!
Once home, J1 resumed cleaning the house, and made a batch of brownies for our company later on. We met up with their friends, G and A1, and A2 and J3, for dinner at the little restaurant on campus. We had a huge assortment of dishes, some repeated from the few nights before, and some new, but all of it was really good. We were grateful to have one of their "private rooms" to dine in, and the heater was so nice....I even took off my coat! :) Usually the restaurants are so cold (or outdoor) that you end up eating with your coat on the whole time you are there.
After dinner, all of us came back to the apartment to have brownies and hot beverages (cider, tea or cocoa) and to visit. It was so fun to talk with these other young couples, and for them to all get to know each other better, as well as for us to get to know them too! It was so good to know that there are always new people moving into the area to learn the language and have similar goals for their future, as well as the same heart for today. I know that as time goes on, they will continue to bond, through good times and bad, and be their "family" when we are not there. That brings peace to my heart. :)
So, now it's late, and I'm relaxed and ready to hit the hay. The weather is still supposed to be cold, so I'm not sure if we'll make any plans or not. There are still a number of things we had hoped to accomplish this week, and we may just have to get out in the cold to do them...only time will tell!
~marina
We showered and got cleaned up, but didn't have anything on the schedule, knowing that the weather was going to be colder. Mark and J2 ran out for these special "burritos" that are made by one of the vendors down the road (look for a video post soon) and they brought them back here for us to eat for lunch. After getting that cleaned up, we all ventured out to go to the local police station to "register". It's supposed to be done upon arrival in the area, but we had heard that we may be able to do it in the school foreign affairs office, and had some difficulty hooking up with them, and then when we did he said that we should just go to the police dept. since he was so busy. So we did. It just took a few minutes to walk to the office, and then about 10 minutes worth of us filling out the form and the officer doing her part to certify us. No biggie. It was a really cold walk though!
Once home, J1 resumed cleaning the house, and made a batch of brownies for our company later on. We met up with their friends, G and A1, and A2 and J3, for dinner at the little restaurant on campus. We had a huge assortment of dishes, some repeated from the few nights before, and some new, but all of it was really good. We were grateful to have one of their "private rooms" to dine in, and the heater was so nice....I even took off my coat! :) Usually the restaurants are so cold (or outdoor) that you end up eating with your coat on the whole time you are there.
After dinner, all of us came back to the apartment to have brownies and hot beverages (cider, tea or cocoa) and to visit. It was so fun to talk with these other young couples, and for them to all get to know each other better, as well as for us to get to know them too! It was so good to know that there are always new people moving into the area to learn the language and have similar goals for their future, as well as the same heart for today. I know that as time goes on, they will continue to bond, through good times and bad, and be their "family" when we are not there. That brings peace to my heart. :)
So, now it's late, and I'm relaxed and ready to hit the hay. The weather is still supposed to be cold, so I'm not sure if we'll make any plans or not. There are still a number of things we had hoped to accomplish this week, and we may just have to get out in the cold to do them...only time will tell!
~marina
Monday, March 3, 2008
friday, 2/29/2008
Yesterday ended up being a pretty laid back day...Mark and J2 went into the city (G2) to get some computer supplies, and J1 and I hung out around the apt., with her not feeling very well (and me trying hard not to catch it!).
This morning we all felt well enough to go back into town to go to the "monkey park", a place that J/J had not ever been to, but had heard about for a while now. It was a beautiful day, much warmer than it's been since we got here, and the sky was clear and blue. The bus ride to the city was uneventful, and not too crowded (unusual).
After a few transfers (or maybe it was just one...) and a short walk, we made it to the park. There were crowds of people everywhere. I'll always be surprised how busy this city is, no matter what time of the day, or what day, you think it's always rush hour! Crazy!
It was obvious that there were landscaping points we were missing, since it was the middle of winter and not spring or summer....no lilies in the ponds, or flowers in the trees. However, the park was busy, with others taking advantage of the warm, sunny day. We were not too sure where we were supposed to go, but someone told J/J to go to the top to see the most monkeys...so we thought we were starting in the right direction to do that, but ended up going through a LONG tunnel towards the lake (not where you want to be...in a tunnel...on the first sunny day you've seen in a while!)
Once we got to the end of the tunnel, the lake was before us, but not the enterance to the gondola, which we had hoped to take to the top of the mountain. We ended up taking hundreds of stairs to the top, a physically difficult thing to do, but done none the less. Oh, I should say that it was only hard on Mark and I....the kids did great. I should also mention that I lost track of how many people snuck photos of us "lao wai", and how many kids said "hello" or asked us a question in English (trying out theirs, and checking to see if we were English speaking...). It's funny, but odd sometimes to be such a celebrity...haha....
At the top of the mountain ther was a Buddhist temple, and several other areas that you could offer incense to their gods, should you choose to. J1 and I camped out on the rock wall outside this area, and Mark and J2 went on up higher to the area they thought that the monkeys would be most likely to hang out. They were not disappointed....but neither were we! :) You'll have to check out the photos, and later video, of the experience.
J2 almost lost his camera to one.
Then the long walk down all the stairs on the other side of the mountain, a walk by the gondola (which had no one riding on it...so we didn't take that chance...) and back to the bus stop, where we took the bus ride over to the area we were in a few days ago (near the Walmart store/park that was by the coffee house, and also the Sheraton Hotel where we had planned to have dinner). It's a 5 star hotel, and fairly new to the Sheraton line, and creme de la creme....and the restaurant was on the 38th floor! We got some great sunset views, excellent dinner, and a relaxing atmosphere for our worn out bodies.
We opted for the taxi on the way home, and were so glad as we drove by the buses loaded with people, and the bus stops full of waiting folks to shove on to the buses that stopped.
J1's feeling crummy, but is in good spirits, and we're relaxing now with J2 working on his computer and me trying to get this all updated....and photos uploaded too.
Saturday (tomorrow) we may venture to an old walled city (if we all feel up to it), and if not we'll hang around HX and hit the markets again. :)
More later!!
marina
This morning we all felt well enough to go back into town to go to the "monkey park", a place that J/J had not ever been to, but had heard about for a while now. It was a beautiful day, much warmer than it's been since we got here, and the sky was clear and blue. The bus ride to the city was uneventful, and not too crowded (unusual).
After a few transfers (or maybe it was just one...) and a short walk, we made it to the park. There were crowds of people everywhere. I'll always be surprised how busy this city is, no matter what time of the day, or what day, you think it's always rush hour! Crazy!
It was obvious that there were landscaping points we were missing, since it was the middle of winter and not spring or summer....no lilies in the ponds, or flowers in the trees. However, the park was busy, with others taking advantage of the warm, sunny day. We were not too sure where we were supposed to go, but someone told J/J to go to the top to see the most monkeys...so we thought we were starting in the right direction to do that, but ended up going through a LONG tunnel towards the lake (not where you want to be...in a tunnel...on the first sunny day you've seen in a while!)
Once we got to the end of the tunnel, the lake was before us, but not the enterance to the gondola, which we had hoped to take to the top of the mountain. We ended up taking hundreds of stairs to the top, a physically difficult thing to do, but done none the less. Oh, I should say that it was only hard on Mark and I....the kids did great. I should also mention that I lost track of how many people snuck photos of us "lao wai", and how many kids said "hello" or asked us a question in English (trying out theirs, and checking to see if we were English speaking...). It's funny, but odd sometimes to be such a celebrity...haha....
At the top of the mountain ther was a Buddhist temple, and several other areas that you could offer incense to their gods, should you choose to. J1 and I camped out on the rock wall outside this area, and Mark and J2 went on up higher to the area they thought that the monkeys would be most likely to hang out. They were not disappointed....but neither were we! :) You'll have to check out the photos, and later video, of the experience.
J2 almost lost his camera to one.
Then the long walk down all the stairs on the other side of the mountain, a walk by the gondola (which had no one riding on it...so we didn't take that chance...) and back to the bus stop, where we took the bus ride over to the area we were in a few days ago (near the Walmart store/park that was by the coffee house, and also the Sheraton Hotel where we had planned to have dinner). It's a 5 star hotel, and fairly new to the Sheraton line, and creme de la creme....and the restaurant was on the 38th floor! We got some great sunset views, excellent dinner, and a relaxing atmosphere for our worn out bodies.
We opted for the taxi on the way home, and were so glad as we drove by the buses loaded with people, and the bus stops full of waiting folks to shove on to the buses that stopped.
J1's feeling crummy, but is in good spirits, and we're relaxing now with J2 working on his computer and me trying to get this all updated....and photos uploaded too.
Saturday (tomorrow) we may venture to an old walled city (if we all feel up to it), and if not we'll hang around HX and hit the markets again. :)
More later!!
marina
Sunday, March 2, 2008
wednesday, 2/27/2008
Oops...I had lost a day!
I know that this day we went into G2, to Pizza Fun, to the American Coffee House, and to the underground Walmart.....If I come up with other memorable things from this excursion I'll make note of it here....
there are photos too...I'll need to locate them and post them....
sorry!
I know that this day we went into G2, to Pizza Fun, to the American Coffee House, and to the underground Walmart.....If I come up with other memorable things from this excursion I'll make note of it here....
there are photos too...I'll need to locate them and post them....
sorry!
Saturday, March 1, 2008
Sunday, 3/2/2008
This is going to be my last post from J's house. We are starting to pack up and get things ready to go, as we'll leave from here tomorrow early afternoon...rent the same taxi bus to the airport, and then fly back to G....try to find a hotel, and then leave for Japan in the morning on Tuesday for the LONG flight back home.
Today we had a great meeting and lunch with a group of friends of theirs, a blend of students and teachers. They are a really neat group of people, from many different places, and have been here for different lengths of time, so it was fun to meet them all and hear their stories.
After lunch we went to go to the minority store in HX, but it was closed, so we walked back to the campus and then took some photos in the park on campus, then went and got ice cream bars (yum) and headed back to the apt. It's been SO warm, in the 60's each day, so none of us wanted to stay indoors (where it's colder!) and we wanted to enjoy the sunshine. :)
J1 is feeling a bit better, and I'm feeling a bit worse. sigh. I'll sneak some of her meds for the trip home. Nothing worse than flying with a head cold....ugh.
Mark and J1 are spending the afternoon figuring out sudoku puzzles :) together, and J2 is working on the details of sending his computer in for service work (which we'll handle for him in the states). We're all winding down, and I'm not sure what dinner will be tonight...where we'll walk to for our last dinner in town.
The kids have a meeting in the morning on campus for the start of their classes, and Mark and I will finalize the packing up then. After a quick bite of lunch, we'll pile back into the taxi van and head out....it seems like yesterday that we were piling into it for the first time to come to their town.....it's gone by so fast.
All in all, it's been amazing. I'll work on a few posts, top 10's and final thoughts while we are flying home....and will post them once we are home again.
Thanks for coming on this journey with us!!
.....marina....
Today we had a great meeting and lunch with a group of friends of theirs, a blend of students and teachers. They are a really neat group of people, from many different places, and have been here for different lengths of time, so it was fun to meet them all and hear their stories.
After lunch we went to go to the minority store in HX, but it was closed, so we walked back to the campus and then took some photos in the park on campus, then went and got ice cream bars (yum) and headed back to the apt. It's been SO warm, in the 60's each day, so none of us wanted to stay indoors (where it's colder!) and we wanted to enjoy the sunshine. :)
J1 is feeling a bit better, and I'm feeling a bit worse. sigh. I'll sneak some of her meds for the trip home. Nothing worse than flying with a head cold....ugh.
Mark and J1 are spending the afternoon figuring out sudoku puzzles :) together, and J2 is working on the details of sending his computer in for service work (which we'll handle for him in the states). We're all winding down, and I'm not sure what dinner will be tonight...where we'll walk to for our last dinner in town.
The kids have a meeting in the morning on campus for the start of their classes, and Mark and I will finalize the packing up then. After a quick bite of lunch, we'll pile back into the taxi van and head out....it seems like yesterday that we were piling into it for the first time to come to their town.....it's gone by so fast.
All in all, it's been amazing. I'll work on a few posts, top 10's and final thoughts while we are flying home....and will post them once we are home again.
Thanks for coming on this journey with us!!
.....marina....
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