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Published: April 30th 2013
Grandma's Kitchen
Peggy, Pam and Jessi at a famous chainThis has been one of the fastest, craziest weeks that I have had to date!
My mom arrived last week on Tuesday. Sara and I were able to fetch her without too many issues, though we did arrive at the meeting place after my mom had already gone through customs, etc. Sadly, this meant that I did not have the opportunity to jump, shout and enthusiastically wave my pre-decorated Disney balloon and watch Sara turn an ungodly shade of red as promised. Huge bummer. But, a trip in to and back out of Hangzhou without a hitch is cause for celebration enough.
Mom has managed to proceed with her visit to China with ZERO jet-lag. I am not sure what voodoo she pulled off in order to make this happen, but she has been an absolute champ the entire time.
Her first reactions to China in general include the following:
“There are a lot of people here. Wow. And the buses and trains and taxis and planes and… transportation is a trip. Getting around anywhere is a lot of work. And there are a lot of people.
“Jessi’s friends are nice. West Lake is
Silk Market
Peggy's Mom, Peggy and Pam pretty, and both Beijing and Hangzhou have very nice, pretty parks. We’ve seen a lot of very pretty areas. Not being a city girl, the city stuff is overwhelming. So, it is nice to have these peaceful places to rest and relax.
“The food… well, I haven’t had anything that I didn’t like yet. Man, we’ve had a lot of noodles. But, the best thing so far would have to be either the Peking Duck, or the Pork-Fish thing on the first day. Milk tea’s pretty good!”
Our first couple of days in Hangzhou consisted mostly of walking. We did a lot of walking. We walked to meet people. We walked to the park. We walked around the lake. We walked to lunch. We walked to work. We walked to the train station. We did a lot of walking. I ran into a bit of disappointment on our first go-around with Hangzhou in that I wasn’t able to feed my mother the way that I typically feed myself. We had some interesting things, but it’s all been just as new to me as it has been to her. It is my goal on our second go-around
with Hangzhou to show her the good stuff.
Mom made some new friends, namely in the form of Peggy's mom. We spent the first day with Peggy, and that evening walking the Silk Market, allowing Peggy's mom to do all the talking. And talk she did - successfully. Nothin' like a pure silk scarf for $12!!
Most of my Hangzhou time with Mom is being over-run by wedding... things. There was an elaborate cafe-hosted bridal party meeting (one week before the wedding... byyyy the way...) wherein we were each assigned "tasks" based on our "passions." Did you know that my passion is singing Karaoke versions of Disney tunes in front of large Chinese audiences dressed as a 4-year-old complete with a bow in my hair? Yeah, I didn't either. Mm. That's all I have to say about that.
Beijing was pretty remarkable. The train ride up there was an exceptionally good experience for me; not because there was anything mindblowing about the trip… but because I was homesick. There is a real sense of accomplishment that comes from feeling homesick about a new home. Feeling homesick means that I have really settled in right; that
Fruit!
Clare gave us a chance to sample a number of "exotic" fruits, including Lychee and Dragon Fruit among others. I have something to love and appreciate behind me and that I have something positive to return to.
Beijing the city is really just too big for me, honestly. It reminds me quite a bit of DC, actually, but bigger in height and sprawl alike. To me, that explains Clare’s appreciation of the city.
Clare was an incredible hostess. She met us late at night at the train station and served each and every one of our needs without hesitation or complaint. She allowed us to explore the city on our own, but was always there to help with directions and food – in my opinion, the two most challenging elements of traveling in a foreign land and language. And MAN did she show us some food! The two most notable meals were the Peking Duck and Hot Pot. Peking Duck was a new experience for me, and I think it is a new favorite. This particular place brought amazing flavor and texture, and the entire experience was inviting and fun. Hot Pot I’ve done before, but we had a blast burning our faces off with spice and temperature alike. Lots of good conversation was had
Pretty Good Wall
Pretty great face. (ALMOST none of which was at Jordan’s expense… quite the accomplishment given that she is a friend of his from DC), and we went to bed quite tired and satisfied each night.
We went and hiked the Great Wall on Sunday. Wow, what an experience that is. As we were riding up to the site in a crowded bus, we couldn’t help mumbling that this was going to be a Mount Rushmore/Plymouth Rock experience wherein one drives and drives for miles only to find this miniscule monument, made to be so dwarfed by the surrounding commercialism. This was the case to some extent… until you pass the entrance gate. Then, all of the vendors disappear and you are left to look up in awe – at the size, the history, and… the number of stairs that you are about to climb. Oy. We trekked onward for a decent amount of time, laughing with old ladies and teeny-boppers alike through our huffing and puffing and random photo opps. That’s one experience in China that I hadn’t previously introduced to mom: photo opps. When a Chinese family approaches you with a camera, it’s not their family that they want
a picture of… it’s you. So, our shining (and sweating) faces went home on a number of cameras on Sunday. Including ours! That is one memory that we definitely captured in a variety of ways… and that will not soon be left behind.
At any rate, we are now back in Hangzhou, exhausted, but fed and safe. Tomorrow, it’s off to wedding-ville, and I can’t say that I’m entirely enthusiastic. Let’s just say that there were a lot of last-minute demands placed on me with regards to this thing that I wasn’t anticipating… But, I’ll put on my smiley face as best I can and try to make this ordeal a positive. Try. I will certainly let you all know how that goes.
In the meantime, enjoy the photos and we look forward to hearing from y’all!
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