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Published: October 12th 2006
I got off the bus onto a fairly small and crowded hardware street. I waited until Monica recieved me and we got in a taxi to go to her apartment home. Her apartment building is in the center of the city, but is surprisingly quiet. The tall 17-story buildings block off the city and circle a landscaped water garden.
We relaxed in her home before dinner at her uncle's house. I felt very welcome there. They were very nice although they didn't speak a word of english. Monica kept trying to encourage her 16-year-old brother to speak to me in english but he was very shy. He showed me some of the english homework he was working on (over the holiday!). It was very interesting. One article was over a strange food in America called the "hamburger", how it was made, and how quick it is to get in a drive-through-type-of-restaurant.
The dinner was very good. Monica's aunt and grandma kept telling me not to be shy and eat just like I would at home. They liked to throw things on my plate. We had vegetables, whole shrimp, crabs, fish.....
Monica also has a 7-year-old cousin who is very hyperactive. He
ran around the house, jumped on the couches, shot an invisible gun, and waved his spongebob toy around like a flag. He was very funny.
Meanwhile, as Monica's father and uncle were getting drunk off bi-jiao, her uncle shouted that he was taking us to the palace the next day.
~~~So, the next day we met her uncle, aunt, her small cousin, and spongebob outside the emperor's palace. (It's just a branch of the Forbidden City-smaller of course.) This was definitely a must-see for history in Shenyang, but I'm really glad that Monica's hyperactive cousin was with us so we didn't stay that long. 😊
That night we went to Korea town. Yes, Korean town!!! Just like China town in America but...well, you know. Honestly, I couldn't tell a difference. Except with the food. Jeremiah, Wang, Monica and I ate at a restaurant there. It was one of those where they give you plates of meat and you grill it on a fire in the middle of the table. You know, just those everyday restaurants with the grill tables. It was okay.
I think the worst thing about China
is the beggars. It's sickening. I saw one outside the palace; a scraggly man sitting on the side of the street holding a small child. He was beating his head back and forth, coming close to the child laying limp on his lap. I literally felt nauseous. Then, in Korea town, there was a girl about 7 or 8 that was following us around, eagerly chasing us with her tin cup. It was so horrible. We just ran. Then later we got some ice cream. We walked the streets of Korea town: chatting, laughing, and enjoying ourselves. Suddenly, the girl appeared again; following us and shaking her tin cup. I felt so horrible to be eating ice cream and having a good time. It was hard to look at her. I just handed her my ice cream cone and didn't look back.]]]]]]]
Monica took us to one of her favorite bars. As soon as I walked in I could tell why it was her favorite. It's small, quaint, and full of charm. It's secluded and has a great laid-back atmosphere. They even had a great drink menu - interesting non-alcoholic drinks - and board games. We played Jenga.
The next day, Monica and I met her friends and we took the bus back to Benxi to "hike" a mountain.
Finally! If it seems like these blogs are kind of boring, I'm sorry. I've tried to rush through because I was looking forward to the following: (coming soon.)
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Daniel Liu
non-member comment
Lovely photo
Very lovely girl enjoying the throne. Thanks for sharing!