Rabbits and Frogs and Snakes, Oh My!

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“Mom, look at the cute bunnies.”

“Those are rabbits and people eat them for dinner.”

“People eat cute rabbits?”

“Yep.”

“Oh.” Ava kept walking. We had seen snakes, chickens, ducks, bags of jumping frogs, turtles, and even clams that spit water at us. It seems like Shanghai Street had just about every live food we had expected to see and never buy. There were also stalls with cuts of meat that were unrefrigerated. Women were fanning the meat to keep the flies away.

There was also booth after booth of fresh fruits and vegetables. Some of them were unknown to us, but most of them were familiar. There were stalls with spices, most of them hot, but some of the smells were familiar.

It’s close to the Autumn Festival, so there were moon pies for sale everywhere. Ava used her allowance money to buy 2 strawberry moon pies. She ate them as we were walking around. No matter which way you looked, there were things to see. People were very interested in us but mostly interested in Ava. It’s interesting to watch people facial expressions when they see our merry group of 4. They see Lauryn and Zac and are interested that they are foreigners. Then they see Ava and me and scan the area, looking for someone else to complete the unit. They often look at Lauryn and Zac a second time as they try to piece the puzzle together.

This time, we went out in the evening. It may be mid September, but it is still in the 90s during the day and humid on top of that. So, we prefer to go out at night or in the early morning. On this particular night, it was probably around 70. It was nice to walk around and not sweat. It’s also cool to see all the lights and groups of people that come out at night. Large groups of people come out to dance in the public areas. It’s fun to watch and I’m sure we will join in at some point.

Nightlife is definitely fun here and I need to get used to napping during the day. I have a bad cold from spending too much time in the heat and not getting enough sleep. It’s difficult for me to slow down because things are still so new to me and Ava always wants to go out at night. Please try to copy and paste the links for the videos into your browser. You won’t be sorry!

Vegetables on Shanghai Street: https://vimeo.com/74548419












Frogs and Snakes on Shanghai Street: https://vimeo.com/74548541












Chickens, Ducks, and Swimming Things: https://vimeo.com/74548621












Night Dancing in Nanchang: https://vimeo.com/74548799

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Comments

[Sue]

foods and nightlife
My daughter and I had a saying, "In China, all you need to do is just walk out your door, and life happens." That's what living in the midst of so many people is like. Fish head hotpot is the bomb!

[TravelingBirds]

Agreed!
I think that's how Ava feels here in Nanchang as well. I have been sick the last few days with a cold. Oddly enough, I think I got the cold because I stayed out too long in the heat. Anyway, Ava has been like a caged bear in the apartment, asking me when we're going to go out and see things. There's quite a bit that happens right here on campus but she loves going into the city at night too. Fish head hotpot sounds interesting. We might have to give that a try :D

[Evelyn]

food shopping
The market looked wonderful— such a variety of vegetables, and it's so wonderful to shop outside. Glad to see you're writing again!