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Saturday, was hot--as hot as it has been here since last year--and we were not really prepared to be that hot. We didn't carry water with us, we didn't have sunscreen. We just hopped on a train Saturday to seek out a new park we picked by pointing at a map and then there we were. Walking around in the blazing sun and noticing nobody else was out there with us. Chinese people tend to avoid the sun, not worship it like Westerners often do. If you go to a park on a sunny day, the open fields are empty due to the sun, but the patches of shade and areas filled with trees are packed full of people. We realized if we had a public beach nearby we would take advantage on sunny days. As it is, Mark and Nathan can play baseball, soccer, and fly kites without much congestion as long as the sun is out.
After suffering through a walk in the park, stopping for a few minutes in various patches of shade and snapping a few pictures, we were ready for lunch. We grabbed a taxi and headed over to this artsy area where we found
a nice French restaurant. Mark and I split a pitcher of beer--the better value than two mugs (Mark logic) and it really did hit the spot and help us cool down. We then wandered around a mini-sidewalk sale and marveled at the random nature of the goods being sold. One stand had some notebooks, which were artsy and funky but then another stand was selling miscellaneous makeup as well as kid sun care products. I was tempted to buy some sunscreen, after testing it out and confirming it at least smelled like Coppertone for babies/kids. But in the end, we bought nothing and kept exploring.
We went to the top of this outdoor shopping center and found a cool art gallery. We walked in and the people inside were setting up for a party. There were cleaners, and one woman that appeared to be in charge. We were welcomed in to look around. Remember that beer we had? Well I was fine but I guess a little unstable. I almost knocked over this sofa table that had at least three pieces of sculpture. They all got wobbly when I backed into the table and I literally held my breath
waiting to see if anything was going to fall to the ground. Nothing fell, all was fine, and we quickly wrapped up our tour and got outta there. Close one.
We decided to head back home and found ourselves back on the street about to hail a taxi. We were standing near a bus stop, and Mark read the sign and recognized Zhongshan Park in Chinese characters. He also read the other stops on the route and confirmed we could easily take this bus home. How fun. We waited about 5 minutes, the bus came, we got on and paid 6 kuai total (less than $1) for Mark, Nathan and myself. Emily rode free. Air conditioned, clean, and it took us right to our neighborhood.
After the bus ride, we walked over to a ticket office to buy train tickets for the next weekend. I had some difficulty with the ticket agent. I asked for tickets back to Shanghai from Hangzhou--having already bought our tickets to Hangzhou last week. The woman did not listen/understand and issued me tickets TO Hangzhou instead of from Hangzhou. In the end, I determined this office did not take returns (regardless of whose
fault it was) and I bought the correct tickets and just had to get over it. We later learned we can take the tickets to the train station and try to get a refund but that sounds hard and the tickets were not that much money.
Mark and I had a really fun date night on Saturday night. We used the City Weekend guide to outdoor drinking and dining and went to two different spots. First stop was for drinks outdoor at a bar in the French Concession. Outdoor patio, lots of people out enjoying the good weather. After a drink, we walked through the French Concession and found our second stop of the night. It was a Thai place with a great outdoor patio. The food was good, the service was slow but we weren't in a hurry. We walked home which took us about an hour. It was such a nice night and we worked off some of the day's drinking (or at least I like to think we did) with all the walking we did that night.
Sunday, Mother's Day, we had our fabulous brunch with Joanna, Ian, William and Nanny Anne. Sophie had another
social engagement, but Emily hung out with the boys and had fun. Emily and I wore matching pink dresses and we were feeling mighty cute.
We ended our Sunday with a language lesson. It was excellent and we learned and practiced all sorts of ticket buying scenarios. We could have used this lesson just a day earlier, but the content will be helpful going forward. Nathan was the star student and put his parents to shame. He read with the fluidity and cadence Mark and I can only dream of. We are choppy and awkward while Nathan's Chinese is musical. We are proud. He helps us. Emily opted out of our language session. I am not forcing the kids to participate. I encourage, I praise, but I don't force.
I will post another blog soon about my fun day today (Monday). I took a train to Suzhou with Mark who had a work meeting. We parted at the train station and I had a good time exploring on my own. We have a busy week ahead with school activities, a field trip to a factory I helped organize for Emily's class and we are heading to the bamboo
forest on Saturday. I am not taking my computer on that trip. I'm taking a tech holiday. I think it's time. But that's not til Saturday, so I'll write again soon.
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Linda
non-member comment
nice goin' at the bus stop
Your weekend sounds breezy and fun. Odd to see such empty streets. Was relieved as I scrolled to the end to find a picture of the matching pink dresses.