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Published: November 23rd 2008
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Local Neighbourhood
I took this picture as the sun was passing overhead - it's just a typical little Chinese neighborhood. This weekend has been very low key, something that is rare in our lives lately. We didn't have any plans! No friends called, we didn't have marking or classes to plan, it was just us. So we decided to explore the city a bit. After we finished talking to Mom and Dad on MSN, that is... lol. That's a weekend ritual we refuse to break!
Yesterday we hopped on the 519 bus which took us across two rivers (the Han River, and the enormous Yangtze River) to Wuchang. We got off at the first stop, and started walking. I remembered a certain district famous for it's shopping (named Simenkou), and on weekends it's absolutely insane! We didn't have any spending money, but just wanted to see what was there. We walked and walked and walked - after awhile the stores just start to look the same. However, a few did stand out. There was a music store that Jean could have gotten lost in - it was full of "normal" instruments like guitars, flutes, saxophones, and clarinets, but it also had numerous Chinese instruments like the zither, various kinds of wooden flutes, paw-paws, and a Chinese style mandolin. Man, it's
588
We take this bus back and forth to Metro, a large Costco-style supermarket where we find some imported items (like normal margarine, ginger ale, and pb). a good thing we're not rich, or I swear between the two of us we'd own 50 different instruments by now! We also discovered a store selling normal sized clothes just like the one I used to shop in when I lived here before - Jean saw a "fishermans sweater" that he really wanted - huge and grey, giant cable knit pattern. I laughed at him - but I must admit he can really pull it off! We'll probably go back there next week to see if it's still there.
By the time we were done window shopping, it was getting dark, so we headed down to the river where I remembered there being ferry's to the other side. We got there only to find the gates locked. We weren't sure what to do, we'd walked for a really long ways, and were getting pretty pooped - but as we wandered around we discovered that the terminal had just moved down the street a little. We were lucky, there was one at the dock, and we were the last passengers allowed on. We experienced peace and quiet in China... we found a little alcove on the ferry where there
Lonely Tree
Standing guard underneath the light rail track. were no people, and we just sat and talked softly and listened to the water float by. We watched giant barges, tankers, and little tugboats float by, silent in the night. I was wishing it would last forever - but we landed in Hankou within half an hour. The cost - 2Y, the same as taking a city bus. Not bad eh? Once we got back to Hankou, I pulled me trusty list of buses and found one to take us home (I keep a list of buses... every bus stop has a list of buses that stop there, and if I think it's a good stop, somewhere we will want to return, I will write the number of every bus. that way if we find ourselves wanting to get somewhere, I can usually find a bus to take us there).
Today Jean wanted to explore the neighbourhood where we live. We have been almost every direction except for one, so we headed that way. Along the way we just take our time, poke our noses into interesting little shops, try new food, and take pictures. Today we stumbled onto a giant indoor food market. There was everything from
Puppy Time!
This little guy was so cute, he was trying to drag his food dish over the doorway, and it was as big as he was! produce, meat (freshly butchered), seafood (live in little buckets), eggs, spices, baked goods, and lives birds. Jean was brave enough to take some pictures, and I've included them here. I love places like this, they're so REAL! Do you know what I mean? Not prettied up and perfected, just rough, raw, and real. It's how real people live and survive. It's how you get a feel for a country that you're not familiar with. Anyways, all the Chinese operating the booths got a real kick out of us walking around, everyone was whispering "Waiguren" (literally means "another country's person") and "Laowai" (literally "old foreigner", some what respectful). One guy was very obvious about it, very loud - when he pointed and grinned and said "Waiguoren" I said "bu shi waiguoren, wo shi zhongguoren" which means "I'm not a foreigner, I'm Chinese!". He laughed his butt off, he thought it was so funny. I was glad I could be so entertaining! LOL
We finished our afternoon stroll with a meal of Chinese barbecue. There is a little restaurant right across the street from our house, and though it's a dirty hole in the wall, the girls that work there are
Random Corner
Sometimes there will be random art on the corners, close to intersections... this one caught my eye. It's a wooden replica of ancient Chinese bells. awesome, and the food is wonderful! It is nothing like barbecue at home - it's cooked over open flames, with a variety of seasonings. It can be very spicy if you forget to say something, so we make sure to specify "bulada" which means "no spice". I've included some pictures - don't be afraid, it's not scary. Haha... check out the photo of Jean posing with his pepsi, it made me laugh!
And so ends our weekend of relaxation. We get paid this coming Friday, and next weekend our mission will be finding winter gear (scarves, hats, boots) for our trip to Beijing. Who knows, maybe we'll have more interesting stories to tell😉
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Heidi
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So interesting
Wow, I find all your pictures and blogs so interesting!! I'm so glad you take the time to post this. I almost feel as if I'm there with you I get so absorbed in reading it and looking at the pictures! Miss you guys as always!!