Fond Memories...
Mmm...what do you think my favorite thing about China was? Sad but true, I LOVED THE FOOD!!!! Look at all these delicate adorable tiny foods! I still intend finding these wooden steamer baskets on the internet so I can adopt some Chinese cuisine into our diet. These were entree's not found in the 'gringo' Chinese restaurants here in America.The only time I refused to eat something was when the pork blood soup was ordered for us. Long strips of brown cooked blood looked very suspicious to me so when I asked what it was I was very glad I hadn't tried it. You have to draw the line somewhere right?
And look at these economic toilets! No toilet paper provided but usually a garbage can for whatever supplies you happened to bring with you. I couldn't possibly describe the stench of these public toilets. These were everywhere except in our lovely hotels.
On the ferry going to the English branch in Hong Kong.
Making the sign for Freddy. This was right at the dock for the ferry in Hong Kong.
One of the many temples.
Isn't Shirley pretty next to this beautiful piece? This was in Beijing.
The shopping was so fun for Shirl and I. Ask me to tell you about the danger I got myself in one day and how my knight in shining amour came to save me.
Dad got a bit impatient with the chop sticks one day so he made clever use of the cup lid!
On the ferry in Hong Kong.
Tienanmen Square.
Just one example of the rock star status that Shirley had the entire trip. Her blonde hair and fair skin was very striking to the Chinese and they regularly lined up to take their photos with her.
Lovely Suzhou Gardens 30 mins west of Shanghai by fast train.
Everyone works hard in China. Many elderly sell hand made trinkets on the streets or collect plastics for recycling. Shirley bought a couple of flower bracelets here.
Very ornate buildings in the Forbidden City.
Ronald hosted us several times at very nice restaurants and clubs. I was especially taken with the little chairs provided for purses. Too cute!
Here was the most exquisite dining. A private room with several servants. They brought the live large fish in for our inspection before they cooked it! Absolutely delicious food. Thank you Ronald!
Our first morning in Shanghai Fred joined in a game of batmitten on a Saturday morning. The people were so kind and hospitable.
This is Ronald Cheung our dear friend who made the whole trip possible. He is a brilliant businessman native to Hong Kong. He had Fred come speak at a business conference in Beijing (he did fantastic!) so we all took advantage of the opportunity to explore the exotic most continuous civilization in the world. A trip to China was on my bucket list. (I need to add more to my list because I'm about out of wishes!) Fred pointed this out to me on the way home as he wiped his sweaty brow looking exhausted, "Honey, is there anything I haven't done for you?" Ha Ha!!!
I've got to figure out what our next adventure will be...
