Gender Classification

The baby hamsters are now over a month old and it's time to separate them so we won't have anymore little pups. The other day, my friend Andrea came by and we did the precursory look. It wasn't a pretty thing but it had to be done. We thought we did it right but then started to have doubts. So, I arranged for Anne and Andrea to come by. We decided to have dinner together since Tony and Matthew had guy night. Great food, two bottles of wine and then we proceeded upstairs to do it all over again. Let's just say that the hamsters were pretty traumatized by what we did. Not to mention the laughter that came out of the office. Tony and Matthew were afraid to come up to see what we were doing to the hamsters. I can honestly say that we have five girls and two boys and they've been segregated to the appropriate cages until they get picked up by their new owners.

Once the hamsters have been disbursed, we'll be on our way to Hong Kong. A week long vacation of spinning tea cups and great food. We'll need it.

Inventions

Matthew's been working on a project for school. It's the Invention Convention season. He has had to come up with some ideas for things he would invent. On the top of the list:

a) Bully Proof Vest- Tired of bullies beating the snot out of you, taking your lunch money and giving you atomic wedgeies in the playground? If so, buy the bully proof vest and this will make those bullies go crying to their moms!

b) Tooth Brush Holder- Tired of your toothpaste falling on the counter and making a mess? Then buy the Toothbrush Holder 2000. This will prevent the toothpaste from making a mess and you don't have to clean it up!

c) The Wide Awake- Is math boring you? Don't you want to take your eyes off that big blinding mole on your teacher's face? Then buy the Wide Awake fake eyes! Now you can sleep during class and nobody will know!

and the masterpiece of them all is:

d) Mom Shock Collar- Don't you hate it when your mom yells at you all the time?  I know I do. With this marvelous device just by the push of a button your mom's hair will pop up like a crazy persons! No yelling, no smacking and no punishment.

These are actual descriptions that he has submitted in his log book for approval.

Hmmm, based on his description, I think that the Mom Shock Collar has my name written all over it.  He's going to need three testimonials on any of the invention that he does create. If he does work on the Mom Shock Collar, I'll make sure I'm out somewhere....for a few days.

Help Wanted....Only if you fit the physical criteria

Discrimination is something that is not practiced in the corporate world back in the United States or anywhere for that matter...except in China. I often peruse the classified ads to see what position I could secure while living here in China. When you see ads that read as follows: "1st French restaurant in Shanghai, good ambiance. Currently looking for pretty girls as waitresses, evening shift only. Closed on Sunday. No experience necessary, a little English is a must. Good work atmosphere, good salary. Contact: Vincent: 1370 172 4361"

Gee, pretty- that's relative. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder. What one person sees as pretty may not be the same for another. I know I can work as a waitress. I did it for a bit and I do speak a lot of English. Hey, I even speak two dialects of Chinese and am currently learning a third. Wouldn't that make me qualified for the position? I certainly think so. I wanted to call Vincent and apply for the job over the phone and then see what would happen when I showed up with my resume in hand. You see, I am way over qualified but, I wanted to actually see if someone would have the audacity to tell me that I cannot be hired because..... I don't fit the "physical" criteria.

Many times, when I'm out with my friends Anne and Andrea, I would see handwritten Chinese signs on restaurant windows seeking waitresses. The criteria for the position is you have to be between the ages of 18-22, no more than 48 kg (about 105 pounds) and 1.6 meters in height. Makes me want to walk right in and apply for the job and see what they'll say. For one, I can speak, I can be a good hostess and I am very hands on. I may not be classified as pretty eye candy for the clientele but, I can certainly handle myself. I know I would be over qualified for the position but, I want to dare the skinny local restaurant owner to come right out and call me old and fat or even ugly for that matter. Then again, this is China.

So, if you read about a brawl that breaks out at a restaurant and a woman had to be carried out screaming for equality, it's a pretty good bet that it would be me.

Four Down....Three To Go

June (formerly known as Junior) is doing quite well with her newborns. We have managed to get a glimpse and count that there are seven pups in the litter. Over the past week, we have watched the transformation of the babies. The fur has come in, you can see the facial features and most of all, the tremendous growth spurt that has happened since Valentine's Day.

We watched June carry each of the pups from the top level down to the lower level of the cage. She sat in the box with her babies underneath to keep them warm. That was until, the pups were getting too big and the box way too small. So, they're all back upstairs again in the spacious ball that they call home. In the meantime, we have put the word out that there are baby hamsters and have found homes for four of the seven. Meanwhile, Speedy is still in his bachelor pad (unlike the posh duplex quarters that he once shared with June) and is pretty upset with me. It's apparent when I go to check on him that he's got a bulls eye target with my name on it. C'est La Vie. I can't seem to please everyone.

Special Delivery

Boris and Irina sent a package of 24 Kinder eggs to Matthew via DHL. It arrived into China by the end of January and was stuck in customs for about 2.5 weeks. Tony had to turn over a copy of his passport and documentation that the package was for personal use. The Chinese New Year holiday didn't help either since it further delayed any deliveries. Tony made some calls to find out the status of the package and was informed that because it was food, it had to be inspected by customs. That meant, the eggs were going to be opened and "tested". I'm using the term tested very loosely here. I'm sure the inspector was surprised to find toys embedded in the eggs and may have thought it was some sort of spying device. OK, I admit that I'm being a bit creative here.

After much delay, the eggs finally arrived at Tony's office Friday afternoon. I"m happy to report that only two eggs were sacrificed during the inspection. Needless to say, Matthew was delighted when his father returned from work that evening armed with a package of Kinder eggs. Matthew promptly started to tear the eggs apart and assemble the toys over the weekend.

So, Uncle Boris & Aunt Irina, thanks for making Matthew a very happy kid! You always know how to make him smile.

The Year of the Rat....or Hamsters

Speedy and Junior joined our family in October and we have often wondered if they were two boys, two girls or one of each. Well, it's Valentine's Day here in China and this morning....the clan grew by 6-8. I can't tell for sure how many pups were born but I can tell you with ABSOLUTE certainty that we have one boy and one girl. This prompted me to separate Speedy from the cage and leave Junior with the pups.

Tony thought it was an auspicious sign for good luck. It's the year for the Rat for the Chinese and hamsters are a close relative to the rat. The pups were born on Valentines Day. HMMMM...I'm not too sure about that but ok- I'll buy that.

Junior will have to stay with the pups until they're old enough to be weaned. In the meantime, we'll start spreading the word that little baby hamsters will be available in about a month .... just in time for Easter presents!

Sweet Potato Dessert

Barbara brought over my favorite Japanese dessert. Sweet Potato cake. The Japanese certainly have a knack for desserts. Cute little reproductions of the real thing. It came in a beautiful box and when you unwrap it, you see a miniature version of a sweet potato. It had the delicate taste and enough cinnamon to make me happy. I'm saving the box and the wrapper so I can go find the place when we have a chance to visit Tokyo. You know I'll buy out the supply and shut down the store for the day. I can't wait to get to Tokyo so I can eat my way around my favorite foods.

Barbara's Visit

Barbara came to visit us for the Chinese New Year holiday and arrived into Shanghai on Chinese New Year's eve. She saw spectacular fireworks as she was landing into Pudong Airport from Tokyo. We got to see fireworks as well as we were driving to pick her up. I must say, the noise level in our new neighborhood isn't as intense as it was last year when we were right smack in the middle of downtown. The fact that we were able to sleep is a good thing. Last year, it lasted 10 straight days from morning to dawn. We were pretty happy about that.

Since Barbara was here last year, there wasn't a need to go sight seeing. We did go shopping and got some pretty good bargains. I even had a chance to take Barbara to a place called Leather City about 1.5 hours away from Shanghai. To say this place was large, is putting it mildly. It was HUGE. Three city blocks wide and about 6 city blocks long. We walked in and we were overwhelmed. I had a goal to find a bag that I had seen someone with. We did the search by looking into some shops and finally found it. Some negotiating and we walked out with the bags and that was it for us. We lasted a total of 1.5 hours. Mr. Miao thought we overpaid for the bags but...I didn't care anymore. I needed to get out. I'm not the professional shopper that I once was. I do not have the patience anymore to wander around looking at things.

We made the mistake of going to Yu Yuan yesterday in search for the last of the souvenirs she wanted. It was absolutely packed. At one point, while trying to get to Starbucks, we had to cross the yard by where the Nine Turning Bridges is located. We didn't have to walk. You were carried by the crowd. It was pretty intense. Again, a testament to the population here in China.

The Problem With China Is .....

Chinese New Year will be here in two days and the country is experiencing frenzy. Between the snow that has wreaked havoc with travelers trying to return home to celebrate Chinese New Year...the locals who are native to Shanghai are busy shopping for the holidays as well. Chinese New Year to the Chinese is like Christmas for the Westerners. The official holiday is 10 days long. Serious fireworks coupled by eating and drinking is what usually goes on. Kids get red envelopes filled with money and gifts are exchanged between families.

I had to stop at the market today to pick up groceries before Barbara (aka Mrs. B) arrives in Shanghai to visit us for a few days. It was absolutely unbelievable. The frenzy of people with shopping carts not to mention the sea of people at the meat counter. I honestly thought there was a giveaway somewhere and I was missing it. China's problem is the massive population. People push, people jump the line and most of all, there are people everywhere. You try to turn the car around the corner and there is always a sea of people crossing the street. This explains why people are driving or riding their bikes and motor scooters on the sidewalks and pedestrian right of way is not adhered to at all. Cross at your own risk and pray that you'll make it across the street.

So, I made it out of the grocery store intact. Had to stop a man from jumping the line in front of me. Perhaps it was my aggressive New York stare that convinced him?

Snow In Shanghai!

The other day, I asked Matthew what he really misses about Connecticut and his answer was snow. It gets cold in Shanghai and we do get some flurries but no real accumulation. Well, yesterday it started snowing. Matthew came home from his dental appointment and immediately found his snowball maker. The movers shipped the wrong box and we found it when it arrived. We never opened it again...until yesterday. It continued to snow all day long.


The ground is relatively warm so not much was sticking but we did get enough to make snow men and have a snow ball fight. All the kids came out and made snow men. It looked like a community of snow people all over the compound. Boy, was Matthew happy. It was like his wish came true. I was happy because I didn't have to shovel it. The local Chinese were in awe. I guess they've never seen snowmen before. We had fun running around and getting totally wet and sweaty. It continued to snow today but its is already melting. Matt was right, snow is fun, I guess I missed it too.

Rainer's Birthday

It was Rainer's birthday yesterday. Ina planned a birthday dinner for him and Matthew and I went out to celebrate with them. Tony's been away for business in Malaysia this past week and missed all the festivities. Mr. Miao was invited to the festivities as well along with some of Ina's friends from Malaysia. Eugene and Li Ping used to work in Shanghai with Tony and Ina and they were here visiting. It was nice to be able to put a face with a name. Too bad Tony wasn't able to see them as well.

Li Ping and her sister Steffanie ordered the food for us. We were a table of seven adults and two children. That means....bring on the food. Sake and beer was flowing endlessly as well as soda for the kids. We had the usual- sashimi, tempura, gyoza, beef negamaki and other tasty tidbits and then we all noticed some new items on the table. Let's just say those who saw the show "Mr Ed" would know what I'm referring to. It was horse meat and a Korean dish that consisted of raw meat with a raw egg on top - something similar to steak tartare. I figured between the sake and beer... if there was something questionable about the meat, nothing would be able to survive. So, yes- we all tried the horse meat. I was told that many many years ago, mortadella- that lunch meat that you see with the pistachios today used to be made out of horse meat. I can't tell you if it's true or not but I had a very bad image of Mr. Ed the horse getting led to the slaughterhouse and getting sliced into razor thin pieces. I can honestly say that I've tried it...can't say that I would do it again. Then again, I've had some pretty weird things in China that I know I will never see in the States.

I made a chocolate peanut butter pie (see attacked pie picture) for Rainer and it went very quickly. Ina is a bit of a party girl and is not one to go home and sleep early. She insisted that we all go out for karaoke. Matthew and I have never been to a karaoke bar so it was a first experience for us. The Chinese take karaoke very very seriously. They don't care how they sound, it's the sport of doing it. A typical karaoke night will mean you are chaperoned into a private room with your party. This beats having to do it in public on a stage with many strangers staring and snickering at you. Hey, at least if you're going to sound awful, you can do it in the privacy of a room with your friends. I'm happy to report, our party didn't sound awful because Matthew and I declined to sing but sat back and watched everyone else do it.

After about three hours, we rolled up the party and drove home. Matthew was giddy about staying up until 12:45. He wants to do it again. I told him he'll have to wait until Rainer's next party.

Mrs. Kuehn & Mrs. Wink

Hi! It's me Matthew and I'm going to write about my first and second grade teachers. My mom has been keeping in touch with them and they received our holiday card. They wanted me to write about them ... so here it goes. Meet Mrs. Kuehn. She taught me first grade and I was called her little "love bug". Come to think of it...I think she called the whole class her love bugs. She was a very funny teacher and my mom used to visit the class and do things with my classroom. I remember Mrs. Kuehn's favorite candies to be Butterfingers and Reeses Peanut Buttercups. She had a giant Coca-Cola bottle in the classroom and during activities if your table won, you were allowed to pick a piece of candy out of the bottle. That was really special!


Meet my second grade teacher Mrs. Wink. She was someone who really took care of me. I liked it when she would read to the class the Judy Moody books. My mom would stop by the class from time to time to talk to Mrs. Wink but I think she was really checking up on me instead. I remember Mrs. Wink's favorite candies to be Kit Kats and Hershey's Kisses. I really loved it when we were allowed to play games if we had extra time at the end of the day. It made school fun for me because we were allowed to play games.

I remember both of them all the time and I talk about them with my friends and my mom and dad.

So, you have now met my two favorite teachers in Stamford. I hope to see them again when we return to the States.

Lost in Translation

During our adventure here in China, we've come across some interesting translations of Chinese signs into English. On our recent trip to Hangzhou we found the mother load of funny signs. Everything from spelling errors to down right mistakes. The odd thing is that these signs were all found in public places and have been there for years. You would figure that someone would have fixed them but obviously not. Please don't get me wrong, I really, really, really appreciate that there are English signs in China. I would be in serious trouble without them but I just can't help laughing when I come across some of these gems. Therefore, without further delay I give you silly signs, enjoy.

[SICK ATHEROSCLEROSIS] In Chinese the sign reads,"Mixed grain porridge or congee". The English translation was "sick atherosclerosis". This beauty was found at a breakfast buffet. The definition of atherosclerosis is "hardening of the veins". Are they trying to tell us that our veins will harden if we eat it? How did they screw this one up? ... I think we'll pass.

[NO WALKING ON WATER] The Chinese characters read "Please deal with this water. For safety, please do not enter the water." The sign shows a guy walking on water. Now, this sign can only apply to one person that I know of. I have not been able to walk on water for at least .... forever!





[BE CAREFUL ABOUT A MEETING] The Chinese characters read "Careful, bump head."Matthew spotted this gem in a cavern in Tonglu. Being careful for a meeting is always good advice but I don't see how it applies here. Maybe a sign with someone bumping his head would have been more effective.

[DO NOT CLAMBER PLEASE CRAWLING] Chinese characters are "Please don't climb, crawl". Huh? Boy, that one sucks in both languages.





[PAY ATTENTION TO YOU] Chinese characters are '"Warning, watch your footing below." Ok- not quite pay attention to you. No wonder people would stop in front of the sign and hug themselves.

[THE PRECIPICE STOPS BY] The Chinese characters are "Pending Cliff, stop walking". Maybe we can have coffee and donuts the next time the precipice stops by.


[LONELY LANE, DON'T BE CROWD PLEASE] Chinese characters are "Single Person Narrow Lane, Don't Crowd". Matthew thought we should keep the lane company since it was so lonely. Everybody's a comedian.

[DRAW NEAR DANGER]Chinese characters are " Deadly danger nearby". Are they asking us to get closer to the danger?



[HOILET] The Chinese translation is "Toilet", and I use the term lightly here. What the hell is a "hoilet"? Many toilets in China are literally holes in the ground so technically this one may make sense, "hole toilet" or Hoilet.

This is just a sample of some of the hilarious signs that we've found in China. Believe me, there are many, many, many, many more. We're starting to compile a photo montage of bizzare sightings around China. Stay tuned for that posting.

Humpty Dumpty

Well, believe it or not (because I can't), Susan sprained her ankle again only this time it was the other leg. Our compound has beautiful grounds with streams and small bridges. A bridge, which will remain nameless, was the culprit. We were walking to the shuttle bus to go into town. It had been raining for the past few days so the walkways were wet. The bridges are arch shaped, with sharp inclines and declines. Have I set the stage, good. Well, on the down side of this bridge Susan slipped and twisted her ankle. Luckily, we have a medical center on the compound so we collectively hobbled over to see the doctor. Now I would like to pause here to rant a bit. The medical facility is a satellite office of a western style hospital. That's the good news, the bad news is that every time we go in there they tell us to go to the hospital. What good is having a medical center in the compound if all they do is tell you to go to the hospital, a statement which I verbalized loudly. Anyway, a nurse looks at Susan for about 4 seconds and sends her off. The club house is a few painful steps away so we decided to go in and sit down and, of course, have french fries. The attending doctor must have felt guilty because she found us in the clubhouse and did a more thorough examination. So now Susan is hobbling again, damn I hate that.

Since Susan feels obligated to sprain her ankle every few months, I've decided to create, "AIR BAG PANTS." Yes, the concept is similar to the airbag in your car. In the event that Susan starts to fall, her pants will inflate, becoming a ball and thus preventing her from falling down. She might roll down a hill but she won't sprain an ankle. I have to work out a few details but I think it will be a big seller for spastic people.

Wu Zhen

Last day in Hangzhou. We had a tour booked to a water village called Wu Zhen. Wu Zhen is where scenes from Mission Impossible III were filmed. The scenes where Tom Cruise was running through the water village is familiar for many.

We were up before the roosters and headed to breakfast. We figured it would be a good idea to eat something since heading to a water village- the quality of cuisine would be.....questionable.

We were on the tour bus and the guide goes into a non-stop 60 minute monologue about Wu Zhen. They must all be trained to do this. In fact, I could see the want ad for this position. "Wanted: Girl with a very shrilly voice who can speak non-stop without breathing". I was able to understand her better since she spoke a bit slower than yesterday's guide so I knew what was coming. We decided to separate from the tour group and explore the village on our own.

We wandered around and found some interesting sites. This is yet another village that is stuck in imperial China. These are tourist attractions because places like this are disappearing. China is developing so quickly that traces of the past will soon be gone forever.

It was lunch time and the kids were getting hungry. Now this was going to get ugly. All that was available were local restaurants and they were not going to have any of that. They insisted that they saw a McDonalds but, surprise, we couldn't find it. Now, gentle reader, there is nothing worse than a whiny, hungry kid and we had two to deal with. All we could find was a convenience store. The only things the kids ate were Oreos, Chinese moon pies and M&M's. I know, I know, not the healthiest of diets but at least they stopped whining. Besides, how much worse can it be than smelly tofu?

We had a nice tour of Wu Zhen and then left to return to the railway station for our train back to Shanghai. In between, we gobbled down some KFC. Yes, another healthy meal on the road.

Hopped the train and returned to Shanghai. Picked up a taxi and waltzed in the door at 8:30 PM. Popped some laundry into the washing machine and we're watching Mission Impossible III. What a way to end the weekend.

Tonglu

On the third day of our trip to Hangzhou, we thought it would be a good idea to take a bus trip to explore an old nearby village. The tour was filled with locals and conducted in Chinese. We were not able to follow the monologue since the tour leader was speaking as if she was on crack, extremely fast and with few pauses. It was impossible to figure out what the trip was all about. She spoke like this for an hour straight. I thought my head was going to explode!

We arrived at a place called "Grandma's village". A small town that is locked in the past. It felt like we were in imperial China waiting for the emperor. As part of the tour, we took a raft ride down the Tianmu River, the Chinese really love raft rides. Let's just say- the weather wasn't helping. It was coming down in buckets. We purchased plastic ponchos which were thinly disguised garbage bags. They didn't last for the first kilometer of the ride, disintegrating into pieces upon contact with water.

We then went to a local restaurant for lunch and by "restaurant" I mean "roach coach". It was more like someone's house then a proper eating establishment but we were a captive audience and had no choice. The kids didn't want anything and quite frankly, nothing was appetizing on the menu. We ordered tofu to be on the safe side. The tofu had a rather unique aroma and was grey in color. We were convinced the it was strained through a pair of pantyhose to give it that unique flavor. Needless to say, we didn't eat anything.

We headed over to Yaolin Fairyland to tour the under ground caverns. This was a truly spectacular site. Nature is an incredible thing, something man can not duplicate, ..... except Disney.

We ended the day with a phenomenal dinner at Va Bene, yes, an Italian restaurant in China! Two bottles of wine, pasta with clams and a wonderful dessert made up for the terrible lunch we had.

Tomorrow, we will head to Wu Zhen. An ancient water town about 1.5 hours away by bus. Yes- another tour with the local Chinese. Then we're heading back to Shanghai by high speed train.

International Incident....Almost

It was drizzing all day in Hangzhou. We were wandering around sightseeing when we came across a statue of a famous local resident. Rainer struck a pose with the statue holding its beard in his hand. Suddenly, we began to hear shrills in rapid fire Chinese from a very old woman. At first, we had no idea what she was saying and who she was saying it to. Eventually, we realized that she was screaming at us. According to Matthew's translations, she kept saying "stupid and brainless". She was making quite a scene. People gather at a drop of a hat in China and this tirade drew many people. Her husband kept trying to stop her but to no avail. Obviously, we could only do one thing, laugh hysterically. This only fueled the fire. We weren't doing it to be mean, we thought the whole situation was so absurd. Apparently, she was upset that Rainer disrespected the local hero by pulling his beard. The funny thing was, everyone that posed with this statue, pulled his beard as well. Apparently, it's because we were foreigners that it was disrespectful. Now you understand why we were laughing.

We hopped a ferry that took us to three small islands on the lake. Unfortunately, the weather was not ideal for picture taking but it was still beautiful to see. We headed back to the city to search for lunch and we found Crystal Jade. It's one of our favorite restaurants in Shanghai and we were relieved to see a branch in Hangzhou. Beijing duck, spicy chicken, tofu and other dishes were inhaled at lightening speed. One thing we haven't lost being in China is our appetites. All our fans can attest to that.

Hangzhou

Since we're home for the holidays, we decided to take short trips to surrounding towns. Our first stop was Hangzhou. It is considered to be the backyard of Shanghai. It's got lots of trees, lakes and clean air.....things that Shanghai doesn't have. In fact, Hangzhou reminded us alot of Connecticut. A high speed train took us from Shanghai to Hangzhou in 1 hour and 18 minutes. We're staying in a five star hotel close to West Lake.

Hangzhou was once the capital of China during the Southern Song Dynasty (AD 1127-1279) and is known for West Lake. It is surrounded on three sides by hills, temples, pavillions, gardens and arched bridges. The lake runs about 3 miles across and 9 miles around, a truly beautiful place. We took a boat ride across the lake. I'm exaggerating when I say boat. It was more like a sampan with a single paddle. The man paddling the boat had as many teeth as paddles and he kept telling us how fat we all were and that he should charge us more money. I wanted to push him into the water. Of course, he thought this was great fun....top that with him singing "Happy Birthday to You" in Chinglish, it was an interesting ride.

After dinner, we wandered around the lake and found the musical fountain. It was great to listen to music and watch the water dance to it. It was very nice way to end the day.

Uncle Boris

Boris is a very good friend of ours who was recently hospitalized. Word traveled fast from Duracell. Irina, Boris' wife, was mystified how word got to us so fast. Hey, we still have our connections. Shortly after we heard about Boris' illness, Tony was hospitalized. It was as if it was a sympathy illness, misery loves company. They were both laid up in the hospital and miserable. Luckily, they've both recovered.

Boris and Irina have both been an important part of our lives. They have big hearts and they love Matthew immensely. Boris was solely responsible for introducing the Kinder eggs to Matthew. It's a chocolate hollow egg with a toy inside Matt has loved those thing ever since he was small. Of course Boris would over indulge him buying a carton at a time instead of one. I think he really loves to make Matthew happy. Thanks to Boris' introduction, we were roped into buying the Kinder egg Advent calendar this Christmas. That's 24 eggs, one for each day until Christmas. You really don't want to know how expensive the Advent calendar was, especially in China. Even though Boris and Irina are half way around the world, they were there in spirit as Matthew held those eggs close to his heart and smiled.

So, Uncle Boris and Aunt Irina will be spending a quiet Christmas holiday at home so Boris can recover. We'll be home as well, Shanghai I mean, doing the same so that we can spend time as a family which is the true spirit of the holiday.

Christmas Gathering

We're all officially on vacation- Matthew's out of school, Tony's home from work and me, well... according to Matthew, I am always on vacation. We'll be together for the next three weeks. Three glorious weeks of togetherness....yeah. We went into the city today to have lunch with a friend of ours, Alice. She lives in Shanghai most of the time and returns to Hong Kong every few weeks to see her family. So, since we're all nomads, we decided that it would be great to get together for the Christmas holidays. We met at Xintiandi today for lip smacking dim sum and what not. Two hours of eating non-stop and we all waddled out of there. We said our goodbye's to Alice and we'll see her when she returns after the New Year.

In the meantime, it's a very small world. We headed back to pick up the shuttle bus to get home and I ran into my friend Nicole. Tony looked at Brian (Nicole's husband) as if he knows him from somewhere but can't quite place him. Brian does the same. While we were chit chatting, we find out that Tony and Brian worked together at Duracell in Bethel, Connecticut. What a small world! Brian is now with 3M and is here on assignment in China as well. Funny thing- it turns out that they live in the building next door to us. It shows us that the world is truly a small place.

Kitchen Is Closed

This is Matthew's last week of school. Then he's off for the next three weeks. I've spent the day baking today. I started at 7 AM and finished around 6:30 PM. I was trapped in the kitchen. I made two loaves of banana bread, two trays of brownies, chocolate chip cookies, sugar cookies, oatmeal raisin cookies and shortbread cookies. Total count on cookies- about 400. I've packed up most of the shortbread cookies for the holiday party at Matthew's school tomorrow. The kids will frost and decorate the cookies. Everything else will be going to Tony's office. I often send platters in during the year when I bake and the locals love it. They've gotten used to seeing something sitting in the pantry from me. The locals don't bake at all. The traditional Chinese kitchen does not have an oven. Most of them would rather buy it at the local bakery. However, I've tasted the local baked goods and it's not suited for the American palette. We bake with real butter, lots of sugar and most of all, chocolate. Good chocolate. That is something that is not replicated by a local Chinese bakery.

Of course, right after I was done with all the baking, I had to turn around and start dinner for us. Roasted chicken with vegetables. So, the oven was on for a record 11.5 hours today. I don't care to see another cookie, brownie or banana bread for a while. I can't wait to see what my gas bill will be next month.

Environmental Violations

Every day, there is smoke billowing somewhere in Shanghai. Particularly, in our neighborhood, it happens practically 24 hours a day. Sometimes, it's so grey outside, that you honestly think it's a very cloudy day. You can't identify the direction it's coming from...but none the less, you can really smell it. Here in China, there is no environmental protection agency. At least that I know of. Really. People openly burn their trash on the side of the roads, toss their plastics on the side and most of all, people hang their laundry out to dry with the distinct aroma of burned trash clinging to their freshly laundered goods. Go figure. Often times, I like to have the windows open to get the fresh air circulating. Only then, when I get a whiff of the burning trash, I quickly close the windows. Haven't these people figured out about recycling for the sake of the environment and not burning the trash that is clearly ruining the ozone layer? Guess not.

Back in the US, I was an avid recycler. Newspapers, magazines, paper products, glass, cans and plastics. You know the weekly pick up was quite enormous coming out of my home. I am still recycling here. I sort everything out and put it into a separate bag. Tony thinks it's an absolute waste of time for me to sort since the locals don't do it. I can't break my habit. I am really trying to contribute to the environment. Instead, the locals put all the trash into one bin and then someone has the unpleasant job of sorting through everything to pull out the plastic and what not. That is really not a pleasant job and I feel for the person who has to do it. I've walked by and seen someone diving into the dumpster pulling things out into a pile. I can't figure out why the government hasn't implemented recycling. Perhaps it's to give the locals jobs to sort through the dumpster.

So, when we return from this assignment, I will probably glow in the dark from all the environmental hazards I have exposed myself and my family to. It'll be my souvenir from this part of the world.

Christmas Concert

Matthew and his band mates performed today at the elementary school Christmas recital. He was blowing real hard on his saxophone and he also played the snare drums for one of the songs. It was a twist on the traditional songs that I know. The kids performed "Castles and Kings", "Jingle Bones" and "Yo Christmas Tree!". It was a really great to watch him play and we were very very proud. Tony had the opportunity to attend since he is on the mend.

There has been a lot of rehearsals for the kids over the past three and a half months and it was very hard to hear the same songs over and over again. Practice makes perfect and the kids were able to achieve this moment on stage. Matthew and his band mates will have to perform at the school assembly next Friday and then holiday vacation starts. Three glorious weeks of sleeping late and doing nothing for Matthew. He's really looking forward to it.

Christmas is Coming!

Tony's home recuperating. We decided it would be a good day for us to put up the Christmas tree. Not the same like in Connecticut. We have a tradition where we go out and pick a fresh cut tree and spend the weekend decorating it. This tree isn't fresh cut and came out of a box. Tony put it together and Matthew and I put the decorations on. Not quite the same but it's better than nothing. We're not going anywhere this Christmas holiday. We're going to stay in Shanghai and just take it easy. Last year, we spent Christmas and New Year's in Hong Kong. It will be interesting to see what Shanghai has to offer for the Christmas holidays here. Most of the expatriates are returning home to spend the holidays.

While assembling the tree, we noticed that there was a little tag on the tree branch that read "Flammable". Ok- that's not something we would expect. All the faux trees in the US are non-flammable. Another reality for living in Shanghai. There isn't the same standards for safety here. Take for instance, restaurants. There isn't a smoking and non-smoking section. Well, if there is, it's a matter of be separated by one table. Hello--- what's to stop the smoke from spewing over to the non-smoking area? Have they heard of proper ventilation? Apparently not. Second hand smoke is an issue. We often walk out smelling like ashtrays.

So, Christmas is several weeks away. Uncle Tony will be mailing our holiday cards from New York when he gets back later this week. I still haven't figured out what to get Matthew and Tony for Christmas. I don't think cash would work in this instance. Gift cards are not even an option here. The stores don't get the concept. Looks like I have to go around and educate the locals on the benefits of selling gift cards.

Recuperating

Tony and his friends left last Sunday to return to Hong Kong and it has been a whirlwind. Matthew got sick on Monday and missed school. Packed him off to school on Tuesday only to have Tony come home complaining that he wasn't feeling well. Flu like symptoms, stomach issues and what not. He was running a fever on Wednesday morning and I asked him not to go into the office. He didn't listen to me. He went in and came home several hours later. Raging with fever and complaining of severe stomach cramps. Tony's lips and fingernails were blue and I didn't like what I saw. I called Mr. Miao and dragged Tony out of the house to go to the hospital. He kept insisting that all he needed was gatorade. He was probably right but I wanted to get a professional opinion on the whole situation.

He was running a 104 degree fever and was doubled over in pain. He was admitted into the hospital that evening for severe dehydration and acute gastroenteritis. Basically, he had a severe bacterial infection and was on demerol, IV saline, antibiotics and potassium. Four days later, he was released. Scary situation. We don't know what type of bacteria it was and how he got it. He'll be on antibiotics for a few more days. Luckily, we're living in Shanghai where there are decent expatriate hospitals and the doctors speak English. I keep wondering what would have happened if we were living in the middle of Sichuan or some small remote village in Suzhou. Not a pretty scene.

Tony's recovering and will be home for the next several days. He has to get clearance from his doctor before he can go back to the office. Meanwhile, I cleared out the import market of all the gatorade. I'm making sure he stays hydrated and is resting.