Antiquing

My friends and I went to a seminar today about antique furniture. While walking down the alley way, I spotted a shop called "5,000 Year Antique Furniture." First, you can't afford it since it will be outrageously expensive. Second, you won't be able to take it out of the country even if you can buy it. Smart tactic. Catchy name...makes you think you're getting a real antique. My friends and I strolled in and found that a majority of the pieces in the shop are new replicas. We looked around and walked out. We like the stores that carry the older furniture. From the condition and smell, you know it's the real stuff from years gone by.

We headed over to Hu & Hu, a very reputable antique dealer shop and we learned alot about the various antique pieces that are found in shops. We're in the process of looking for a small cabinet to put under the staircase and will bring it back to the States once we're done with this assignment. I have an idea what I'm looking for and would rather buy something that is antique rather than get a reproduction made. I did spot something and took a picture to show Tony. Now, I just have to take Tony to the shop and have him look at it. If all goes well, we'll probably have something in the house by next weekend.

Family Photo

Its that time of the year again. We headed into the city this afternoon to have our photo taken by Gang Feng Wang, the same photographer who took our holiday photos last year. We had the photos taken in the alleys of the old Shikumen style homes. These homes will all be torn down by the end of the year and it's our last opportunity to have our family photos done in this setting. Shameful that this area so rich in history will be gone and new high rises will stand in its place.

It was great to see Gang again and we're excited about our new photos. It'll be ready sometime in the next two weeks and then I'll have to create the holiday cards and have them all posted before the end of November. Hopefully, they will arrive in your mailbox before the end of the year. Then again, judging from last year's disaster....some cards made it before the Christmas holiday and some showed up end of January/beginning of February...or in some cases...not at all.

We'll see how it goes this time. It's always a crap shoot on how the mail system works here. I have a theory and it's not a pretty one but nevertheless, I'll be happy to share it with you over a cup of coffee when I'm back. Don't even get me started on packages. That's another unpleasant story.

In the meantime, check your mailbox middle of December and let me know if you do get the card.....or not.

Halloween Parade

I baked all day yesterday in preparation for today's festivities. I baked 4 kilos of cut out butter cookies (which was about 100 cookies), 48 cupcakes and Tony even got into the act by frosting the cookies last night. Thank you!!! Matthew and his school mates were dressed in their costumes this morning and we all hopped the school bus to school. I had a hard time getting onto the bus with all my junk- a big box of cookies, a bag full of Halloween frosting and sprinkles and three trays of cupcakes. The kids arrived and dashed off the bus and headed to their designated area for the parade. It was very cute to see the little ones dressed up and showing off their costumes. The teachers got into the spirit as well. There was one dressed as Austin Powers complete with the "Yeah Baby" chant and others dressed as witches and goblins. The school principal was dressed as Mario and her assistant was dressed as Luigi (as in the Mario Brothers video games).

Afterwards, we had the class party. Matthew was wrapped up in toilet paper by his fellow classmates and looked like a mummy. The class moms and I put out the cupcakes on the table and passed out the butter cookies and in less than 5 minutes- it was all gone. Literally. I did see one sprinkle rolling off the table but I think a kid was going to dive for it to stop it from landing on the floor. Then again, if it did land on the ground, the 5 second rule would apply and it would have gone in his mouth.

I left 18 kids in class with Mr. Monteith all sugared up. They were leaving for recess so hopefully, the sugar will wear off by the time they return to class for their math and science studies. Ok- now that this is done, I'll have to go pick up some candy for the trick or treaters this weekend. We got a note that there will be approximately 150 children stopping by. That's a far cry from what we got last year at the old apartment....which was none. I know the little bag of 50 M&M's won't be enough. Time to go shopping and stock up on all the candy I can get my hands on before the weekend.

Newest Members

Meet Speedy and Junior. The newest members of the Malgioglio clan. For weeks, Matthew has been eyeing the dwarf hamsters at the pet shop at the market. Tony was adamant about having new pets in the house. It's a responsibility that we're not ready to take on again. I know, I know, Matthew SWEARS that he'll take care of the pets but ultimately it falls on our shoulders again. So, while we were at the market shopping for the ingredients for Matthew's power pasta, he was visiting the hamsters and trying to convince his father to change his mind.

Mind you, I've seen them everytime I'm at the market and I swear that they're all on crack. The hamsters are bouncing off the walls (literally) and for those who don't know, hamsters are nocturnal animals. Which means ....they're up at NIGHT. Judging by the activity in the cage, you can just imagine what the noise level will be at night. We've been down this road before with Matthew and have done the funeral thing (John, Jack, Jaws, Richard and Skippy- may they all rest in peace) in the backyard in Stamford. My friends kid that we have a pet cemetery in the back yard.

So, while I was paying for the groceries, I see Tony negotiating with the shopkeeper for a package deal for two hamsters, cage, food, bedding and what not. OH NO. I walk over with my cart of groceries and Matthew is busy picking out Speedy and Junior. Before we know it, Matthew's carrying the cage out of the store with two hamsters bouncing all over the place.

So, the newest members will be around for a bit and we'll just have to figure out who will be the lucky babysitter when we go away for the holidays.

Matthew's Power Pasta

Matthew has been participating in a health class designed to teach the children about the nutrition and to encourage healthy eating. The kids have been assigned a project....create a nutritious meal and cook it for your family. Interesting twist.
We went food shopping and picked up the ingredients for the bowtie pasta with vegetables and chorizo sausages.

Matthew prepared all the ingredients and then cooked the meal. He did receive some help from us. You didn't seriously think that we would let him have full reign of the kitchen now...did you?

In the end- a wonderful meal was planned and prepared by Matthew. I told Tony that we'll keep this up and maybe within a year- he can be preparing all our meals. Now all I have to do is teach him how to do the laundry and clean the house and I can go into semi-retirement. Just kidding.

Fashion Statement

It often boggles my mind when I am wandering through the streets of Shanghai, I would find the locals parading through the streets in their pajamas. Men, women, children...they all seem to do it. Men in particular, are fond of strolling through the streets in their undershirts and boxers. During the summer when it's extremely hot in Shanghai, the men will wear only the boxers. You'll find them sitting on the corner with their friends (also amply undressed) chatting away. I find the women tend to walk the streets in their pajamas and would either be walking their pet or shopping in the market or just walking with their friend and strutting their stuff.

Today, after the soccer game at school, I was on my way to meet my friend Anne for lunch. A woman was slowly strolling along Jin Feng Road. Slowly sauntering, strutting her stuff and just showing off her pajamas. I was told that the ability to own a set of pajamas is a sign of prestige. Most locals can't afford it and when they have it, they'll show it off. Strange, but hey, I don't plan to walk the streets in my pajamas anytime soon.

Fifth Grade Soccer Day

It's that time of the year again. All the international schools got together today for a friendly game of soccer against one another. We had beautiful weather and I was hanging out on the sidelines cheering the kids on. It was great to watch the kids interact and cheer each other on as they waited their turns as well. Unlike the experience we had last year at the Pudong campus, there wasn't any name calling this time. It was just a great game and the kids all had a great time.

I'll be gearing up for my baking process soon. Halloween is around the corner and there will be a party at the school. Lots of cupcakes and sugar cookies to go around. Nothing like feeding sugar to the kids and sending them off to class afterwards. I'm sure all the teachers will be thanking me personally next week. I plan to ignore all the calls when they come in. I'll return calls after the sugar rush is done.

Kung Fu

Matthew studied kung fu when we were in the US on Sunday afternoons after his Chinese language classes. This was going on for several years and because of our move to Shanghai, he discontinued for the past year. It was hard to get him started on a program when we first arrived. We had no idea where to find a place and how to get there for lessons. Often it would turn out the classes were on the other side of Shanghai and it meant finding a way to get there.

Over the summer, Matthew expressed an interest in studying kung fu again. I set out to find a martial arts academy on this side of town and was ready to sign him up when a notice came under the door. It turned out that our compound was offering classes on Thursday afternoons after school. Yeah! The timing was perfect and he was signed up and ready to go.

Master Bruce is the kung fu master who teaches the kids. Matthew's been attending classes for the past several weeks and is very happy. Though there was a long break, he picked up as if he never left off. Master Bruce has told us that Matthew is one of his best students and is serious about his kung fu style. Over time, Matthew will learn to use weapons and he's really looking forward to that.

Another Typhoon

Golden week has just ended and it ended with a bang. We've been hit with torrential downpour of rain due to Typhoon Krosa from Taiwan. We got the call from Management last night to move all the furniture to the corner and keep all doors and windows closed due to the high winds. It has rained so much that the lawn behind the house is like a very wet sponge. The winds have been strong and we've done all that we can do to keep things in place. Matthew was hoping for another typhoon day. Fat chance. The kids just had a week off for the holiday. I seriously doubt that the school will be generous to grant another day.

So, Tony will give Matthew a ride to the bus stop and endure his commute to Pudong complete with flooded roads and I'll have to walk over to the school in a little bit to sell the tickets for the international fair. Tony told me to call a taxi to give me a ride to school rather than get soaked to the bone. I'd rather wait on the corner for Noah's Ark to pass and hitch a ride instead.

Formula One

Golden week is coming to a close and we headed over to the Marriott Hongqiao Hotel today to have brunch and watch the Shanghai Formula One race. Ina and her husband Rainer joined us as well. For some reason, every time the Formula One race is in town, it always rains. We got up this morning and saw the dark clouds. Tony kept hoping the clouds would disappear but to no avail. We watched the dark clouds roll in just before the start of the race. Like last year, the weather was bad and it rained....no...poured actually and we were glad to be at the hotel instead of at the track.

Trust me, being at the hotel is not the same as being at the race track where you hear the sound of the engines roaring by but, it was nice to be able to watch the race and enjoy brunch at the same time and not get soaking wet. Everyone was anticipating that the McLaren rookie- Lewis Hamilton would win the race. He had 25 laps to go and due to a maneuver that put him into a sand trap, he was retired from the race. It was a tight race between Ferrari's Kimi Raikkonen and McLaren's Fernando Alonso. We were all voicing our opinions on the McLaren spy scandal but in the end, Ferrari won first and third place and Matthew and Tony were ecstatic.

Nice way to end the long week with a day at the races via a big screen television and lots of food and drinks.

Golden Week, Who Cares...We Get A Week Off!

We've been home this past week. The whole country shuts down from October 1 through October 7. Offices and schools are closed and all the locals go on vacation somewhere in China. October 1, 1949 was the official start of the People's Republic of China. This is equivlant to independence day in the US except, there is no real independence, if you know what I mean.

We've spent the week just doing nothing. Getting up later than usual and just putzing around town...or not. We've been exploring areas that we've never had a chance to do and just spendng time together as a family. It's nice to have everyone home. We've been enjoying leisurely breakfasts, Matthew hanging out with his friend Alastar and Tony and I just reading by the pool.

We'll all be back on schedule next week when the break is over. Tony will be back on his travel schedule, Matthew will be back at school and I'll be baking for the school fair and running all over the place.