After we finished with the great wall, we went to a Chinese restaurant where we had authentic Chinese food. It was pretty good, although not so much like what we are used to. I of course forgot that we're not to eat uncooked vegetables and ate the pickled cucumbers (like you and I love Kate!), so I could be getting sick soon. That on top of the fact that I rinsed and brushed with tap water on the first night; not thinking because I was so tired. The pink tape I put over the faucet has prevented me from doing that again. Anyhow, Tori ate nothing, not even a grain of rice. I'm going to have to find some bread tomorrow so I can at least make her a PB sandwich.
After the lunch, we went to this factory, which is on the same location as the restaurant. These young girls, and some men as well, work in the factory and live at the dorm that is right next door. They make this beautiful pottery which takes 3 years to learn, and most of them learn from their parents as it is passed down within the family. I looked at them slouched over, though, and wondered how long we would be able to sit like that day after day. It was amazing to see their diligence - and many of them work these long days so they can send money home to their families, who are typically farmers.
We've found most people here speak English pretty well. Pan calls it Chenglish, because it's kind of a mix at times, but I have been fairly surprised. She says that with the olympics coming here, even older people are learning some English, even if it's just hello, goodbye, thank you. They are very curious about Americans, and it makes them feel very good if they can converse, if only a little bit.
The streets are crazy - I could never drive here! So many people ride their bikes and walk right in the middle of the street with cars everywhere. I was sure I would see an accident, but all I saw was a little bike fender bender that resulted in only one irritated man and another who must have been in a hurry. People are pushy, but not in a bad way like you would think. They aren't being rude, they just kind of fend for themselves as a result of the way that they have always lived with so many people around. At least this is what it feels like to me; I could be wrong. We were waiting to go somewhere, and Tori was standing there letting all these people go ahead of her. I finally said - Tori, I think we just need to start walking or we could be here forever. :-) So once we started walking, they kind of just shuffle to make room for you, but they keep going too. The people are very kind, very gracious, and Beijing is an incredibly safe city. I hope we can come back one day.
We miss Katie so much, as I'm sure you all would expect. She's like my other arm, and I find myself searching for her beside me at times. Everybody in our group knows about her (probably because we keep saying Katie would love this, or Katie would hate this, or I wonder where Katie is right now...), so they keep asking us for reports - How was Katie today, etc. I am forever grateful to the Papas and to my parents who have moved mountains and jumped through hoops to make Katie feel at home. They are amazing - thank you guys so much!! Anyhow, we have a panda phone, so Katie can call us once a day - and that was a huge relief to hear her sweet little voice yesterday. Boy do we miss her! However, Katie would NOT have liked the steep ride up the mountain in a cable car yesterday. She made a very mature decision in staying home, but we told her we'll come back with Lexie and her one day, maybe when Tori's in college.
