A Little Catch Up

A quick review of our Mid-Autumn Festival/National Day break:

Monday: We went to a get together at a fellow staff member’s house. I don’t know if it was for National Day or just because. Regardless, we had a great night playing games and enjoying an impromptu Christmas caroling session (slightly random, I know.)

Tuesday: We joined up with friends Kevin, Emma, and Kim and bused to Yun Feng, a shopping center where the entire 5^th floor is dedicated to western sized clothes. We spent most of the day sorting through piles and messy racks of clothes. There were many brands that I recognized and a few items of clothing that I even remember seeing in stores.

Tuesday night Eric and Kevin took me and Emma on a surprise date. I had no idea where we were going or that we were even going to meet up with Kevin and Emma, but at 5pm a hired car pulled up at our apartment and there they were! We had dinner at a Chinese restaurant on Green Lake and ate on the terrace overlooking the water. It was unlike any place I had been to in China in that it felt deliberately designed to create a relaxing, calm atmosphere. Most restaurants and stores aim for the opposite - if the place isn’t loud, so the thinking goes, then it isn’t a happening place to be. Having people yelling in microphones is a common occurrence in the grocery stores because they are trying to create a lively atmosphere which supposedly makes people want their product (I have a hard time believing this to be true.)

After dinner we were whisked away in a cab to the building where the Kunming Youth Group meets. Emma and I followed Kevin and Eric completely confused why we were going to Youth Group, but upon arriving we discovered that they had arranged for a dancing lesson! We spent the next hour attempting to perfect our waltz. Whether we achieved perfection, I am not sure, but we had a fun time trying.

Wednesday: We spent the entire day hiking in the Western Hills (Xi Shan) around Kunming.



Traveling up the mountain in style! Via gondola.



Thursday: This was Eric’s day to catch up on work and my day to get some projects done around the house. We had a group of friends over for dinner which was an exciting first for us in China.

Friday: We traveled with 8 friends to Anning Spa. Anning has 20 or so hot pools that range in temperature and size. Some are contain color and fragrance as well. There were rose pools, apple, coconut milk, strawberry, and what we thought was coke (as in Coca-Cola), but we were informed by a 7 year old that it was sugar cane (thanks, kid.)

Saturday:  I went back to Yun Feng with my friend, Josalyn, so she too could discover the joys of western clothing. Eric spent the day planning for class. 

Sunday: We mourned the fact that our week off flew by!