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Who says China is devoid of modern culture?! We had the chance to see The Lion King put on by the touring group based out of Australia. It was a fantastic show – all the costumes and action of Broadway. The best thing is that we were in the SECOND ROW! Close enough to see the sweat on the brow! All for the price of nose bleed seats in the US. Yes, there are some advantages to living in modern China! Average Rating: 5 out of 5 based on 177 user reviews.
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Eleri started her BIG number TWO birthday by opening her presents…with a little help from her sister. Eleri had a birthday of wooden toys from Bangkok. Being two and adorable. Eleri turned 2 three days after arriving in Shanghai. Someone forgot to tell us that finding certain foods was not a simple walk to the grocery store. The family favorite birthday cake is a chocolate cake, recipe courtesy of Tara Perkins. It requires two hard to find ingredients…Hershey cocoa and vegetable oil. Substitutions were made with Nestle cocoa and corn oil. Family members able to voice an opinion all declared it was NOT as good, but we did not tell Elle. Therefore, we learned our first lesson of hording food. One buys as much as one can store when the desired food is found.  Elle is growing and talking a bit more. She picks up new words each day. On her birthday, she learned the word “happy”. We say birthday, she says “happy”. We would get out the left over cake and she would say “happy”. She is funny. She still calls cake, “happyâ€â€¦seems like a perfect description to me. Average Rating: 4.5 out of 5 based on 229 user reviews.
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From the previous posts, you can see that the family has been MIA. Well, not really. They went on vacation to the US to visit family. It has been one busy summer! After leaving Hong Kong at the end of June (yes, just in time to miss the move!), the girls made a quick home town stop in California where they caught up with Mimi, Papa, the Aunts and all the Cousins. They enjoy finding all the new/old toys in the house. They also celebrated 4th of July in Los Gatos. There was face painting, a bounce slide, food and the best balloon artist ever! After enjoying the band at the highschool, the girls flew out to Nebraska to see Grandma and Grandpa. Grandpa always gets down the battery cars. He has a pink car and a yellow dump truck. Grandpa found both of them at garage sales for about $25. This pink car is an older car, therefore, it doesn’t have the same “safety” standards…it goes really fast. Grandpa gave it to Emmy when she was 2. The first thing she did was drive into the garage which explains the damaged “headlight”. The girls had fun this summer driving the car to the Dollar Store with Grandma – only in Nebraska! The family went of a road trip to South Dakota! It was off to Bear Country USA. Andy’s knows the family that owns Bear Country, therefore, we were given special privileges to feed the baby bears. We finished the day off with a colorful ice cream cone. The next day, we took the girls to Flintstone Village (yes, those Flintstones). It is one of those places I remember as a kid being really cool. Well, as an adult, it is really cheesy! But, the girls loved it just like Terri and I did when we were kids. Elle found a few things to buy in the gift shop!! Story Book Park rounded out the excitement. The girls had fun with all the characters at the park The water park is always a favorite of Emmy’s. We climbed that hill all afternoon for a full day of fun. Eleri hung out with Grandma and Grandpa. Upon returning to Nebraska for some much needed rest. But Grandpa wouldn’t hear of it. He immediately put the kids to work mowing the South 40 to earn their keep. And, washing the truck is always a favorite of the girls. Finally, some rest time! Grandpa bought a new light for the dinning area. Emmy told Grandpa, “don’t throw away the box, we can make something”. Grandpa was a little unsure. Well, one afternoon, Emmy and Grandpa disappeared in Grandpa’s garage to make a red fire engine. Who knew Grandpa could be so creative with a little help from his granddaughter! The girls returned to California just in time to experience the sweltering heat wave that rolled through. Temperatures reached 110F and we have no air conditioning. The only way to keep cool was to play in the town plaza fountain. On Sunday mornings, the girls went to the Farmers Market to pick up the fresh California summer fruits – and haul it home! Elle had fun riding THE tricycle. This tricycle was new for Kathy, Jim sister. Now, all the grandchildren have taken their turn on this tricycle. Jim returned to California just in time for a family vacation to Lake Tahoe. We all enjoyed biking, the beach and the beautiful scenery and weather. Emmy also proved that she was a super swimmer – she endured cold Tahoe water to swim out to the “rafts” stationed off the beach, where she proceeded to dive and “cannon ball” into the lake repeatedly. Terri and Andy took the girls on one last adventure to Monterey before we ended the summer fun with family. Average Rating: 4.6 out of 5 based on 205 user reviews.
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It has been a fast and furious couple of days getting things put away while also finishing the paint job. Saturday was the infamous “Yi Jia” run (IKEA for those in the rest of the world). Ikea China tops the manic crowds of the US and Hong Kong. But like the US, it is a “take-away” kind of place. If you do not have a car, there is a convenient taxi queue – very interesting to see Ikea cartons stuffed and tied into a Shanghai cab.              Living Room                                       Study After surviving the movers, things are coming together. The insurance claim continues to mount as the last boxes have been opened and put away.        Master Bedroom                                   Girls Room The challenge has been not only to find things coming out of the boxes but where to put them. I have given a directive that “everything must have a home!”. Easier said than done. It just means Brenda will have some work to do when she gets back to Shanghai!          Play Room                         Hall – ready for pictures Linguistics is always a challenge. I had asked Mr. Nie to get LPG for the barbeque,  as I had explained in Chinese that I wanted a bottle of natural gas.  Well, he proceeded to contact building management to check the gas for the kitchen range top. I am glad to know all is safe, but I still can not grill.  Two days later, I finally go my point across to Mr. Nie. He again contacted building management to find where to buy LPG. Building management promptly arrived at the door with two fire extinguishers telling me that I need to be safe when barbequing. I have two really nice extinguishers, but still no gas.  You already know “…nothing is easy!” Average Rating: 4.7 out of 5 based on 154 user reviews.
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Today is official move in day for all our furniture. All 245 items minus the one that got lost in transit made it. That’s not to say there was not any damage either.  Another famous quote about China, “Everything is just a little bit broken”. Well, we experienced it first hand! I am not quite sure how you dent in the bottom of a microwave – any thoughts? After most of the day counting and checking off boxes as they went through the front door, things began to shape up. We had to stop the movers from “putting things away” – in other words just piling things in the closets. I guess they do know the meaning of “make work”. I am please to report that I was able to spend the night in my assembled bed!  Average Rating: 4.9 out of 5 based on 166 user reviews.
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The container from Hong Kong has arrived at the Shanghai port this week. I signed the release papers on Friday. Now it is just a matter of time…as they say about China,  “Anything is possible, nothing is easy!”. It’s been a heck of a weekend trying to get the new place ready for the arrival of all our things. The flat has stark white walls – really great for kids!. In preparation, I have been painting this weekend.  Below are a few shots of the finished product.
The first experience was trying to buy paint and get the colors mixed right. The only savior was B&Q.  But I must say even at B&Q, the linguistics challenges were daunting. I did not know that with custom mixed paints, first you have to take the base colors and pay for them, then come back with the paint and receipt to have the colors mixed. Mr Nei, my driver, was out the door with the paint to load it in the car seconds after I paid – I had to chase him down to explain that there was no color yet! Though, I must thank the Brits for having a home center in Shanghai or you never know what I would have ended up with. But they did not have ladders, so it was off to a local hardware store. I know I got ripped off (I had to pay foreigner price – 50RMB over locals), but when you need it…
After getting supplies, Mr. Nie offered to help me paint. “Great”, I thought,  “another set of hands”. Little did I realize, he had never painted before and my Chinese is not that good to be able to fully explain how to hold a brush and where to paint. After a lot of “buhao” (no good) for his technique and “meiyou” (not have) for where he should not paint, he finally got the idea. Needless to say,  on Sunday I painted solo. Three rooms down,  three to go! Off to the drop cloth again! Average Rating: 4.7 out of 5 based on 282 user reviews.
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After 245 cartons packed, taped and load into a container, we have left Hong Kong. I have arrived as the “advanced team” to set up “base camp” in Shanghai. I have all the necessities a man could need – a mattress on the floor, access to the internet and cold beer in the fridge. Let me give you a quick tour of the place: The Living Room – Who needs furniture.  The Kitchen – Yes, it has an island!  A view of the river – Oh, I love the dirty water!      A view off the balcony – You gotta’ love a place that has sand traps to practice your game! I tried to do a quick shop to get the basics the other night. My reading of Chinese is pretty rough (non-existent), so I am not quite sure what I actually bought. Life is full of new experiences – Oh, the fun of living in China! Average Rating: 5 out of 5 based on 208 user reviews.
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Moving day is upon us. The bags are packed as we are ready to go! The movers come on Monday to pack the house, and we are out of Hong Kong and on to the new Shanghai adventure. See you in the Mainland! Average Rating: 5 out of 5 based on 282 user reviews.
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Our final days in Hong Kong have been fast and furious. The kids have been closing out all their activities…. Emmy finished up soccer on a hot and steamy afternoon. Eleri had one last “Mommy & Me tutu” class. Followed by a romp at the play room in Siena. And the kids enjoyed one last swim at Siena. The Siena pools are like going to a resort. There are five pools – the bubble pool, the deep lap pool, the kids pool with a slide, the kids pool with toys and the indoor pool. And of course the final day at school, where Emmy bid farewell to all her friends. So now it is off to packing for the big move! Average Rating: 5 out of 5 based on 170 user reviews.
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We have enjoyed living on Discovery Bay. It is a bubble from the “real world”. Our children run around the plaza with such freedom. It gives them that independence I feel most children have lost because it is not safe. Emersyn knows the rules. She must stay in the plaza, she may not go upstairs without asking (so I can find her) and no one is allowed at the beach. She goes to McDonald’s to get her own ice cream and to Uncle Russ to get her peach juice. Good-bye to the plaza… The plaza is the social hub of Discovery Bay. Sunday night is always a large crowd with children playing. Tara, Leah, Vanessa and I had many coffee/soda chats after DMK drop off at 1pm. The plaza has been under renovation for about a year. It is almost done…just in time for us to leave! Good-bye to the ferry… No more running for the ferry! The ferry is a very peaceful ride to Central. Good-bye to the buses… Good-bye to LaCosta playground… Emersyn and I played at this playground every night after school on our way home from DMK. We lived at House #7 LaCosta. Good-bye to the beach playground… Good-bye to 7 Seabird Lane… I should have taken a picture of “My Rock”. It is a big cement square at the corner. It is where Tara would pick me up in her golf car. Good-bye to our little apartment… Good-bye to our friends we will miss the most! Average Rating: 4.6 out of 5 based on 280 user reviews.
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