Hello All,

Der Rats Keller Restaurant in the old German Guest House is fabulous. This is a small restaurant that will sit about 16 people total.

 

 

 

The service was great, the atmosphere quiet, and the sausages were superb. I have always enjoyed German food since I can remember.  I actually had fried spinach spaghetti with sausage. It was a some of the best I have ever had.

I did not realize as we walk the streets and see the architecture here that it can be much more exquisite the first look. I stopped. What did I find? A roof lined with these carved creatures. When we walk around this building, we found it was the Qingdao Art Museum. Qingdao is an old city and though much of the city is modern with the high-rise buildings that show great lighting, some of the older parts of town are filled with a glorious history. Look at the walk way below. It is an example of the older parts of the city with the older people taking their journey just one small step at a time.

 

 

 

We can turn around and see little fish mountain with its beautiful structure behind us.

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What makes these walks nice is nice is to be able to be able to walk with Suzette. We have been able to spend a lot of time together on these walks. It is a pleasure.

 

 

She is really looking good. We are both losing weight with the change in diet and all the walking. I find that we both seem to have more energy and are laughing more.

We had the pleasure of going to the 2014 International Horticultural Exhibition. The following are some pictures. We love the students. Bonnie, Alice and Donald are great. We enjoyed their company. I hope they did not mind being with Suzette and an old guy like me.

 

Do you have a question...?

Crossing the red bridge means good fortune.

I really liked these young men from the Army. They were great sports.

Dou you like my hat?

This picture below was at the entrance to the Chocolate Exhibition.

It is really all toast. There are some 2000 pieces. I would rather eat it.

The lady above was just a volunteer. The flowers pictured below are all made from chocolate.

 

 

I enjoyed watching this man make candy lollipops.

 

The castle is also made entirely of chocolate. Again, I would rather eat it. I felt like I was in Willy Wonka's factory.



I had to take a picture of this lady. She was so funny. She wanted to know if I was single.

Confucius plays a large role in the value system of the Chinese. He remains honored and revered.

This girl wanted to take a picture with me. She was so cute. We got a picture of her mom and sister as well.

These students walked us all over. It was now time for a rest.

 The tree above is alive. The process is long a difficult to train it to grow this way.

 

We had a wonderful day with these students. Me, Bonnie, Suzette, Alice and Donald.

 



 

Happiness

My daughter, Lizzie, talked about happiness on her blog a few days ago, so I decided to talk a little bit about how I find happiness each day. I am so busy some days that it seems like I never take the time to just sit and think about what I am happy about. Or I don't take the time to enjoy my day. 

Because our internet can be sporadic, I am very happy when our MagicJack works and we are able to talk with our children who are in America while we are in China. Lizzie and I, and Sara and I were so used to talking almost every day when I was in Utah that it has been hard for all of us to not be able to just call on the phone at any time of day and say hi or tell good news. With the 14 or 15 hour time change, it is difficult to find the right time when each of us can answer the phone.

I find myself being happy and smiling when my student's get excited about learning a new English word. I also find happiness when I can lay in bed a few more minutes before I have to get up for work.

I am also happy when I get to spend time with Gary, whether it's at our apartment or spending some time exploring Qingdao. Today we were invited to a marriage celebration at Bathing Beach No.1 as part of a sports festival. Gary got to give a little speech which was greeted with applause. We did a little ceremony with dancing and then were given a certificate. After that we went on to look at some sand art some little kids did. It was so fun to shake hands with the children. Most of them could speak a little English. After we commented on their art, the parents wanted pictures with the children. It was great fun. Then it was on to a Chinese lunch with all sorts of stuff including Octopus. I tried it. Not really a fan.

Hi Everyone,

We have been in China nearly six weeks and what a wonderful time it has been. I want share some of what I have learned. Though I am the teacher, I find I have learned much from the students, staff, and other friends while I have been here.

I have had the privilege of living in and visiting a few countries, but I would have the say that China has been wonderful and ranks at the top. The Chinese people are the most warm, kind, and loving people I believe I have met. Although they may seem reserved, once you know them, they will do anything for you. I have observed some anger. For example, when a crash between two cars happens, there are a few words spoken in anger. That is the exception, though.

The kindness that fathers have for their children is noteworthy. Mothers care for their children and follow a similar norm as we in the USA are accustomed to, but the fathers here seem exceptionally kind and involved in their children’s lives. They are supportive, provide counsel and are prepared to sacrifice to help the children. I know of families here who have relocated to be closer to a specific school so that their children might be afforded greater opportunities.

Families are the foundation organization in this country. Families may consist of three and, some cases, four generations. They share apartments or other dwellings, grandparents assist parents in raising the children, and combine financial support. We met one family, a student’s, and learned that she refers to her cousin as her brother. It has been interesting. Her grandmother was a Pediatrician, father is an orthopedic surgeon, and she is becoming a doctor. They combine their knowledge, experience and resources to help this next generation become successful. Remember, this society is featured by its concept of collectivism rather than the individualism seen in the US.

Incidentally, the Lao Lao (grandmother) makes great dumplings and taught us how. They honored us by preparing us a wonderful meal. I think they are pleased of how Suzette is working with the daughter on English. The picture above shows us making dumplings with the Chin family.

I learned that insects have plenty of protein. Peter and Shelly Wang took us out on October 3^rd to a town to the north of Qingdao, Pingdu. When we had lunch, Suzette and I had the pleasure of eating the bugs pictured below. Yes, I know I would not do this, but they looked sooooo good. Funny enough, they actually were not bad. They did not have a strong taste and, at this writing, I am still quite alive.

Pingdu is known for its grapes and peanuts. Below is a picture of a woman raking the peanuts out on the road to dry. The peanuts here are very good and inexpensive. We purchased some shelled peanuts at the morning market and paid only a couple of dollars for a kilogram. They were roasted, but not not salted and I could eat them till I I get sick.

They, as might notice in the background, many thousands of acres of corn. I really was surprised to see the large amount of acreage planted. I also noticed that most of the work is done by people and not machines. I believe again that this is the purpose of a collective society. Everyone is expected to work for the greater good of the society. It does not matter how important or menial the work, It all contributes to the whole.

The majority of those who express a devotion to some religion are Buddhists. We find Buddhist Temples throughout the country. Peter and Shelly took us to a mountain to climb near Pingdu. Again we find many temples. The photos below might provide some example of what we see.

The people appear sincere and faithful to their beliefs. There is much money and food donated at these edifices. At the base of most of the sculptures, there is a place to set food and a box for donations. There are also vendors on site to selling the incense for burring. I am fascinated as I observe the people pay their devotions, kneel and offer prayer, and teach their children. I could spend all day just watching the people.

Near to the temple, we found people still celebrating. There is a small amusement park and many vendors selling food. They grill pork here that is fabulous – blackened pork. I was visiting with a family and they wanted me to be in a picture with an 80 year old man who was confined to a wheelchair. (we are asked to be in pictures a lot.) It was fun. The family offered us the pork. I don’t know how much they appreciate me in the picture, but I sure liked the pork.

We had a great day with Peter, Shelly and their son, James.  Below is a picture of Suzette with Shelly.

This is Suzette with Peter and James at the restaurant.

The Wang’s are a great family. Peter is a manager of a sales force for a jewelry manufacturing company. Shelly is a teacher. James is attending a private middle school and is a fan of the best sport in the world, soccer.

Fushan

I love to hike as does Gary. I am grateful that there are many mountains in Qingdao for us to climb. Some are hills to me because they are not as high as our mountains, but there are some that are just as high. Laoshan is high. Fushan is not as high. Shan is Chinese for mountain, so Laoshan is Mountain Lao or Lao Mountain and Fushan is Mountain Fu or Fu Mountain.

We had the opportunity a couple of weeks ago to hike up Fushan with some students. The entrance to the trails is very close to our apartment. We did not know that. The students took us up a different using a different entrance than we came down through. The way we went in is farther from our apartment, but still only about 15 minutes from our house. 

The way down was on the other side of the mountain, so we found out this entrance is only about 5 minutes from our apartment. How lucky is that. 

This is us. Gary was taking the picture. This is at the bottom of the hike before we went up. It was fun. What was interesting is that there are steps you take to get to almost the top of the mountain. We are used to our trails of dirt and rocks all the way up. Once we got most of the way up Fushan, the path turned to dirt and rocks. They have made the mountains more accessible to all people. 

I can always feels God's love for me on the top of a mountain. We were able to see the ocean and the entire city. Every way you turn there was city. Fushan is right in the middle of Qingdao. It is so neat. We are so glad the students took us up there. We can't wait to go again on our own. We just have to make the time to do it.