On to ritan park
from fun Dazzle, we took a cab to Xi He ya Ju Restaurant, on the edgeof Ritan park. it’s a really niuce place, with a lovely outside area and inside, where weate, that features a huge tree, with branches stretching through the entire place. We had a delciious meal that included quick-cooked beef with ginger and scallions (eli and anna loved it), lemon chicken, delicious, light fried rice with pork and greens, spicy string beans with minced meat, “shanghai greens” (spinach-like) and dumplings. jacob ate a huge bowl of white rice with chopsticks very proudly and a huge plate of watermelon and cantalope-like melon, which he described accurately as being “like cantalope only more.” the kids also had fresh-squeezed watermelon juice and becky and i had beer (they gave us budweiser despite our protestations) and jasmine tea.
After lunch, we went into Ritan Park, which is really nice and peaceful and beautifully landscaped. it was avery hot day, but 10 degrees cooler amidst the trees. There is an ancient sacrificial temple there from emperor days.
As we made our way to the “pleasure ground for children” we passed a rock climbing wall filled with a club blasting techno and hard rock and looking pretty good. Next to it was an exercise area, with machines for anyuone’s use. They are all over the place in Beijing and jacob loves them. These pics are from there. jacob insisted on returning on our way out and bragged about how strong he was getting “from all this exercise.”
We made it on to the kids’ area, which was really raggedy and 1950s ish, but the kids loved it. they have these art things all over th epalce here, where they give you an outlined figure an a tray of paints and you squirt it in and creat a little masterpiece which they then bake in a little oven. the result is a little rubber thing that peels off and can stick on a window. eli has already done three of them and jacob and anna joined him yesterday, as shown.
ON our way out, we passed alitle field where some old men kept these beautiful songbirds in cages. eli was fascinated and he and I went to check it out. anna followed. The nice old man did not want us to go near some of them, but he loved the kids and I took these pictures.
hi alan – so fun to read about your adventures unfolding. keep it up! xx jane + craig + cassius
Love the detailed food description. Just had lunch but made me hungry again! Looks like its chinese for dinner tonight!
Yosh
Oh Alan! I can’t tell you how wonderful it was to read your posts and see the pictures of the kids and you and Becky w/ all the luggage. Please keep up this commentary – it makes me feel like you’re close by, and I am so lonesome for all of you.
The park looks wonderful – love Jacob’s comment about all the Chinese people there and what he s aid when he saw the Great Wall from the plane.
Nat and I just had a weekend in NYC – stayed at the Soho Grand and ate at Sushi Samba – so we’re feeling very “Sex and the City”ish. I must say coming back to the reality that you guys are really gone was sad – but I was thrilled to read all your news and see the pictures. Love and kisses to all. Carrie
I am blog-surfing a bit… leaving my virtual buttmark on other people’s virtual chairs. I actually started out trying to find inspiration for a blog on my rosegarden related site, but I’m ending up reading almost everything. This is an entire new wordl… cool. Well, anyway, gotto move on. If you’re interested in rosegarden – feel free to drop by 🙂
hmmmmmmm…do they deliver?
C
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