Experiencing Jinan

Today was our last full day in Jinan. It is bittersweet. We are ready to move on to the next phase of our journey and be one step closer to home but there is something sad about leaving Max's city, a place we will forever remember.

Max was a trooper again last night. After 11 1/2 hours of sleep we woke him at 8:00 so we could Skype with the kids. It has been so great to be able to see them and to have them see Max. Shane keeps saying "I love my little brother!" We have appreciated all the prayers for Max but I think my parents could use some on their behalf too. Last week our fridge went out, Monday all 3 kids had the stomach flu and yesterday my mom's bridge on her teeth broke. Needless to say we are little nervous to Skype to find out what happened next. We so appreciate my parents willingness to stay with the kids. It is so nice to focus on bonding with Max and know they are in good hands. We are praying the remaining days are uneventful on their end.

We had a relaxing morning in the room hanging out with Max. Max can find one thing and spend tons of time just playing with it. Sometimes it is as simple as a half empty water bottle that rolls around on the floor or as you can see in some of his pictures from the last couple days he likes something about those bowls. It is so fun to see what new trick or game Max will come up with. This morning he took his little cell phone and figured out it would spin around on the table. After a couple times he would flip it over and realize it didn't spin that way so back over it would go to spin some more.

Max had some crazy long hairs so daddy took the sewing kit scissors to them today.

Late morning we met Lillian and headed to the Baotu Springs. It was about a 10 minute walk from our hotel. I love capturing the local life of the Chinese people, the bikes, the street vendors, the women having lunch ... it is all so intriguing.

On the way to the springs we walked along the canal. It was a beautiful day. The sun was actually peeking through the smog today and it was the warmest day we have had here.

The Baotu Spring Park was beautiful.

It is located in the center of Jinan City. The park was established in 1956 and more recently it has been extended to about 26 acres. It is one of the three major places of interest in Jinan. The park is an ideal location to see the wonder of the natural springs, culture and various Chinese architect. Baotu Spring is located at the center of the park (It is in the picture with Eric and I). The springs remain at 64.4 degrees all year around. The spring water is ideal for drinking and making tea.

Max decided he wasn't too interested in taking in the city of Jinan but would rather nap.

The park was busy today as they were decorating and getting ready for the Chinese New Year. The park is a big attraction during the Chinese New Year celebration. It was fun to see the decorations going up. You will also notice in one of the pictures they are making decorations right there. This year is the year of the rabbit so a lot of rabbits could be found in the decorations.

We had lunch at a restaurant by the park. The picture on the bottom left is what the menu looked like. It was actually a big display of the pictures of the dishes you could order. If you would like fish in China you just go to the fish tank and pick out which one you would like. Max was all about his food today. He is eating like crazy. Now the bottom right picture is the pork we had today. I had one piece and it was alright except for one piece was a bit chewy. I liked the other dishes better. After we were done Eric asked Lillian what the white stuff was on the pork skewers. He knew it was something he might not eat if he knew what it was so decided to ask afterwards. I had no clue there was anything else besides pork on the stick. Well needless to say we ate some pig cartilage today.

We had our first experience today in a cab in China today. Lillian hailed a cab for us and we headed to Wal-Mart. The Wal-Mart was nothing like the US Wal-Mart. It was 2 stories and was huge. They asked me not to take pictures in the store which was a bummer. The meat department was crazy. There were was tons of meat just piled on ice in the middle of the meat department. They also had tanks of fish. The craziest thing was whole pigs, fish and chickens that had been cooked were hanging in the middle of the meat department too.

Aren't these shoes so cute. Max scored some Squeaky Shoes today. Everyone talks about squeaky shoes in China. Well today we got our very first pair. They are a little big but he will grow into them. Yes, they squeaky when you walk in them.

On our way back to our hotel we walked through Spring City Square. This is the square that the people of Jinan gather in. Lillian said in the summer it is very busy. There is music, vendors and tons of people flying kites. Jinan is know for their kites. Well it was our lucky day as there were some people flying kites and we were also able to buy some to take home.

So there are two things we have had to get used to in China. The traffic is crazy. Between the mopeds, buses, cars, bikes 3 wheel carts .... crossing the street is a little bit like dodge ball.

The other thing is the squatty potty. Yes in some cases this is the only option. I am very thankful for a clean, regular toilet in our hotel.

We found Max numerous times today just giggling at himself. Here he was putting his bottle of water in his mouth and then letting it fall out. He thought it was the funniest thing in the world.

Max and I had some good cuddle time this afternoon. He has been so great about eye contact with us. This afternoon I held him and just looked into his eyes for about 30 minutes. We then all 3 cuddled up in our king bed for a nap.

We headed out to our favorite restaurant tonight with Lillian. We have grown to love Lillian. We keep trying to convince her to come to Guangzhou with us. She said she would really like to but her boss wouldn't like it. I am sure we will keep in touch with her and maybe someday we can get her to come to the US. The food here has been so good and so cheap. This gives you an idea of what I mean. Tonight 3 adults and Max had dinner and beverages for $15.15 and we could have fed 2 more. Eric grabbed us coffee tonight at Starbucks and paid $11.25. Yes we are getting ripped off along with the rest of the world at Starbucks. The food above is one of Eric's favorites. It is called a Chinese hamburger.

We finally had to cut Max off tonight. He loved tofu. He would grunt and grunt for more. I am getting better with chopsticks but picking up slippery tofu is a little challenging. I couldn't get it to his mouth fast enough!

After dinner we had one last evening walk in the streets of the city of Jinan. It seems as though every one comes out at night. It is always busy no matter what night it is.

We had a wonderful day experiencing Jinan today. We have come to love the city and appreciate Max's culture.

To finish off the day here is a picture of our little sweetheart! Good night from China.