HurricaneMaine

Photobombing in Xiang Xue Park

Not too far from my school in Science City is this beautiful park full of plum trees. They are blooming now with white or pink flowers. Because of the beautiful trees, so many people were there and Jack and I decided only to go if we could find a parking space. We both hate crowds.

But once there the photobombing opportunity made it worth it!

Photo bombing a live performance was not the original goal. You could hear singing everywhere and Jack explained that many of them were live streaming. They have some followers who will send them money but if they do something special they can sometimes get more. So I decided to photobomb them for those watching. I then took a picture of what I saw. Meanwhile Jack took pictures of me.

Then the one singer realized what I was doing! So funny!!!! They didn’t ask me to sing though which is a good thing…

This was my picture from behind the singers.

Beautiful flowers were everywhere. The plum trees were in full bloom and the bees were buzzing. It was so fragrant just walking through the park.

Lots of people everywhere, talking and enjoying the day. Many brought lunch, some played games….

It is a nice free place to enjoy nature and be outside.

I had wondered if there were bee hives here and there were at one end of the park. The darker honey is made from the summer pollen and the lighter from the winter pollen. I purchased some of the lighter honey as I had already purchased the darker from a farmers market a few months ago.

Bees busy making honey from the winter pollen (lighter in color and thicker honey)

This honey is the honey made from the summer pollen.

Across from the trees are a large space for food stalls. I was thirsty so we went in search of something to drink. In Chinese:

Wǒ kěle. Wǒ xiǎng hē guǒzhī. I am thirsty. I want to drink juice.

Sugar cane juice which was sweet but not as sweet as I thought it would be. It was delicious.

This bread was yummy. It is baked in a very hot oven that makes a well.

This dessert is frozen with liquid nitrogen making it very cold and you can blow clouds with your breath.

The food and fresh produce is amazing as it is everywhere here in China.

Running with visually impaired individuals

On Sunday four of us from school learned how to run as a running guide with visually impaired individuals. It was a great day and the gentleman Bin that I led spoke some English and I spoke some Chinese as well.

We held this rigid elastic band and used it to guide. Pulling up means to step up. Pulling down means to step down. Pulling left is to go left while pushing my right elbow against him means to go right. Pulling back means to stop or slow down. Communication is key to be at the right pace and it was a lot of fun.

Bin and I holding the band that we run with.

Late that day I went to Jack’s apartment in Favorview where we drank coffee at the clubhouse. There was a book club meeting there. People are the same all over. I loved how they brought snacks and drinks (they drank tea though in my book club it is often wine). They even had gifts for each other. But mostly they talked about the book while mostly just talking and learning about each other. We do the same as well. They were lovely to watch and notice the care of one another. I can’t wait for my book club meeting next week!

Food, running, and more food

You can find any kind of food here in Guangzhou including a Poutine place. This restaurant is not far from me and friends met to try different versions of toppings for french fries. There is the original Canadian poutine as well as others inspired by different countries. I tried the Lhaksa poutine with shrimp and crab meat. It had coconut and was spicy.

On the weekend, Jack took me to the Liwan district for authentic Cantonese food. It was off the beaten path. We had bamboo noodles. It is regular rice noodles but shaped using bamboo sticks. The soup had pork blood cubes in it. That is a standard Cantonese dish.

Afterwards we went for dessert. You know the place is good when there is a long line waiting for take out.

This dessert Bai xiang guo had papaya in it and a sweet juice. I’m not sure what else is in it. It looks like a rice noodle (chang fen) and the dish is good for those with a sore throat.

Rice triangles with a variety of fillings which could be pork, mushroom, bean, or plum. They are stranded in bamboo leaves.

This dish is made with almond paste and rice milk. It is not as thick as a pudding and it’s served warm. It reminds me of the filling of a bear claw but not as sweet.

The next morning we went running on the Guangzhou International Bio Island. It is a manmade island that houses international corporations many for pharmaceutical and other technology. Self driving cars are tested here and move people around on the island. There is a great running track around the perimeter and it is very beautiful to run with the view of the river.

Mangrove trees. Unfortunately many were taken down when guangzhou was developed and the islandsc were made.

Burning Rick works with individual genetic testing of cancer patients for individualized treatments.

Astra Zeneca China. This company is one of the covid-19 vaccine developers.

Then later we went for sauerkraut fish. It is a sour soup that is quite hot. There are many different peppers and the little round ones that look like peppercorns makes your mouth completely numb of you accidentally eat them.

Later in the week we went to another fish place where you add in other items to the fish and sauce you choose. This was Mekong fish with a spicy garlic sauce. There is so much incredible food here.

We passed by a place where young children get their hair cut. They sit in cats and watch cartoons to keep them still for their haircut. Clever.

Winning stay at the Garden Hotel

The Garden Hotel is the oldest luxury hotel in Guangzhou. I have been there this year at the TedX conference, the AmCham ball, and the 90’s Christmas party. At that party, I won a free night stay. As I had only a few weeks to do so, I decided to do it the last weekend of vacation.

After a run to and back from my covid-19 test required to return to work, I packed up and left for Dim Sum with colleagues.

Then I left to pick up Jack by Didi and headed for the Garden Hotel.

We didn’t get settled in when they sent up a snack. Phyllis dough with filling was just yummy.

We were given a pass to the executive lounge for high tea. Great snacks and tea or juice to drink.

We were delivered another snack to the room.

We walked around the neighborhood as it is one of the oldest in Guangzhou. There are middle eastern and african restaurants. Unfortunately as we found many of them closed due to covid-19. We had been looking for the Ethiopian restaurant, but it was closed. Instead we found a Syrian restaurant. I had Foul which is a slightly sour bean dish. Along with the hummus was a flat bread.

After dinner we went back to the executive lounge for drinks (included in the free pass). They also had Dim sum snacks.

The live entertainment was great. I requested a few songs which they knew and sang quite well like Adele’s “Rolling in the deep” and Alannis Morrisette’s “You outta know”.

Breakfast the next morning was great followers by sauna and outdoor hot tub.

I had never won anything before so a stay in a great hotel was amazing. A relaxing start to the New Year.

Celebrating New years

After arriving back from Shanghai I spent more time with Jack. He had been so sweet and lovely. He gave me a great silk floral arrangement and organic perfume oil for my birthday.

I went to lunches with my friend Elaine. She always finds great food to try. This was a black tea with whipped cream and pecans. It was delicious.

Jack surprised me with plans to go to a village north of the city called Xitou. We had already made plans to go to my friends Tricia and Dan’s for new years eve get together in Huadu so went on a road trip a night early.

Ww ate at a place in Xitou village. They had rice wine that has bees soaking in it. It is to help with certain medical conditions. I didn’t try it but very curious….

The food was amazing. The soup (tang) was made with many different kinds of mushrooms. It was very tasty soup. The sweet potatoes had the best sauce ever.

The mountains in Xitou were beautiful.

The village was also beautiful. Some old buildings are original. Many new places have been erected for others to come from the city to stay and is growing as a tourist destination.

We also had congee and rice roll with egg the next morning in the village.

Then we took a hike to the next village.

We took a wrong road and saw this bird. It is a wild bird that stays there and is hand fed. He was fascinating. The owner of the property brought it a cooked potato to feed the bird.

There is actually a place to charge your phone and make a call in the middle of the bamboo forest. This is solar powered.

In the other village they grow Camellia flowers for tea. It is also being developed for tourism.

After the hike we walked in the village to look at what they are selling.

Tofu dessert and sesame seed dessert. Warm and delicious.

Lunch was amazing at another village. The sour cabbage dish was delightful.

We arrived at my friend’s. There we played games, ate pizza and dips, and watched movies and shows until the new year. With the pandemic, there are no formal ball drop celebrations and in China there are some parties. Getting together as a small group was still better.

I’m the morning, Jack and I ran 5k, had breakfast with everyone and took a stroll around their area. It was a great end of one year and start of the next.

Shanghai Disney town

In the morning I ran with Ollie the golden retriever. Fun! He finds all the cat hiding places!

We then went to Disney town. Not Shanghai Disney. Even though it was warmer that day, it was still nippy to be on fast rides. Disney town is within sight of actual Disney but with shops and restaurants.

It was nice to outside peruse the Disney store.

I hadn’t been paying attention to the intricate Lego sets and they were impressive. There were a few large Lego decorations.

We strolled some more. Lastly we went to eat at the cheesecake factory.

We don’t have a cheesecake factory in Guangzhou and no telling when I will be somewhere where there is one. I had the guacamole salad and we shared sweet potato fries. I took key lime cheesecake to have later.

Harbin riverfront and central market

Harbin is the largest city in China that is the closest to Siberia.

The last day on Harbin! I’m actually excited to get back to Guangzhou and warmer temperatures. It is pretty here but the temperatures range from -15 C to – 20 C. At that temperature the air is very dry. Using lip balm and moisturizing often is a must. You also need several layers under a really good coat and insulating snowpants and boots.

We packed everything and put our luggage on the bus. We headed to the riverfront and walked to the flood control monument which intersects the riverfront and the road to the central market.

We first walked down the central market street to west 12th to see St. Sophia’s church. The architecture here is but Chinese but like any eastern european country.

St. Sophia’s is a Russian Orthodox church which is beautiful. Unfortunately they were renovating the inside so we could not enter.

From there we went in and out of shops in order to warm up a bit. Taking gloves off to take a picture left fingers numb!

Musicians took turns playing music or singing from this balcony. It was beautiful. This guy played beautiful old music on the saxophone.

One of the things people do here is buy ice cream to eat on the street. It is just ordinary ice cream, but something people do. It actually didn’t make me any colder.

We went in and out shops mostly to look for caviar. There was none to be found. I think it is banned due to covid-19. The virus had been found on fish products earlier in the year. I was disappointed in that.

I did find this bread flavored soda. I did try it. It tastes like that yummy taste you have in your mouth after you eat really good bread. It is a lingering bread taste and actually quite tasty. It is a favorite in Russia.

We found a Russian restaurant that had good food though I did not find the potato latkes I was looking for. I had a beetroot salad and potato mushroom soup.

Next we took the cable car across the river. The number of things you can do on this completely frozen river is amazing. Skating, sledding, pulled by dog teams, and other fun activities. If you love winter and outdoor activities, you will not be bored! The spaces they have created here is amazing. The ice is 1 meter thick.

A walk along the river back to the bus to look at smaller snow sculptures.

We also saw construction of the sculptures in this temperature. It was amazing.

A street food market for stinky tofu. It is just fermented tofu. Yummy but had to eat fast before it became cold.

Now back to Shanghai and then on to Guangzhou!

Sun Island, Siberian Tiger Park, and Volga Manor

Sun Island

It was cold. We started the tour at -20C and finished at -16C. There are a few coffee shops around to get out of the cold. Of course if you keep moving and don’t take your hands out of gloves to take pictures it is easier.

These sculptures are made by making artificial snow as that snow is wetter and sticker than the snows that falls on Harbin. They place the snow in big wooden boxes to pack then use the block to make these incredible sculptures that are the largest in the world. All of this is made from packed snow.

It started out at -20C and when the sun was shining warned up a bit.

You could ride this vehicle and soon around on the river ice.

This one is still under construction and looks like a little mushroom house village.

Siberian Tiger Park

The siberian tiger park was pretty cool. People move through the various paddocks in caged vehicles. Some tigers are in cages if they are not acclimated to weather, weak, pregnant, or young. They can get enough nutrition that way. There are over 1300 tigers and the park is very large.

You can pay to feed them by holding meat through the bars or even feed them a live chicken which is dropped through a chute.

Some of the buses also will be used to feed the tigers. You can always tell which bus.

They are such beautiful animals.

Volga Manor

This was a Russian village created by a wealthy entrepreneur in the turn of the century. It prospered until the cultural revolution when it was destroyed. Since then it has been rebuilt on the actual style of the original buildings.

We took a bus to the castle at the end where you took a freight lift to the 5th floor. There you could lay on an inner tube and hold on to each others legs to sled ride down this impressive ice chute. It was so fun we did it twice.

We looked at the Russian church.

There were many other buildings that were not open.

Of course there was a vodka chateau. We learned about vodka.

Sampling the vodka was fun. It was poured in ice cups. I sampled an amber colored vodka that had a definite spicy kick at the end. I also tried a dark colored vodka that had a really full flavor. You could buy your favorite vodka in the gift shop. I purchased the two I tried!

Walking back to the bus was beautiful to see the lit houses.

Afterwards some pedestrian street shopping and food at a Japanese restaurant. On the way back to the hotel we saw this sign which is so very covid-19. It is a little blurry as the bus started moving.

Harbin ice festival

Merry Christmas! An early morning start to catch the plane and I had some of the stollen bread that my dear friend Tricia and Dan bought me for my birthday! It was delicious. Not like the recipe I grew up with which is a yeast soft bread with candied fruits and nuts inside. This was somewhere between that and a fruitcake. It was yummy and will be good when I’m hungry on the trip.

The flight to Harbin was diverted due to weather and did not arrive on time. I still had enough time to change into multiple layers to visit the Ice Festival. On the way there you could see people on large snow mounds making it into something for the festival. Harbin is close to the Russian border with China.

We arrived at the festival around 3 in the afternoon. The sun sets just after 4 here. So far the weather is not bad. It is cold but tolerable with layers. If course when the sun goes down….

It is negative 16 Celsius. That is around negative 5 F.

It was great to see my friends Amber and Michael on this trip. I haven’t seen them in awhile. A core group of us met and took trips together this summer. Covid-19 wreaked havoc but did give us that.

Some of the ice houses were already starting to light up when we arrived.

We went ice bicycling. It was pretty fun around this frozen track that wound through a building and under a bridge. Hard to move legs in the bulky clothes but once you find a rhythm…

There were some restaurants to stop in and get warm. While we were there the sun went down and the ice buildings were lit up.

This snow sculpture of the Buddha is my favorite of the day. It is enormous.

As the festival officially opened in February, some buildings were still being constructed. Ice from the river is brought in and cut into smaller blocks. It is 1 meter deep there. Lights are put in on the top blocks. It takes a lot of orbison to hand cut all of these blocks.

The shows they usually have are with Russian acrobats. They unfortunately could not come back to China due to covid-19 restrictions. They had finishing and dancing which the audience participated in and warmed us up.

More nighttime pictures. Eventually my phone powered down from the cold but taking my hands out to take pictures left my fingers numb!

Afterwards we removed layers at the hotel and went to a nearby neighborhood for hotpot. Yummy and just what was needed after being in the cold. Finally I drank the Harbin beer manufactured here in the actual city.

Xinchang ancient town, Christmas Eve

In the morning of the 24th we strolled the lanes, carved stone-arch bridges and old wooden buildings. They have the conserved courtyard-style architecture reminiscent of the Ming and Qing dynasties. This is a glimpse of a time when Pudong was actually a string of individual villages similar to this one.

We sampled foods including glutinous rice balls, bean cakes, warm chestnuts, and others.

We stopped at a great coffee house and had dirty coffee which was more steamed milk and dusted with chocolate. The cutest dog played fetch the whole time we were there.

We also did a lot of shopping. Beautiful antiques, jade, stone, and antiques were everywhere. Afterwards we cooked vegetarian chili, rice pudding, and snacks. My friends Tricia and Dan came to Cat’s for dinner and they brought me a stollen bread they found in Shanghai. It is a Christmas tradition and so happy to have it this year. I have some really great friends.

Shanghai and the French concession

After helping Cat with grocery shopping for the holiday meals I took a Didi into the city to meet my friend Tricia and Dan at the Grand Hyatt. I splurged on a massage then meet them for tea in a lounge.

While they were getting ready for dinner I went to the adjoining building to view the city on the observatory tower. Beautiful lights.

Dinner was in the French concession at Pollux. The French concession was an area of Shanghai under foreign control from the 1800’s until about 1943 when it was signed over to Japanese control. Since then it has retained its european flavor and is a popular tourist destination

It is a well rated restaurant. My dinner consisted of charred cauliflower (pureed cauliflower topped with a cauliflower steak with a parmesan crisp on top. Yum!), Salmon with bernaise sauce, and creme brulee.

There are beautiful markets, music venues, and restaurants here. It was lovely to walk around and take in the sights and sounds.