2nd: Chinese New Year

Happy Chinese New Year! Welcome to the year of the tiger. The sign of the tiger represents luck and prosperity. I hope that is what is in store for us (and all of you) this year.

If you haven't noticed this blog is Stacie's interpretation of China. I'm sure Rich would describe things from a completely different angle. That being said I will try to give you a glimpse of Chinese New Year.

First of all the food. I'm so sad that I brought the camera to Rich's uncle's home but left the battery charging at ours. Without seeing it you can't fully appreciate the meal that was placed before us. Here is a small sampling of the fare: marinated jellyfish, raw shrimp (that you sucked out of the shell), pigs feet, squid, whole fish (head and all) watercress, raw salmon, coconut coated shrimp (that is all Matt and Lily ate), duck, some type of beef innards (I was afraid to ask which organ it was). There was also a huge variety of mushrooms and bean curd (tofu). Unlike at home the rice is not served with the meal, it is served at the end. Poor Mia nibbled at a few things and resolved to wait for the rice. Then she betrayed her race by asking for soy sauce to put on it. They had never heard of anyone doing that (crazy Americans).

My favorite part of the meal was the potato salad. I think that was made just for us.

They ate forever! My kids (and my) schedule is still a mess so by 8:00 I could not stay awake, especially when I couldn't understand a word that was being said. It makes the conversation less than engaging. The kids and I ended up asleep on the couch by 8:30. Everyone else sat at the table until after 10:00.

A little side note; the apartments are small, the food is potent and the TV is always on, at full volume, so your senses are inundated.

The other aspect of Chinese New Year is the fireworks. They are unbelievable. In the states, you would have to have a license and a special permit to set off the kinds of fireworks they light in the street here. They are going off everywhere, constantly between 10:00 pm and 1:00 am. The sound is unlike anything I have ever heard. It was like a war zone with constant gunfire and canon blasts. Even with concrete walls the sound reverberated through the apartment. The best part, it started again at 6:30 am. Not with the same momentum but enough to wake up the kiddos; if they had been asleep. The girls had decided to start a dance party about an hour earlier so the firecrackers just added rhythm.

Love, blessings and tiger kisses,

Stacie