It's the first day of 2012, and we're getting
ready to leave. We're looking forward to coming home, but we're going to miss
Shanghai. We've been spending our last few days visiting favorite places and
packing up.
We had our Christmas dinner at a Shanghai-style restaurant
with a fantastic view.
One of the downsides of being in Shanghai, no
after-Christmas sales! But there's still plenty to buy. At Wal-Mart, the
Christmas displays have given way to stacks of Lunar New Year items (Year of the Dragon). Lucky red
underwear, anyone?
We were at Wal-Mart to get an extra suitcase to
bring home some of the stuff that we've acquired.
Peter's become a pro at hauling stuff around on
his bike rack.
Parker has been spending some quality time with
his new obsession: Warhammer 40,000. Here he is with Mark, who manages the
Games Workshop store at the Xintandi mall. The shop (the only one in China!)
was one of the chance discoveries we call urban suprises. Parker and Mark really hit it off.
One of the things we'll miss most is the vendors
at our wet market. We went to say goodbye and take some pictures.
We saw the lady who
makes fried dumplings, and the one who sells us vegetables.
The father-son team that makes meat and fish balls
for hot pots.
Our fruit stand owner and his family.
We also said goodbye to the ladies who manage the
Tongji pool. We haven't been swimming for a few weeks, because it's been so
cold, but we wanted to see them one more time.
We made a farewell stop at Parker's favorite burger
restaurant.
Slurped soup dumplings.
Had a last few cups of tea.
Bought a piece of art to bring home (this is just
one corner).
Then visited a final building project.
On the way home from the project, we ran
into a last pair of Shanghai surprises.
A hip restaurant with a mirrored bathroom.
And a street full of sea eels being dried in the
cool air. Each eel's tag has the name of the buyer and the price he/she paid.
They dry for about a week, and then the buyers pick them up. Ever since it
started getting cold, we've seen all sorts of meat and fish hanging out to dry.
We each made lists of the things we'll miss the
most.
We will all miss
bicycle rides
urban surprises
street food
wet markets
hot pot
friendly people
family time
Parker will miss
MoreCa
Bistro Burger
Tang Dynasty
Shintori
Tongji pool
neighborhood cats
Pamela will miss
tea culture
soup dumplings
tiny oranges
being in a big city
walking everywhere
learning new things every day
Peter will miss
clams
Parker going out to buy breakfast
getting lost in the crowd (one of the billion)
talking to people excited about building projects
learning about different approaches to rapid
growth
endless varieties of instant noodles
We'll be bringing back nine bags, two bicycle
boxes and a lot of memories.
