October 4, 2011
Last time I posted, I told you about the ‘Most Famous Meatballs in Shanghai’ restaurant I was going to with a friend from the Summer Bible Study. Well… here is the scoop on the meatballs! It turns out that my friend Jacqueline and my friend upstairs, Maria, know each other ... so we all went to check out the meatballs together which was great.
The restaurant is Amokka. As it turns out, I did not have the meatballs… I had the risotto with mushrooms and asparagus… which was delicious. Jacqueline had the meatballs and Maria had the curry beef. The place was pretty small, but clearly a favorite as all the tables were full. It was very worth the trip to the French Concession where it was located. A quaint little street with huge trees planted during the time the French governed this section of Shanghai.
The Shanghai French Concession (Chinese: 上海法租界; pinyin: Shànghǎi Fǎ Zūjiè, French: La concession française de Shanghai) was a foreign concession in Shanghai, China from 1849 until 1946, and it was progressively expanded in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The concession came to an end in practice in 1943 when the Vichy French government signed it over to the pro-Japanese puppet government in Nanking. The area covered by the former French Concession was, for much of the 20th century, the premier residential and retail districts of Shanghai, and was also the center of Catholicism in Shanghai. Despite rampant re-development over the last few decades, the area retains a distinct character, and is a popular tourist destination.Below are some snapshots I took while we were there. Jacqueline is on the left and Maria is on the right. We also just found out that Maria is expecting baby number 2. She is only 8 weeks along.
After our lunch we went to the Baker and Spice just a couple of doors down for dessert. It was smaller than the one in Pudong at Kerry Parkside Center, but the desserts were plentiful. I had a carrot cake that was really nice… and a latte.
Little bicycle carts like the one above are everywhere selling everything from flowers to CD’s and DVD’s. It is so cool to stop on a corner and buy a bouquet of beautiful fresh flowers… or an ear of roasted corn… or maybe a baked sweet potato or taro root… among other things.
We enjoyed our coffee and dessert out front of the Baker and Spice sitting on carved stools and a crate for a table. We watched the people go by and chatted on a sunny but chilly afternoon. Just as we were finishing… we saw an ash float down and land in my coffee cup… YUK!!! I looked all around for an open window to see who was smoking above us… then a guy leans over the roof top and flicks another ash!! We are yelling up to him that he is flicking ashes on us and our food… he thought it was quite funny!!! NOT!!! Thank goodness we were finished, but it was very rude!
We crossed the street to our waiting car and driver and began the journey back across the river to Pudong. Next stop would be the Carrefour… with a quick stop to let Maria off at home. Jacqueline and I both needed a few things from the grocery. It was really nice being able to get groceries and have a ride back home. Such a fun day and even a got a necessity done!
Bible study on Thursday was amazing. I love being with these women and talking about the Word. We never get finished on time because we are so wrapped up in the discussion. The study of James is so interesting.
After our meeting a couple of the ladies invited me to go to lunch with them at the Food Fusion, Malay food place in Kerry Parkside. Well who in their right mind would pass that up… certainly not me. And off we went!
It was just as crowded at lunch as when we went for dinner. We had a variety of dishes and all were so good. And finished it off with a traditional Malay dessert they insisted I try. It was shaved ice, with sweet red beans with coconut milk, sweet corn, brown sugar, some kind of jelly things, and other ingredients I was not sure of and topped with vanilla ice cream. In spite of the sweet red beans and corn… it was actually very good!
I really enjoyed the lunch and the company… we will be doing this again.
Friday morning we went to the Parkway Health for our last Hep shot. I am so glad there are no more of those. This time the serum seemed so much thicker than before… it burned and hurt.
While we were there we asked about the flu shots. They told us the medicine was from France so we decided it would probably be a good idea to get our flu shots since we were here in China. No sense taking any chances this year. We filled out the forms and waited for the shots. The nurse was very rough and we both found that both of our arms were sore now.
Unfortunately the flu shots reacted on both of us. Both our arms were swollen and feverish at the injection site and very red around the perimeter. I have never had that problem before. But usually I get the flu like symptoms from the shot… but that did not happen. Strange!
Friday night we headed to the Hofbrau German Restaurant that is just around the corner from the apartment on JinYan Lu (aka Originality Street) for dinner. They were having this big roof top buffet and fireworks watching event… only RMB298 per person. We pay our money and head up the four flights of stairs to the roof.
Once we got there we realized this was not a good choice for us… we only had time for dinner as we were expecting our language teacher at 8pm. We have been going through the Alpha Course together. She wants to learn more about God.
So down the stairs again… hoping we can get our money back and just have dinner off the menu. Luckily, the man was very nice… seated us in the main dining room and refunded our money. The meal was really good and we both ate for less than the cost of the rooftop buffet.
We got back home in time for the start of the amazing fireworks display. It was truly spectacular. It went on for about an hour. Our apartments are at the end of Century Park giving us a really good view of the fireworks. Had we been on the third floor or above it would have been a great view. The trees obstructed our view of the ones lower in the sky, but the high ones were in clear view. The fireworks were in sync with the concert going on in the Amphitheatre. Did not think to grab the camera, but when they started on Monday… I was ready. Hard to take stills of fireworks, but I managed… and here they are… such as they are.
Now back to my this and that… Michael and I went for oil massages on Saturday at the Dragon Fly at Kerry Parkside… it was so wonderful. There were, I must admit, times that it hurt like crazy… but in a good way. I think I actually heard Michael snoring!! It was so funny… they gave us these paper under garments to put on for the massage. The really funny part… made for very little people… are you getting a visual. Now you can roll over hysterically laughing!!! Michael could not even get his all the way up! We were quite the sight! But in spite of the skimpy paper draws… we loved it.
After the massage, we needed a few things for dinner so we went to the Ole Market in the basement. Nice import store, but very pricey… a can of cream of chicken/mushroom soup is RMB47… that is over $7 a can USD. You gotta want it bad for that price!!!
I was making a new dish I found on the internet for dinner and it called for the soup… and I bought it!!! Most expensive Campbell’s I have ever purchased. I also bought a package of Provolone cheese. It was the first time since I have been here that I have seen provolone… and I had to have it!!! The good news…the dish I made was delish and everyone loved it!!! The bad news.. if made in the US… It would have only cost about $10 to make… here the cheese costs more than that! But it was all worth it for a satisfying dinner that was like being home!
Sunday… awe Sunday. I always look forward to Sunday. I love going to Abundant Grace International Fellowship. It starts my week off and makes everything seem better. And this Sunday was no different.
After church, Element Fresh for dinner…and once again, I was not disappointed. It is always comforting to know that when we go there we will have a consistently good meal. I had one of my favs… quesadillas. Umm!!!
Now on to Carrefour... It is lightly raining and it is never fun to walk in the rain. Fortunately I remembered my umbrella so it was not so bad. I had quite a list and we filled up all the bags I brought. And we bought a new vacuum cleaner. The new Ayi would be coming on Tuesday and we had taped and glued the old one until it was beyond any more repairs. But the new one sure works like a champ!
Monday proved to be a rather uneventful day until late in the day… when the sounds of a poor kitty meowing at the top of its lungs. The sound was so pitiful that I could hardly stand it. We are hearing this from the inside of our apartment. It sounded like it was in pain.
I finally gave into the meows and went outside in search of the poor baby crying so loudly. I followed the sounds until I had isolated it to a single raised bed of bushes. Then it stopped and I could not find it… then it started after I had gotten back to the sidewalk. Emma came out to help me and she was able to scoop it up. Mr. Li, one of the maintenance men from the apartments was working close by and came to see what we had found. I find it interesting that he was scared of the little kitty. He would not even touch her.
We took it back in the apartment. It was so tiny and smelled terrible. I warmed some milk and she lapped that up. Then once she had settled down, I gave her a bath to take away the stench of poop. Fortunately I had a small bottle of baby shampoo which was just what I needed. She hated the bath during it…but seemed to perk up afterwards.
We put together a packing box and shredded some newspaper for her. It made a nice bed and someplace for her to go… you know… After listening to the meowing for a little while she settled in and quieted down… thankfully! We just seem to be a stray magnet... now I just need to find a new home for her!
Today the Ayi came for the first time. She arrived right at the agreed upon time, 8am. She rode her bicycle 7 km to get here. I had not really prepared for her so once she arrived I quickly picked up so that she could clean. She spent all day here and when she left I was so pleased with the job she did. Everything was cleaner than when I first moved in. She will be coming on Sunday mornings until December and then switch to Tuesdays when her Tuesday client leaves Shanghai. It will be strange having her here on Sundays, but that is what she wanted to do.
So I sit here finishing this posting and am enjoying the nice clean house. It is time for a shower and head to bed. Nothing special planned for tomorrow, but you can never tell what tomorrow might bring.
And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. Romans 8:28
Do you live a purposeful life through the power of Christ? When your purpose in life is to serve God and your fellow man, you discover the deeper meaning of life. Every day I strive to make my life count in a meaningful way… serving the Lord!
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