Shanghai Days: March 2014

Autumn and I sat down with a cup of hot chocolate for a little interview about her experiences since living in Shanghai. Here's what she had to say:

How do you find living in China is different from living in Canada?

I find living in China is different because people here speak lots of different languages, like Chinese. And mostly everybody has black hair. Anything else? Not really.

What do you miss most about living in Canada?

Here's what I miss about Canada: I miss my toys, my friends and my bicycle.

What is your favorite thing to do in Shanghai?

My favorite thing to do in China is to go get jianbing. [See earlier blog post entitled "Breakfast on the Street" for more about jianbing].

What is your least favorite thing about Shanghai?

My least favorite thing in Shanghai is walking. Why? Because I get tired out. Do we do more walking here than we did back home? Yeah.

Being silly while exploring our compound

What kinds of Chinese foods do you like?

My favorite kinds of food in China are noodles and jianbing. What kinds don't you like? I don't like spicy food. What is something weird that you have eaten? I have eaten pomello and octopus - green octopus. I didn't really like them. But I like pomello.

Have you made any friends here?

Yes, I have made friends named Rita and Ikwei and Natalie and April and lots others I just don't know their names. [Natalie and April are our Canadian friends, the others are local from our compound].

Natalie and Autumn playing at the little park in our compound.

What are some things you've never seen in Canada?

I've never seen poodles with clothes and tall tall buildings. Oh yeah and "popcorn flowers".

"Popcorn" flowers, as we call them, still not sure of their real name... The fragrance resembles that of lilacs

A common sight: "cinnamon" coloured poodles with clothes.

What has been your favorite outing and why?

My favorite outing in China is going to the temples because I see lots of cool statues. [See blog post "Longhua Temple"].

Cool statue found at a restaurant during one of our walks.

Let's ride an elephant!!

Do you know any Chinese words?

All the Chinese words I know are ni hao [hello] and zai jian [good-bye] and I can count up to 99. And I know "thank you" and "you're welcome" and "I don't understand".

What has been the most special thing that has happened to you since living in Shanghai?

The most specialist thing since living in Shanghai has been losing my teeth. Yes, you lost 2 teeth 4 days apart. Yep :)


Two teeth lost days apart :)

Autumn has become an expert with chopsticks in no time at all.

I'd like to add a bit more to what she has already mentioned. Well, really I'd like to brag. Autumn is such a delight. She loves to learn about new things, especially exploring in nature. She will find flowers, bugs, leaves, snail shells way before anyone else thinks to look. These are treasures to her and I find her enthusiasm and curiosity for the world around her to be a wonderful gift. She is always game to try something new, food, an activity, or meeting new people. She has already mastered using chopsticks - Lachlan, not so much ;)

Doing some hands on math

She has been growing in independence and in her care for others. We have recently joined a "Textiles Club" at the school Joe works at, so we visit once a week to do some sewing or other related projects. Autumn is quite creative and enjoys crafting with her hands, something we can enjoy together. She has a large vocabulary and often surprises us with the words she can use in the correct context and her reading and writing abilities have increased by leaps and bounds. She is also good at picking up Chinese and will tell me if she hears someone say a word or phrase that she recognized. It is such an honor to have her in our family, and for myself to have the opportunity to homeschool with her and receive that joy of watching her learn and grow.

A true beauty, inside and out :)

Written by her Proud Mama

The Longhua Temple is the oldest, largest, most active and authentic Buddhist Temple in Shanghai dedicated to the Maitreya Buddha. It was first built in 242 AD which just boggles my mind. It was later destroyed and rebuilt in 977 AD, and given a modern restoration in the 1950s still preserving it's original architectural design. It is open to visitors for a small price (less than $2 Canadian, kids free) which also includes incense. I wasn't too sure what to expect, to be honest, I have never been inside a temple of any sort before. I found myself becoming easily overwhelmed with such a sense of ancient beliefs and practices. The smell of burning incense, the huge, ornate statues, the "hush" of being in a sacred place and watching worshipers solemnly bow to the four points - North, East, South and West, then kneel and present their offerings before one or more statues. All foreign to me, but very intriguing. I wish I knew more about who each statue was and what they symbolized. We didn't see as many monks as I hoped so I didn't get a picture of them. Essentially, we just wandered around, in and out of little buildings housing anywhere from a handful to a large number of statues. The doorways are so narrow. There are beautiful lamps hanging indoors. The temple also houses a library and a little market for purchasing figurines, items made of jade, etc. It was quite a worthwhile experience for us. A point of interest is the 40' high Longhua Pagoda which is so old and fragile it is not open to visitors. It can be seen in Steven Spielberg's movie, Empire of the Sun for all you movie buffs. Another point of interest is a 2 metre high copper bell cast in 1382 and weighs 5 tons. This bell is still used to ring in the new year with the Evening Bell-Striking Ceremony, being rung 108 times on Chinese New Years Eve. Another more morbid bit of information is that this was the site of public executions of those suspected to be communists in 1927. Please enjoy the pictures and feel free to ask if you have any questions!!