Perspective

Lately, I have been feeling a little less than enthusiastic about being here in China. It is tough saying good-bye each year to friends who leave Shanghai in pursuit of other adventures. I am getting fed up with the lack of order and general chaos that seems to surround every insignificant endeavour. Although I am getting a slight grasp of the language, it is still frustrating to only identify minute chunks when being talked at. Being photographed every time we set foot out the door is getting really old. I am always wary of being taken advantage of because I am a foreigner. And I am tired of subsisting in this dirty city without escape.

Amidst all these negatives, I do find silver linings which give me renewed interest and show me that my attitude has a lot to do with how much I will enjoy the rest of my time here. I have been challenging myself to build into current relationships, pursue new hobbies and take more risks all in effort of self-enrichment (if that is a real word). Part of this new phase of life includes driving Autumn to school every morning on my scooter. This is mostly an enjoyable time, it proves to be quite entertaining, somewhat dangerous and adds another notch to my level of bravery. Driving in Shanghai is definitely not for the faint of heart. Besides these morning ventures, Lachlan and I will sometimes go off exploring to see if we can find a destination I have previously located on the map. This is very rewarding when successful!! Plus I can always find something I've never seen before: the lady with hair down to her ankles, the dog balancing on the back seat of his owner's motorbike, babies carted in bicycle baskets, the black lamborghini, the old man wearing jewel-encrusted round sunglasses, a massive street market that sets up every morning selling fruits, veg, meat, plants, clothes - you name it - then after a few hours disappears without a trace. I have encouraged myself to try new foods, to say "yes" more than "no", and to slow down and appreciate the present, even if that means not worrying because I am lost (physically or linguistically).

All in all, I have to remind myself to stop and smell the roses throughout the journey here. I really do have a lot going for me. Perspective is what makes all the difference. So, I have decided to include in this post photos that show the better side of my life here in Shanghai.

Downtown

Ornate rooftops 

Fresh sugar cane juice

Ancient buildings

Empty street - unheard of!!

Red jewelry at the market

Quiet water town

"Sunshine" watermelon

Mmmm... cappuccino 

Peaceful Qibao

Candy makers

Amusement park outing

Exploring a new park

Wild flowers

Written by Brenda

Family Visits

When we decided to come to Shanghai we also found out that by pure coincidence, my cousins, Charlene and Guedy and their family also were packing up and moving to China!! This being a unique situation there was no way we could pass up a couple "family visits". Since they settled in Wuhan - a city nearly 1000km inland from us in Shanghai, the kids and I took the opportunity to take the 6 hour train ride to go for trip over the American Thanksgiving holiday. It was such a lovely trip and having familiar faces greet us at the train station was such a treat!!

The kiddos L-R: Brianna, Lachlan, Autumn, Mikayla, Jaida

Yes, we made them pose for us a lot ;)

Our kids got to know each other, and even though their girls, Brianna, Mikayla, and Jaida are a little older than Autumn and Lachlan, in no time they got over their shyness and thoroughly enjoyed themselves. We got a taste of life in Wuhan which is a very different atmosphere than Shanghai. For one thing, they have a large network of friends connected with their school and church, it felt good to socialize with other families again. We took in some sights such as the Hubei (provincial) Museum and famous East Lake. But the highlight by far was just being together those few days.

My beautiful cousin and me :)

Taking the easy way to see the sights of East Lake.

East Lake

Helping set up their Christmas tree.

Shortly after Christmas, we got word from Charlene and Guedy that they were going to make a spontaneous trip into Shanghai for a few days over the New Year to visit us!! It was very exciting to host family, even though our place was not big enough to house them. We went on a few outings around town together, but once again mostly enjoyed just hanging out. Charlene and I shared some childhood memories and wanted to introduce our children to some of our heritage by means of Dutch Blitz and whipping up a batch of portzelky - a traditional Mennonite New Year's cookie (YUM!!) to complete our New Year's Party. Once again the children had tons of fun together and Joe and Guedy had a blast playing and singing the blues. It did my heart so good to be surrounded with family and we consider it to be the best part of the year so far.

Joe and Guedy providing the entertainment :)

Touring around Shangahi

Party time - Happy New Year!!

Our successful and very delicious portselky.

Written by Brenda