Mickey and Suzie's East Asian Trip

Haircuts will never be the same! They took 30 minutes to wash my hair because they give your scalp and head a great massage. They also have reclining seats to lay on that are much more comfortable than the ones at home. So by the time they finished I was almost asleep. Then they wrap your head tightly in a towel and take you out to the main room for your haircut. The shop is very upscale and fancy. Everything is glass and metal. They have computers at some stations where you can use the computer while they perm or dye your hair. Everyone is dressed in white and silver clothes. The girl that washed my hair sat me down, took the towel off my head and passed me off to a very "hip" looking young man who discussed with our daughter how to cut my hair. Luckily we had looked up some pictures to show him on her ipod to give him an idea. Then he started cutting with very thin sharp scissors that he takes out of his own special case. It took about 30 minutes to cut it. He did tell our daughter my hair was a little different. I think he meant I have a cowlick and my hair is wierd around one of my ears but it turned out great. I found it odd that they do not use any gel or anything. They also didn't use any curling irons. But it was a fun experience for my daughter and I. She got to talk with him while I was getting my hair cut and that really opened some doors for more converstations later. I'm the 7th person she has taken for a haircut so she's good for business.
In the late afternoon we went to the company gathering for a meeting and yarp. Then we all went to a very upscale restaurant for the famous Beijing Duck. The resturant was beautiful with paintings and oriental designs. It was several stories high. As we went in through the front doors there were 2 huge ducks. The cuisine was excellent but a little different. We had green beans that looked kind of like caterpillars. They took one green bean and wrapped it around another one. We also had kind of a corn pizza slice. No sauce just corn and a crust. It was really good. Then there were little biscuit type breads and pumpkin biscuits that were kind of like eating gummy bears. The duck was brought beside the table and carved by a chef. First they carve off a few pieces of fat for you to taste to give your approval. Then they carve the duck and place it on the table. All the food is on a giant glass lazy susan. There are also some round won ton wraps that you placed your duck on after dipping it in plum sauce. Then we each had a little dish with green onions and cut cucumber to add with the duck. Then you wrap it up and eat it. It was great! Tomorrow the massive RC Wiley type store, the museum, the Olympic store and more mixing with the local population.

Today we were guests at the home of a friend of our daughters. We met her friend and then went to her parents' home. The home was lovely and her mom is an aspiring artist who already does incredible paintings of flowers. She gave us one of her paintings. It is beautiful! Her father and I played the local Chess game. It has been years since I played western chess and this version has nine back row pieces and just five pawns and two right behind the pawns called cannons. Some pieces move the same as western chess and some were completely different. Her father helped me along the way and I lost game one anyway. He helped me again in game two and let me win one. This is so part of the culture to not embarrass a guest. It was an incredible day. Sightseeing is okay but really getting to engage the people was so meaningful and the real purpose of our trip. Our daughter had a chance to share with her mom her story. Our daughter's friend is a new B and her mom was very open. We also ate an authentic local meal with them - pig's ear I can do with out. The fish was excellent and I really enjoyed the hard boiled quail eggs.

We joined our daughters local language class today on a field trip to the provincial exhibition hall which was like a state museum of natural history. The class had three American students, a Japanese student and a Mongolian student. We took a bus to the hall and had a good cultural experience riding the local buses and observing the population. We got a good overview of the soils, plants, animals and prehistory of this province. Then after a great lunch in a hole in the wall restaurant near the university we headed to the Muslim minority market and bazaar to get that cultural experience. The vendors were not as pushy as those I have experienced in Kenya, the Seyschelles, Mexico, Madagascar, the Comoros or Peru but that may have been because our daughter speaks the local language and is a good bargainer. Tomorrow we will have supper with a a new B friend of our daughters and her family. Our first opportunity to spend time with an indigenous family and maybe share why we let our daughter travel so far from us.

Today, we slept in some as the jet lag really hit us. We had lunch at a Brazilian restaurant (like Rodisios) with a live loud band. Some local, Latin and other music. Then we went to the company supervisors apartment (the one who spoke to us at our annual meeting - he was out of the country) and I shared with the three adult workers and the supervisors four children. Then we relaxed and played a game with the two older children. We ate supper in a Muslim restaurant owned by a minority group. Then a rather calm (only two near death experiences) taxi ride home. Tomorrow we are going to class with our daughter who has a field trip to a research facility with plant and animal specimens indigenous to this province.

Today we drove out of the city for about an hour and visited the a beautiful lake. It was cool and misty so we could only see the lake and not the snow covered mountains beside the lake. It remind me of the drive up to Banff National Park and Lake Louise in the Canadian Rockies. Father's handwork in nature is just so awesome. He has manifest himself through nature in every corner of the globe. It was exciting to hear our daughter communicating with our driver in the local language especially as she shared her story with him on the drive back into the city. We could only sit quietly in the back seat and yarp for her as she shared. We ate supper at the Texas Cafe here getting good texmex all the way around here on the other side of the earth. Tomorrow we are spending time with other company people here and are getting together as is our custom on this day of the week. I will be sharing.