Monday, April 30, 2012

Chinglish and other funChina Pics (Part 1)

1) Mrs. Colonel Sanders
2) Maybe it's Too Hot Outside
3) Police Transformer SUV
4) Tibetan Hat
5) Power In The World Club
6) Cool & Happy Children Photo Studio

Saturday, April 28, 2012

Friday, April 27, 2012

Time in Xining (cont'd) Old, New, and Present Day

This first picture shows structures from three different eras in China, Old China (right, behind trees), New China (left) and present Day China (middle background). However, so much of where we have been looks like the third picture. It seems they are always building something.

The second picture is of a giant gate to a Mosque and it seems to be from the New China Era.

The last picture is from the Old China era. It has been modified on the inside to operate as a small shop.


Time in Xining (cont'd) Martha

Martha is involved on several things in Xining. In the first picture, she is teaching English to a class of doctors, the next two pics are of a small coffee shop on campus that is called "Sweet Dew Cafe". Every Tuesday and Thursday they meet to have a warm drink and practice their English. It is a great way to meet friends and build relationships.

Time in Xining 4-17 through 4-22-12

There are many cultural differences in Xining. Here are a Mosque and a Church that are established by the government and run by government appointed leaders.

Thee are also many Tibetan Bhuddists. These are candles that are lit for offerings or prayers next to prayer wheels which are spun for good merit.

Thursday, April 26, 2012

Ariving to Xining






Flight over Xining

After hearing their hearts and speaking encouraging words together we left our friends in Shenyang and traveled to Xining (she-ning).


Martha welcomed us warmly and immediately took us to the market...





(Dragon Fruit)




(Thousand Year Eggs on left and Blue Eggs on right)

She helped us pick out some fruit...and some eggs...







Mmmm... Piggies!

But we passed on the meat.





Hoyet and Barb give the fitness park "a go"

We stayed in a guest house/apt that overlooked a "fitness park".


These are one of our favorite things about Asian cultures! And most of the time they are being used.


Every morning the the fitness park square is filled with Tibetan folk music and older Tibetan women who wave colorful fans and sashes around as they perform their cultural dance. This gave us a chance to remember their situation and to ask for them.

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Last Day in Shenyang 4-16-12

You'll find these awesome lions posting guard on several buildings all over China. They are almost always different at each building.

We stopped at an electronics store to get Maggs and I a temporary Chinese sim card for our cell phone. What we thought would be a brief encounter turned into an hour ordeal. Unfortunately we didn't have a translator, but thanks to these creative Chinese workers we were able to communicate through the computer on an online translator program! It's intriguing how exciting a conversation can be between two languages with only a computer to translate!

Our friend that we came to visit and encourage took us to the biggest market I've ever seen! Here Maggs portrays an expression that is the epitome of how one feels when discovering the vastness of this place.

Can you say "Made in China"!


Our friend is helping so many people in so many ways. She is even taking care of five children at her home and sharing good news to people all around her! She is also working on a few business ideas that will help take the good news to VERY remote areas. The place she is staying in now is to small for her vision and work, so we stopped by this place and spent some time asking Father if He would give it to her. Please join us in asking for this place too!


Later that night she took us to a place where we ate "Hot Pot". Those red dishes are thinly sliced pieces of raw meet!

You pick them off the plate and add some greens and mushrooms and put them in your "Hot Pot" until the meat browns.


Hoyet contemplates weather to eat it or not...







Tuesday, April 24, 2012

SUNDAY 4-15-12

Where'd you go on Sunday...?

Cause we went to the bar!

And even Barb went too!




.

Okay so we did really go to this Irish Bar, (not "pub") on Sunday but on Sundays they serve a lot more Jesus than alcohol! They call it "Crown Fellowship" but Nick thinks that the name "Royal Crown Fellowship" would be more appropriate for the setting. It is a registered International Fellowship with the Chinese Government.

Hoyet and Nick had an opportunity to share each for a few minutes and Barbara gave an encouraging message to our new friends and fellow foreigners from the US, Canada, Niger, and Libera.

Saturday, April 21, 2012

4-14-12




Saturday was a day of catching up. We took the morning to go search for coffee. On the way, we found MAO!

 

 

We also stopped a while and contemplated the meaning of this sign...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On Saturday evening we got to go to the street market where we saw fresh veggies…

.

Yummy market food!



 

Chicken foot…

 

This is what we call feating! Mmmm…!

Seriously though, it’s not worth the effort to pick to meat from the bones. Also, it tastes like chicken.













Also at this restaurant you can get crab, lobster, fish and...snowflakes...
It has been said that China is one big construction site.

Here's a murial of a Chinese city


Here's what much of China looks like.

Friday, April 20, 2012

A Day in Dandong 4-13-12




We stayed the night in Shenyang and had a hearty breakfast of seaweed, hard-boiled egg, cucumber and carrot slices, something pickled and heavily salted, and dumplings filled with red bean paste. Mmmm!
 
 

At the bus station we found our first koi pond!

And from there took a 3 hour bus ride to the eastern border of China. There, we visited an encouraging coffee shop called Peter’s and peered over the river to the country on the other side.



 
Great Coffee! “Best Coffee on the Border” actually!