The Great Wall

Big day in China today!

Mom, Theresa, Tina and I all put on our tennis shoes and headed to The Great Wall today. I knew it would be pretty cool (since it is great and all) but I did not expect for it to take my breath away like it did. I have seen the wall in pictures and I obviously knew it is fairly close to where we live (being that I live in Beijing) but I didn't know how incredibly magnificent it would be. The hike up to the wall was pretty rough but when we finally made it I had to literally take a step back. It was beautiful. I am lucky to live here.

There were basically 100 million stairs... if not more. I wanted to count them but I probably would have passed out had I tried. It was pretty much just an immobile stair-stepper.

The stairs just went on and on and on and on and.... you get the point.

So it was a really awesome day and we have a lot more planned for the rest of the second week with mom and Tina. Stay tuned =)

Mandarin lesson:
Chángchéng 长城 (The Great Wall)

The dynamic duo

So the dynamic duo of Mom and Tina have been here for six days now. They are currently out shopping at IKEA and finding some Chinese miracle medicine for a nasty blister I have on my foot (thanks crappy shoes) while I am at work. Since arriving in China these two have been acclimating to the conditions pretty well. It is funny to watch new people in these surroundings. It reminds me of my first impressions of China and how I thought the next year was going to be one interesting and smelly adventure. Mom and Tina are certainly enjoying the smells and so much more that this country has to offer.

The two of them decided that they were going to "rough it" and pack only minimal supplies. Of course this meant that I did not end up getting the many things I was hoping to receive from America. I am anxiously awaiting a new pair of flip flops and a t-shirt being sent from home. I am also still in the market for a fitted sheet (full or queen size) and some trouser jeans. These things may have to wait until I come home for Christmas, unfortunately.

Mom and Tina have definitely been living on a different internal clock than I do. They (well mom especially) get tired pretty early but end up waking up at the buttcrack-of-dawn.Tina has been less zombie-like than mom because she is used to having a cooky schedule being a firefighter and all. They have both been going to the park at sunrise to attempt to do watch others do tai chi and apparently they have been doing stretches and hacky sack with some of the park's regulars.

I feel bad because I have not been able to spend a lot of time with them this week. I unfortunately work Wednesday through Sunday so my days are pretty much accounted for. We joined a gym a few days ago so we have been spending our evenings at Le Wellness. Last night we decided to fore-go the gym and we went out to The Bookworm at Sanlitun for dinner. A few days in China will make you miss American food, that is for sure. Mom and Tina spent the morning with us at work today and got to watch me teach class from the window. I am happy that my classes ran smoothly and I had a 100 percent success rate in new member accumulation. It is so cute hearing my work friends call my mom Ayi Teresa (meaning Auntie Teresa). Ayi is a word we use here as a sign of respect. It is very endearing. I love when the parents and kids call me Ayi Chelsie! I am looking forward to a few days off next week and we have many adventures planned out for our time off.

So far we have had massages (mom and Tina have had several and they definitely had a little more than they bargained for), drank tea at a traditional tea house, worked out at the gym, and made dumplings with our work friends. I cannot wait for next week when the real fun begins!

It has been really nice having someone to come home to and also familiar faces from home. I think when they leave next weekend I will end up being a bit more homesick. I am really looking forward to Christmas when I can see the rest of my family and friends.

Mandarin lesson:
Lǜchá 绿茶 (green tea)

Dumplings-by-video

We took some really great footage yesterday. Please check out how incredibly awesome our coworkers/friends are!

I will post later about actually stuffing the dumplings =) We seriously had a great time yesterday!

Mandarin lesson:
Niàobù 尿布 (diaper)

Dumpling-by-photo

Today's dumpling making adventure was maybe the best time I have had in China so far. I will be blogging about dumplings a few times. Here are some photos (semi-step-by-step).

Step 1: Make the dough by mixing flour and water

Step 2: Knead the dough until it is smooth (mixing more water if needed)

Step 3: Shred and cut up needed veggies -- carrots

Step 3 continued: Chop leeks, ginger, and garlic

Step 4: Crack eggs

Step 5: Mix eggs

Step 6: Mix ground pork, egg, and salt

Step 7: Add lots of leeks

Step 8: Fry eggs

Step 9: Fry ginger

Step 10: Fry carrots with egg and ginger

Step 11: Pull dough into balls

Step 12: Flatten dough balls

Step 13: Stuff dumplings (more on this tomorrow)

Step 14: Admire all of your beautiful dumplings

Step 15: Boil your dumplings (boil water, add dumplings, bring to boil, add cold water to stop boiling, boil again - continue 3 times for meat 1 time for vegetable)

Step 16: Enjoy your dumplings with all of your friends!

Mandarin lesson:
Jiǎozi dàshī 饺子大师 (dumpling master)