Can’t prove it by me!
Jun 21st 2008MomUncategorized
…IT HAD BEEN SQUID. FURTHER RESEARCH INDICATES IT WAS IN ALL PROBABILITY: COW STOMACH!!!!! This gives a whole new meaning to ordering off the menu from pictures. (If you are confused, see post “44 and still going strong….”)
Jun 20th 2008MomUncategorized
Many of the expats here have “drivers.” Well, they have NOTHING on me…. And, mine comes with beautiful blue eyes!
Jun 19th 2008MomUncategorized
Seems like only yesterday that we drove from the Salt Lake Temple up to Shoshone for a small, but rather charming, reception. To celebrate No. 44 tonight we had Hotpot in Beijing. But, going out to eat and then cooking it yourself is a different kind of celebration. You can see the steam coming up from both of our hotpots. Dad says one of our meats was squid, but I don’t think so…I mean, I hope, I hope, I hope it wasn’t.
May 4th 2008MomUncategorized
What a unique experience to have Carol all to ourselves in March. While she was here we calculated that it was a really long time ago (September of 1966) when it was last just the three of us. What a great time we had running all over Beijing with her. We even got her to fly a kite on Tiananmen Square. It was pretty foggy and she was a great sport.
Here she is with Dad at Qianmen Gate, which is actually a double gate, and in ancient times was the main entrance to the city.
And, while we girls were off shopping, etc., our Norwegian was practicing with the Bergan Norway Opera Chorus which was here to do a concert in, of course, the Forbidden City Concert Hall. So here is Carol and our favorite Norwegian after he sang with them in their concert. The concert was primarily Mozart’s Requiem. Great music and lots of fun for him to hang out with so many singers from Bergen (the ancestral home of the Larsens and the Lillevicks).
Mar 12th 2008MomUncategorized
Well, things are quite exciting in good ol’ Beijing. You can bet there is a lot of excitement about the 8/8/2008 8:08 PM event (the Opening Ceremonies for the Olympics). What? You think there is a little something going on with their lucky number 8 here? Nah! Anyway, it is very interesting to see the event locations. Behind us you will see The National Stadium, dubbed “The Bird’s Nest” (right behind our heads), and The National Swimming Center. dubbed the water “Cube,” to the left. The Bird’s Nest is better in person than in pictures and the Cube actually looks like a large ice/water cube with bubble bumps on it. It actually blends in with the sky. So Fun! And, hey, there is a Beijing bicycle thrown in for the effect.
Mar 12th 2008MomUncategorized
Over semester break we had an eventful, uplifting, and useful conference for the China Teachers Program in Hong Kong. Getting together with all the teachers and sharing ideas and experiences was great. The H.K. Temple was a particular highlight. You can see it behind us, except for A.M. on the very top. It was definitely a write-in-the-journal experience. We are so lucky to have such a supportive family which allows us to have such wonderful experiences in this far off land.
Jan 13th 2008MomUncategorized
Here we are in the Forbidden City Concert Hall after the International Festival Chorus concert of the “Bach Mass in B Minor” recently. Dad said that the music was fairly challenging and lengthy (the score was over 200 pages), but as I listened to the concert, I thought it was quite lovely. The soloists were brought in from London and all were quite good, especially the soprano, Dame Emma Kirkby. The alto soloist was male, which is fairly unusual and took a little getting used to. All in all, dressing up for the gala evening and listening to great music in this unique venue was another China experience.
Nov 4th 2007MomUncategorized
Our University (China Foreign Affairs University) took us on an outing to The Wall at Mutianyu (one of our favorite sections) last Saturday. It was a beautiful day and the sky was the bluest we have seen it since we have been here. Also, there were actually some autumn colors to enjoy.
I really liked the looks of this local sweeper in the guard tower up on the top.
But, maybe he put this one out of work?
It was a great excursion (sponsored by our waiban) for the foreign faculty. When we returned, we were treated to a meal with lots of dumplings at a restaurant near our campus.
Oct 31st 2007MomUncategorized
Cute, yet ugly and spooky, in our window. The eyes light up and flash when activated.
This one walks and makes a horrible cackling noise as well, when you clap or drop something by mistake…alarming–especially when things ‘go bump in the night.’
And, yes, they are a bit like the obnoxious, noisy toys that grandparents buy for grandchildren!
Oct 29th 2007MomUncategorized
Guys:
Mom has been, as you might imagine, experiencing a major episode of the ”halloween withdrawal” syndrome, seeing as how there isn’t pumpkin one in Northern China, a definite lack of cornstalks here in the city, and virtually no goblins or witches wandering about in the Hutongs. She did find a few noise-sensitive witches that are hanging in the window and will probably be sent home later (they cackle when you clap your hands, kinda like James’ Best Christmes present ever, the Clapper…). So, she was delighted to find traditional Chinese lanterns but with faces on them! We bought a bunch, and hung three on our balcony, to the consternation and confusion of dozens of Chinese who walk along the street under our apartment every day. Imagine their surprise when they disappear on Thursday. Hope you all have a great day on the 31st, and we will be thinking of all the buddies doing the trick-or-treating that we wish we could join in with.
Love,
Dad
As Time Goes By
Can’t prove it by me!
