Lily Beth

(Above) Three pictures of shops in the marketplace.  The first is an alley of shops with various items.  The middle picture shows a couple of shops selling some kind of grains and nuts.  There were many of these shops on this street.  I'm not sure what the grains and nuts are, but they were VERY fragrant and not necessarily pleasant.  The third shot above is on a street of shops with dry goods - a shoe shop next to a lighting fixtures shop.  (Left) Every once in a while, between shops, you can see an alley of residences.  It's hard to photograph or see much, but you get the idea.  You might also have noticed the living spaces above the shops in the other 3 pictures above.

I really wasn’t shopping today, but when I passed a children’s clothing shop, I couldn’t resist getting a little something for Lily. Besides, the shop was air-conditioned! The young lady who waited on me was very helpful and she and I had a good time picking out a few things, despite the communication barrier. The other girls in the shop enjoyed looking at Lily, making her Daddy proud. We ended up with a dressy dress and complementing jacket, a casual dress, a t-shirt and a pair of shoes for 156 Yuan (a whopping 20 bucks – and they wouldn’t even bargain!). After that, we wandered around for a while longer past butcher shops, fish shops, shops for other foods, clothing, toys, hardware, and just about anything else you can think of. The streets are lined with them – it is so interesting! Lily simply amazed me. For part of our walk, she slept in the stroller. For the rest of it, she sat quietly, taking in all the sights. Only once did she complain a little, so I gave her her tippy cup and she sipped on it happily the rest of the time we were out. She didn’t even mess her diaper – BONUS!!

This is a very large shop, compared to may others along this street.  We're in the back of the shop by the cashier.  If you look towards the top of the photo, you can see the light at the open entry way.  Also, only half the store is pictured.  The wall of clothing running up the left side of the picture is a dividing wall from the other side of the store - just as large.  On that side, is mainly girls clothes; this side is mostly for boys.  You can get an idea of how tiny some of the people are here from this picture.  I really had to "scrunch" down to get in the picture with our salesperson!

At about 2:30, we made it back to the hotel and Dilla was feeling better. She took Lily for a while and Justin went out with the Obnamia’s to the Beijing Street Mall, where Dilla, Lily and he had been the night before. Lynn wanted to do some more shopping, including getting a watch. When I told her and Rey about our experience yesterday, they wanted to check it out, too. I had so much fun, I tagged along with them, and their kids. We had a blast! And wouldn’t you know it – I couldn’t help playing the bargaining game again, and ended up with another couple of watches for Dilla and me, too!

"A picture is worth (two) words . . ."  - "Big Mac", "Spicy Chicken", "Chicken Nuggets", "Fish Sandwich", "Medium Fries" . . . you get the picture! 

By the time we made it back to the hotel, it was dinnertime. We were all pretty hungry and went out together to a Western style restaurant. It is the Obnamia’s last night here. They will leave tomorrow evening, after the oath-taking ceremony at the US Consulate tomorrow afternoon. As a matter of fact, tomorrow is our last full day here, as our journey home will begin very early Thursday morning. It’s been a long trip; we’re near the end, and looking forward to coming home.

Dinner with the Obnamia's at the Station Restaurant.  We dined in an old railway car and the menu features Western Cuisine.  Dilla and Justin had steaks (they were pretty good!) and Lily enjoyed a big bowl of mashed potatoes.

After dinner in front of the restaurant

A view from the balcony on our floor of the hotel.  The difference is like night and day!