Beijing Part III

I'm going to wrap up the posts about our Beijing trip with a few more pictures highlighting my favorite parts of it. 

We spent one afternoon exploring Beijing's modern art district. The area is called Beijing 798 Art Zone, and it's full of old armory warehouses converted into galleries. Funky cafes and shops line the streets, and art is available for purchase. We had a great time checking out all the funky paintings and sculptures. Unfortunately, we couldn't afford any originals.

We also traveled to the Summer Palace. Although it was picturesque, it was also extremely crowded, which made it pretty much impossible to enjoy. 

We climbed to the top and enjoyed a view of the lake surrounding the palace.

Here we are in front of the lake at the Summer Palace. There were so many people there, but you can't even tell in this photo. 

One of my favorite attractions was the Temple of Heaven.  It's a beautiful building and nothing more than that to me.

The coolest part about the Temple of Heaven is the huge park surrounding it. It's so full of activity. We saw old couples dancing, kids playing badminton, people practicing thai chi, Travis ran into some kung-fu fighters and lots of aerobics classes were taking place, too.  

I don't have any pictures of my favorite part of the trip, seeing a Chinese acrobat show. I actually obeyed the staff's request to not take any pictures unlike many of the audience members. I purchased the cheapest tickets available, but somehow we ended up three rows from the stage, dead center. It was the most incredible show I've ever seen. My chin was on the floor the entire time. I couldn't believe what I was seeing. There were pretty much no safety measures implemented, and I had to try hard not to scream. I was so nervous watching the show, but it was truly incredible. If you go to Beijing, please go and see the acrobats.

The last picture is of a sign outside the Silk Market that I found rather amusing. Maybe you will, too. 

As always, thanks for reading about our trip. If you're considering a trip, Beijing is definitely worth the effort. It's dirty and polluted, but it's full of history, lively and inexpensive. And, most importantly, the food is delicious.

Beijing Part II

One of my favorite parts of traveling is eating. Well, actually, eating is my favorite thing to do. Period. I love food and especially trying new foods. I'm not as adventurous as Travis, but I loved the food in China. It was so flavorful, and I'm happy to report, we never got sick. Just thought I'd share a few photos of some of the dishes I enjoyed most.

This photo is of one of the Peking duck meals we enjoyed. Peking is another name for Beijing. In Japanese, for instance, Beijing is Peking. Anyway, it was delicious, and it's served sort of fajita-style. You place the duck in very thin pancakes and add plum sauce and cucumber slices. Delightful.

It doesn't look too appetizing, but this dish consisted of mashed potatoes and cabbage, two of my very favorite foods.

Most of the food we enjoyed in Beijing was spicy! Look at all of that chili sauce. This dish was chicken with red chili sauce.

We ate these on a couple of occasions. I can't remember what they're called, but they are fried spring rolls with potato inside. The ends are capped with roasted sesame seeds.

Mutton is very popular in Beijing. This dish consisted of lamb spare ribs, I believe, with lots of chopped peppers. 

One evening we went to Beijing's famous snack street, which I have recently been told appeared on the Amazing Race. We saw all kinds of crazy things on sticks-sharks, centipedes, star fish, snakes, venison kidneys and LOTS of bugs. While there, Travis proceeded to indulge in one of the snacks. Enjoy the video below.

Pardon my commentary. I was a bit disgusted despite having seen him eat several abnormal items on many occasions.

Knock-offs also abound in Beijing. There are so many. I really don't understand how they can be sold. We saw everything you could imagine-knock-off make-up, iPhones, jewelry, shoes, tools, toys, everything! And, it doesn't stop at clothes and electronics.

Notice a resemblance?

How about with this one?

Happy Mother's Day, Mommy!

Just wanted to take a second to wish my mommy a Happy Mother's Day! Those of you who know her know how awesome she is, but for those of you who don't, allow me to tell you. My mom is truly an amazing woman. I could go on and on about her forever. She is extremely giving and selfless. (In fact, my dad warned Travis when he asked for my hand in marriage that I don't have a servant's heart like my mother. Ha! It is true, though. I don't even come close.) Anyway, she is a great mom and friend to me and makes me laugh. She faithfully prays for me, and if you know her, she is most likely praying for you, too. She doesn't care about what's popular, just what's right. She has done so much for me in my short 25 years on this earth, and she continues to help us out on a daily basis. She helps sort our U.S. mail, ships us stuff, lets us leave our furniture with her, she bought my car when we moved, she lets Skittle live with her while we're in Japan, and there's a lot more that she'll probably remind me of later. :)

Mom, thanks for everything you do for me and our family! Thanks for birthing me, too. I'm sorry for being huge when I was born.

*Photo by the one and only, Brett Laxton.

Beijing Part I

We've been back from Beijing for a few days now, but I'm just now getting around to blogging. I thought about blogging several times, but I never knew where to start, and I still don't. We crammed so much into five days! Instead of trying to capture it in one post, I'm going to break it into a few. Hope you don't mind.

I'll start by saying we had an amazing trip. It surpassed my expectations, and it was filled with surprises-some welcomed and others, well, not so welcomed. 

On another note, I'm continually amazed by how many people lump China, Korea, Taiwan, Malaysia, Japan and other Asian countries into the same category assuming they're all the same. I will be the first to admit that I never realized how different and unique each of the countries are from one another until moving here. The contrast is astounding. Especially in the case of China and Japan. I would almost describe them as completely opposite. In fact, I think America is more similar to China than Japan is similar to China. I'm not saying America is similar to China, just that it's more similar to China than Japan is to China. Kapeesh? So, please, for the love of Pete, don't ask me how I like living in China, ok? I live in Japan. Not China. Not that I would mind living in China. I think I could hang. Just trying to make the point that they are VERY different countries. 

Ok, enough of that ramble and onto the good stuff...

We began our first morning in Beijing with a walk to Tiananmen Square. We were neither prepared for the crowd that awaited us nor the amount of trash-can spitting we would encounter. Spitting in China is quite common, but at Tiananmen Square, it's strictly reserved for the many trash cans throughout the square. It was an interesting place to be, and we were quickly made aware of the pride Chinese people have in their country. Or at least they did a great job of making it appear as so. Lots of flag-waving, etc.

This picture was taken at Tiananmen Square. 

Across the street from Tiananmen Square is the Forbidden City. We went there next. Well, actually, we took an accidental detour to a tulip garden first. We thought we were entering the Forbidden City, but we actually ended up paying to enter a huge tulip display. I dig tulips so all was okay. Plus, we got to see our first Chinese argument there. I must say I really loved the public display of emotions in China. In Japan, people are generally very reserved so it was quite refreshing to hear someone get angry and start screaming at the gardeners for not allowing them to trample hundreds of tulips in order to capture a great photo.

After some Chinese tulip admiring, off to the Forbidden City we went. We visited China during Golden Week so everywhere was CROWDED. We experienced our first queue at the Forbidden City, or shall I say lack of queue. It didn't take us long to realize we were going to have to throw some 'bows to hold our places in line. Again, it was actually a bit amusing because in Japan, it seems like most people love to line up for everything. It's so organized here. In China, it's the total opposite. If you turn your head for one second, several people have already cut in front of you. Might get old after a while, but I kind of liked plowing through when I had the chance.

Here I am in the Forbidden City throwing up the perfunctory peace sign.

The next day, we headed to the Great Wall. Prior to our trip, I worked my tooshie off to make sure everything was in order, or so I thought. Travis and I try to stay away from organized tours as much as possible because we typically find great satisfaction in figuring things out. Except, of course, when things go array.

We woke up early and prepared to meet a driver I hired to take us to the Great Wall. After he was about fifteen minutes late, I decided we should try to call him. So, the receptionist at the front desk helped me out. Once on the phone with him, he told me he had forgotten. What?! How could he have forgotten? We only exchanged about ten e-mails discussing the time, date and cost. Ugh. It wasn't a huge deal because he ended up arriving within 45 minutes, but I quickly understood the importance of follow-up. Always follow up. Always.

The ride to the Great Wall was absolutely terrifying. I can't even begin to describe the death defying acts our driver performed. Just imagine a two-and-a-half hour game of chicken. That is what we endured. After a while, I just decided to close my eyes. 

We finally arrived to the Mutianyu section of the Great Wall. It was raining. Grrr... Did we have an umbrella? Of course not! Lucky for us, about 47 stalls waiting to pounce on wet tourists awaited. So, we bought an overpriced umbrella. I commented on the fact that although it was expensive, it seemed like a really nice one. It was big enough to share, seemed heavy-duty and was even kind of cute.

As soon as we got to the top, it broke. Welcome to China, Jessica and Travis. There we were on top of the Great Wall with no umbrella and soaking wet. It was awesome. Ok, I'm exaggerating. It wasn't raining all that hard. It was mostly a steady sprinkle, but it was chilly and windy!

Fortunately for us, the rain subsided within about half an hour, and we were able to enjoy the beauty surrounding the Great Wall. We had a wonderful time climbing to the highest point and soaking up the experience. I even consumed a pricey and expired Snickers bar atop it.

We really went to the Great Wall! Yes!

It was absolutely beautiful. This picture isn't the best one since there was a rain drop on my lens, but I am too lazy to try and re-upload another one so just take my word for it. I really wasn't expecting it to be as pretty as it was, but it was just amazing. The mountains surrounding it were spectacular, and it's just sooo long.

After the Great Wall climb, we were famished. Our driver took us to a dumpling restaurant away from the tourist traps. It was quite an experience. The restaurant didn't exactly meet American health code standards or even come close, but we closed our eyes and shared thirty of the most delicious lamb, pork and beef dumplings I've ever eaten. I love Chinese food.

Next stop, Olympic Park. Despite the white-knuckle ride, I was able to take a short nap on the way back to Beijing. Just continuing to prove my inexplicable ability to sleep in almost any situation. It's quite a talent, I tell you.

Here's a picture of the Bird's Nest, which you probably remember from the 2008 Olympics. We weren't able to go inside because Jackie Chan was there practicing for a concert. Go figure.

Well, I think I'm going to have to wrap things up. I'll write more about Beijing soon. Thanks for reading!

Welcome to the world, Jensen!

Konnichiwa from Tokyo! Just sitting here in the lounge at Narita airport awaiting our flight to Beijing, and I have some fabulous news to share with you!

Jensen Kate Thornsberry was born today! She's a beauty. Weighs 5 lbs. 11 oz. My brother had his laptop in Holli's birthing suite so he Skyped us in. We got to say hello to everyone before Jensen was born. Then, we had to leave to head to the airport in Nagoya. Once we arrived at the airport, we quickly hooked the computer up to the Internet and called them back to hear the most beautiful cry in the background! And, of course we got to see her precious little face. It was incredible to be a part of such an awesome time for my family. Sad I can't hold her, but I'm so grateful I got to see her when she was only one hour old. Thank goodness for technology these days. It certainly makes living abroad much easier. I am so ecstatic to be an aunt again. I love my nieces and nephew to pieces. And, my brother and Holli are awesome parents. What a great day!

Here we go again

Tomorrow we're leaving for Beijing! So, I most likely won't be blogging for a week or so. Check back soon for pictures from our trip.

Move over, Martha!

Since moving to Japan, we have, of course, missed a few things from home. On the top of that list is biscuits and sausage gravy or should I say, was the top on that list. I am happy to report that we successfully created a delicious Ozarks breakfast yesterday morning.

Thanks to a couple friends here, they passed along a delicious breakfast sausage recipe. We combined some spices and ground pork. The tricky part was the biscuits. Travis bought some buttermilk biscuit Bisquick mix last time we were home knowing full and well we don't have an oven here. It pained me to see the mix every time I opened the cabinet door. Until we decided to give them a shot on our gas stove. I know this isn't the most novel concept, but for us, it was. We successfully cooked the biscuits in a frying pan with a lid. And, alas, we had the most amazing sausage patties, biscuits and sausage gravy. It can be done. No Jimmy Dean and no oven.

After the biscuits and gravy breakfast, I got really crazy. My mom sent me a carrot cake mix with cream cheese frosting for my birthday. She knows we don't have an oven, but she thought I could take it to a friend's house to bake it. 

For a few weeks, I opened the cabinet door to hear the cream cheese frosting mocking me. I often considered ripping off the foiled seal, grabbing a spoon and devouring it, sans cake. But, because I have incredible self-control, I resisted. Until yesterday.

After seeing the success of the biscuits, I decided to try baking the cake on the stovetop in a sauce pan. And, after two rounds of baking, it worked. Only took about 15 minutes for each layer. It's the most delicious cake I have ever tasted. It's extremely moist because of the lid used while baking, I suppose. So, I must say, the Hartman House is a happy place to be this weekend. Take that, oven.