Rachel is part fish

She loves the water. Vacation next week at the beach/pool should be fun.

Bicycle Riding in the city

The big lights of the city are next to the old areas. Many of these areas are being torn down to put up bigger skyscrapers. We rode in and out of alley ways similar to this one. Those are residential homes lining the alley. There's an outdoor sink below the hanging laundry.

"Street food" vendors congregate in large bunches throughout the city. We stopped for a fried pancake with some green onions inside. Gerrit took a turn flipping.
I was doing about 30 MPH in this photo. : )
I like to sneak peeks into the homes on my way by. I see everything from rudimentary kitchen ovens to TVs to beds. Often I see the residents "doing life".
Xintandi is a popular expat area that caters to expats with upscale restaurants and a Starbucks. On warmer weather days, we have 10-12 riders.
To get to the big city areas, we have to cross the river. Dozens of ferries offer the chance to take a boat ride. This is the entrance to one such ferry. I think we paid about 12 cents each, including our bike.
We often see market areas where they are selling everything from meat to vegetables. Vegetables are there on the left.
This street offered more space than the alleyways.
The market areas often are very congested, creating some tight spots to squeeze through.
The older chinese women are so cute but normally very camera shy. I've found that I can catch them "off guard" when I'm moving along on my bike.

It's pleasant here, east of Tibet

Aimee and I were watching CNN international TV Friday night when a story came on about the violent protesting and anti-protesting in Tibet. After about 30 seconds, the channel blacked out. I was reminded again that freedom of speech is not in the cards here.

Beyond that sticky discussion, we've been enjoying the nice weather this weekend. Temperatures have been in the upper 50's. Here are some pictures.

David Beckham

The global phenomenon now plays for the LA Galaxy of the USA's pro league. They have played some exhibition matches worldwide simply because this Beckham fellow draws recognition of the same magnitude as Michael Jordan, Michael Jackson, and Michael W. Smith. OK, maybe I got carried away with the Michaels.

Anyway, I went to see the Galaxy play a China All-star team at Shanghai stadium. It was surpisingly entertaining. Beckham has still got some skills left and assisted on the Galaxy's first goal by lobbing a perfert placed crossing shot. It collided with a teammate's head and popped into the back of the net.

I went with a small group friend and his son. A good time was had by all, especially the chinese girls near us that screamed "DAV-ID" every time pretty boy got the ball.

Not that pictures of this guy mean much to you, but when you post a blog about David Beckham, I think pictures kinda come along for the ride.

Photo Barrage

We've been delinquent and needed a kickstart from a bed-ridden friend who tells great stories on her blog (see the "Global Meyer Minutes" on your right).

I've heard of red eye but this is a little ridiculous.
Our new favorite restaurant is the authentic Turkish one across the street from church. Anna declared it her favorite first.
The kids liked this dragon boat on the Huang Pu.
When Aimee needed to try on a new skirt at the fabric market, they prepared a typical "dressing room"

There are streets like this throughout Shanghai.
For a metropolis, Shanghai does a good job of mixing in some green space. We have been enjoying the warm (mid-40's to 50) weather.
Ice Cream is not hard to find at the Super Brand Mall. McDonald's and Dairy Queen both serve it up.
Rachel makes a nice accessory to any wardrobe lacking in "cuteness".

If you don't like baiting hooks....

A good expat friend/colleague got to witness a unique style of fishing during the Chinese New Year festival. He traveled to the hometown of one of his coworkers. His experiences were vast and adventurous. One such adventure is illustrated in the video below. And, if you look closely, you'll notice that the guy's cigarette is a key component to this style of fishing.

For the record, this style of fishing is forbidden in China just as it is in the US. And I'm sure you could find some guys in the Michigan U.P. that do the same stuff.

Happy Belated V-day

Via Noel's site, I laughed out loud at this one. You can click the image for a larger view.

Happy Chinese New Year.

As you probably know, the BIG, HUGE, GIGANTIC holiday in China is the lunar new year (not the calendar new year).

This year, I went bicycle riding into a nearby water village (canals run throughout) with a couple of friends. In China, it's appropriate to give "hong baos" or cash gifts to unmarried people, especially young children. We took the opportunity to hand out "hong baos" on our ride in the village. These children are some of the poorest in Shanghai. Their "homes" are barely heated, if at all and running water is a rare luxury. Many moms just wash their vegetables in the water canal.

I wish I had gotten pictures of the mob of children we met in the narrow alleys. Kids were coming from everywhere. Unfortunately, the small amounts of money will not be enough to raise their quality of life. But we pray that the scripture we also included in the traditional red with gold envelopes will bring the eternal life that supercedes any quality of life here on earth.
Here are some pictures from Sunday morning's ride into the water village.

Many kids who were shy at the sight of foreigners stopping to interact with them on the street. However, the nerves quickly melted when they saw the familiar red/gold envelope. Tim's chinese language skills also helped put them at ease.
These 2 girls were downright giddy after our stop. The older woman strongly encouraged them to come out for a photo.
This mother and small baby caught the excitement and actually tracked us down despite the cold weather.
Chinese mothers really layer the kids. We compare them to little Michelin men.
I grabbed this photo as we rode away. It illustrates some of the buildings that constitute the homes in this village. However, some of the homes are worse than this. Some are slightly better.

We went on an adventure to find this cool bridge. After a couple of wrong turns and some input from the locals, we found it.

You've probably seen and heard about all the snow in China. Well, that snow eventually melted in Shanghai and left lots of mud. We found some of it as we trekked through the countryside.

Catch you later.

Bode Miller look-alike spotted in Shanghai

Yo,

Yesterday, I joined a few guys from our church small group at an indoor snow ski park. It was about what we expected - a bunny hill on steroids. But, fortunately, the bunny hill had some jumps. I typically chose a 3 point landing over the more traditional (and boring) 2 point landing.
I think the pundits are going to name my trademark style, the "3 point stance". So, at the next winter X games, expect to hear...

"Check this, the dude just ripped a SICK, helicopter, whirly-bird twist, followed by an RB 3-pt stance. Unbelievable."

Here are some pictures and video.


From the bottom, looking up.
From the top, looking down.

Happy Birthday Elijah

Elijah Bruce turned 3 on Saturday, February 2. Before we get to those pictures, here are some older vintage ones of the boy we call 'Lijah.

Here are the birthday pictures below:
Double layer cake at small group party.
Elijah's favorite gift was a set of characters from his alltime (3 years now) favorite movie, CARS.
He doesn't look this happy when Anna or Rachel are within 5 feet of his new cars........Actually, we are excited that he does a good job of sharing with his sisters.
Mommy made birthday brownies on Friday. I think it took 6 gale-force blows to extinguish all the flames.
Even birthday breakfast included chocolate and more fire.

We are so blessed to have Elijah as part of our family. We are excited to see the little boy he has become and continues to be. Would you take a minute to pray for Elijah? Pray that God would draw him closer to Himself in the coming year. Also pray for Elijah's future, that he would find and follow God's plan.

Thanks.