Express Delivery In China

"Made in China" we all know how many things in America are made in China. It occurred to me that there must be some sort of "outlet" for all the products that are not quite at quality standard but how and where would I be able to find these American products for sale here in China... Thanks to colleagues at George's work we found the mother load... Taobao is the name of the website where you can find EVERYTHING and they are at China prices. Of course this is very appealing to me, the bargain shopper. It has been a great find. I needed a office chair for our computer station so Mandy, George's assistant ordered one and said to expect the express delivery on Wed. Being accustom to the Fed Ex truck sound in America I was listening carefully for the delivery at the scheduled time. No truck but I did get a phone call from the office stating that my express delivery would be there shortly. The doorbell rang. There was the delivery man with the large box with a picture of my chair. Signed the delivery slip and was looking outside for the truck... No truck just the Chinese express delivery bike! Yes, he was overloaded with packages that he as delivering that morning. Now that guy really knows the meaning of a full load! This is just one way China has become? green....

China Food- part 2

I will probably be writing quite a bit about the food in China. Going to the local supermarket (Carrefour) is an interesting experience. The first thing that you have to get use to is the smell. The Chinese are very clean people and they are constantly cleaning the store, streets, lawns, etc however with millions of people there are just weird smells that you have to get use to. I have not been able to find any local bleach type cleaning products. They use some soap but it is not very strong so when they clean it is not really "American" clean just sort of cleaner than it was before.

One photo I just have to share is of one local produce which we found to be very good and it lasts a long time. Chinese green beans, They are about 2 feet long but they are very tender. They will last for quite a few meals and the cost for this bundle was about $1.00. Next time I head to the store I will bring my camera and show you all there is to see in Chinese food shopping.....

Shopping at Carrefour (Chinese Grocery store)

Shopping in China is an interesting experience. You have the "street markets", the 7-11 type stores, ex-pat stores which sell most of the things you need from America at very inflated prices and then there is Carrefour. Carrefour is the Chinas Super Walmart. It has towels, gas grills, scooter, underware, shampoo,and then there are the groceries. You have the "open" or in America bulk section and the packaged areas. The bulk area can consist of rice bins, bean bins, dried fish bins (need to hold you nose here), cookie bins, and most interesting fresh or frozen meat-all kinds, pork, beef, fish, chicken with head and feet included. Can't really bring your kids to see that one....

Of course there is the packed food areas as well which are much more familiar to this American raised girl. However, I have never seen so much OIL in my life. We have rows of soda but Chinese have rows of frying oil.. All kinds-corn, sunflower, canola but not in little quart jars NO we are talking about 1-2 gallon jugs of the stuff. You will see a little Chinese lady riding on the back of her hubby's scooter hanging onto a jug to bring home to cook up some food!

Enjoy these photos!

Taste of China: Part 1

We wanted to give you some insight into the food of China. They really do eat different stuff than the western world. It is almost impossible to find anything canned or frozen. Chinese really do eat fresh stuff and dried foods. They eat somethings I cannot even tell what they are or were at one time. I don't think they eat cat or dogs (we have not run across any yet) of course the menus are all in Chinese so who really knows if that meat is not really chicken...A few of our favorites so far is Dragon fruit-Savannah likes this one.

George's first "real" bike ride in China

This morning I went on my first ride with the Shanghai Triathlon club. They told me it was going to be 30 – 40km and it turned out to be 90km with two guys who are near pro. Needless to say it was a tough ride and getting use to riding in traffic at speed is taxing. I almost hit a chicken and later missed hitting someone’s goose. When someone signals that there is something in the road you best heed their warning as many times it’s a missing manhole cover. All of the team mates have been in accidents since coming to Shanghai. Great..:( The roads are rough in spaces and I flatted once and need new tires. I was glad to make it home in time for church.

My first squatter

When you are desperate you must do what you don't always want to do.... I was at Carrefour (large grocery/department store) today and I really had to go.... I mean I was about to pop... So I did it.. Not a pleasant experience but I just kept thinking. I've done this many times when I was camping, out on long runs or before hikes up large mountains BUT it just doesn't seem right when you are in a public toliet to have to "squat" down and make sure to hit the water because just like in the outdoor you want to reduce the amount of splashing that happens. I have wised up and brought tissue papers in my purse after a few incidences without... Drip...drip Yeah not the fun part about China.

Made it to China

We survived the grueling trip from Seattle, Wa to Shanghai China. Started Friday, Aug. 14 at 5:30 am PST and landed in Shanghai about 5:30 pm Aug. 15th. Nothing like losing a whole day right out of the gate. Tyler and Savannah were both able to sleep quite a bit on the plane. They had some really good movies so somehow I did not get as much sleep as I had planned. Beth, Tyler's companion dog did AMAZING. She came with us on the plane, was adored by everyone on the plane especially the flight attendants, and did not have any kind of accidents or mishaps. Way to go CCI (Canine Companions for Independence). Now to get Beth, our 10 bags, wheelchair and tired children through customs and to George's apartment for our first night in Shanghai.