Okay I take it all back dinner was not good. I’ve been sick for the past two days, yeah not going back to that resturant.

Also just because you don’t take your temperature to confirm that you have a fever doesn’t mean you don’t have a fever. I’m always thinking I have a fever when I don’t so I hardly ever bother checking as I figure I’m over reacting but when I finally broke down to prove to myself I didn’t have a fever, I had a fever.

I hate being sick when you are alone. At least now I have Julie. She came over and made me a wonderful dinner. Although I had to save it for today as yesterday my stomach was in no mood to eat.

Stuffed Eggplant!

Everyone dig in!

I Skyped home this morning and caught the family about to sit down for dinner. As the house is now hooked up with Wi-Fi and Ammon was already at the table I got to join in. So as I enjoyed a bowl of Chocolate & Hazelnut Museli for Friday breakfast the family had Thursday night dinner. Family dinners are what I miss most about leaving home.

Dinner as a family was not an option growing up, for which I will always be grateful. No matter how busy the schedules got with school, work and outside commitments consistent family meals were are intricate part of the Reagan household. Although I would start at the table I would rarely finish at the table in my younger years but as I grew up dinner time is something I came to cherish. It was a time for everyone to talk about their day. Heated conversations, debates and a volley of opinions were always being discussed in a less than formal manner. Anyone who has ever had the opportunity to eat with my family knows firsthand the difficulty it is to get a word in if you can’t make your self heard or keep up with the speed with which we bounce through topics.

For those who have not had the fortune of eating with my family watch the dinner scene in ‘While You Where Sleeping’ its my family’s favorite. We practically have the dialog memorized and if we find the conversation lacking at the table we just start quoting for pure entertainment. If the speed with which we race through topics isn’t dizzy enough there is always at least two conversations going with which everyone is expected to participate in both simultaneously. My mother has often apologized to guests as we rarely stop to clarify for anyone left behind.

Today’s dinner/breakfast was no different. As everyone sat down and started, guests arrived and the chaos began. Conversations started and opinions were coming from all over, those sitting, those arriving, someone was lost, new topic started, where were we, so that’s what I was trying to say, no Ammon you got that wrong, wait so that reminds me… Oh how I miss dinner as a family.

Are there any side effects I should know about?

One of my favorite dishes to order when out is edamames. The other day when shopping at my local vegetable stall I noticed they sold fresh edamames. As the dish always seemed simple I figured I’d give it a shot. Unfortunately I couldn’t get across I only wanted a small portion. So before I knew it the assistant had a generous bag on the scale and priced for purchase. Rather than muddle through an explanation I took them home and started looking up recipes. My assumption of an easy dish was soon confirmed when the average recipe suggested steaming 5-10 min then salting. I can do that.

The results was delicious and full of protein to boot. This treat has quickly become an afternoon habit. Hey it beats munching on fried potato puffs, umm don’t know how else to describe the terribly unhealthy snack I’ve become addicted to as of late.

It has only taken 22 years for me to figure out that Veggies are an acceptable snack food.

Supposedly if I did this correctly there should be a video below.

A Chinese Birthday Candle. Doubt it would be approved in the States.

Peter to the end! Left to Right Peter, Mary, Leah, Brad

 We had Peter’s goodbye dinner tonight. He’s off to Sweden to achieve the lofty goal of world peace and all – international conflict resolution masters program. But for all that we are down a Brit. I have no idea where I’m going to turn for my British English explanations now. I guess my students will no longer get the benefit of the doubt until proven wrong on British grammar. Sorry kiddos it’s Yankee English only until another Brit shows up in my circle.

After leaving Xi’an we met up with the tour group in Chengdu Saturday morning.

 That after noon we went to the Giant Panda Base. Really quick a few things I’ve learned about Pandas: 1. they are very picky eaters, there are 5 varieties of bamboo of which the Panda will only eat one. 2. they are temperamental when it comes to weather and when the weather gets warm they must stay in the AC. 3. If they give birth to twins they will only raise one and leave the second to die. 4. They refuse to adapt to their surroundings which leaves some scientist wondering why we aren’t taking a hint from mother nature and letting them go extinct.

I’ve come to decide they are just the supermodels of the animal kingdom which leaves every other animal wondering why they get so much attention when they refuse to follow the rest of the group. I’m not sorry if I see, cynical I’ve never been a real animal lover and quite frankly they are just not as cute and cuddly as I thought they were.

The Great Panda, or should I say the Great Picky Panda

No if only I could afford to spend my days like that all would be right with the world

Not the enclosures I would have imagined. But then again I grew up with the Chaffee Zoo in Fresno

The Red Panda is definitely more entertaining to look at.

Yes, I'm going to go with a member of the raccoon family on this one.

The Reserve was beautiful

 After the Panda reserve we had a wonderful dinner and then went to see a Sichuan Variety show. The different acts highlighted the various arts popular in the province as well as the China as a whole. The fist act was that of Beijing Opera. Before I’d felt inclined to go to a Beijing Opera performance as it was a traditional art of China, now I think I’ll leave that ticket available for some who, how shall I say it, appreciates that kind of ear splitting, headache inducing performance.

What's a traditional showcase with out Beijing Opera

 The Shadow puppets were quite impressive and I felt like a little kid taking pictures of each and every one. Does anyone else see Scooby Doo or is that just me?

Now that's an impressive shadow dog.

My favorite shadow puppet

 I was grateful our tour guide explained this act prior to the show as I appreciated much more understanding the context. It is a common belief that in the Sichuan province the women wear the pants. In this act the man arrived home late, after losing his shirt in yet another gambling game his wife makes him go through a series of repent acts. Each act must be complete with a full oil lamp balanced atop his head.

And who says men can't be trained...

 The first is a reenactment of a famous dialogue between a husband and wife, he must play both parts with acceptable gestures, voice inflection and so on. Another feat is that of crawling under the two benches and back again without touching the lamp with his hands.

Quite a feat, I was enthralled.

 A musical number was preformed on the Er Hu.

The Er Hu, it is beautiful to listen to.

 Face Changing is a unique performance in China. I once watched a TV special on the reigning master of face changing. He can do over 100 face changes in a single performance. The performer changes the mask so quickly it seems as if it is done by magic.

Traditional Face Changing Show

 The next morning we went to LaShan. When we returned we browsed through the Old Town in enjoying the low altitude for one final night.

My new obsession - hair sticks

Old Town Chengdu, pricey but a wonderful atmosphere.

ummm...not much I can say

 That evening we were on our own for dinner. We stumbles across a BBQ restaurant and we decided to give it a try. We didn’t exactly understand what we had gotten ourselves into but enjoyed it all the same. We soon realized it was an all you could eat buffet and Thomas and I decided to make the most of the meat selection.

All you can eat smorgasbord, and only 29kaui

Okay so not exactly following any health codes but....

 

 Katie, as a culinary student unfortunately knows all the health code rules and was horrified to see the conditions from which we selected the food. But in the end we all knew we’d eaten worse here so as long as we have Imodium who really cares.

I must admit it was a delcious meal. The seasonings were delicious and all you can eat meat, I was in heaven.

So I’m in love! Yes you read that correctly, Kayte Reagan has fallen and fallen hard. The object of my affection is a gift of the gods, the ultimate in take out food and the one thing I shall spend the rest of my life craving. The direct translation is Fire Hand!

The woman who started it all...

Yumm street food, just thinking about it makes me hungry. Hou Shou 火手is a sandwich of sorts that comes in a myriad of varieties. My two favorites, egg & pork and beef & chilies.  The filling is stuffed in a pita like bread that has been warmed.

I'd devoured half before I thought of taking a picture.

Outside of the middle school I teach at on Monday and Tuesday is the most delicious Huo Shou 火手. The woman is there every morning with here cart that is attached to her scooter. She fires up the grill and we’re in business. Plenty of grease, a herb mix to die for and a I”m in heaven. For Y2 really can you ask for anything more?

I few few weeks ago I decided to branch out and try a new variety. I think it might have eclipsed my love for egg and pork. It is juicier and the bread is always fresh rather than rewarmed.

Okay now I want one...bad.

The beef and chili is sold by the vendor next to the other woman but I’m pretty sure their related so no hard feelings for the switch.

At lunch they are not there so I go for a deep fried chicken version, smack, delicious. Oh yes, I’m in love.

The Qingdao Beer Company had a three week mini festival outside of Jusco this month. Kelly and I finaly went to check out the festivities, come to find out, on the last night. Now I know and boy am I looking forward to next year, I’ll be there everynight! The BBQ is amazing and cheap!

The entire area in front of Jusco was taken up by a massive stage and surrounding stalls.

Kelly tried her hand at darts!

The stage - the tables were packed

There were a variety of performances, from the alto clarinet to very very bad karaoke.

At one point the MC turned into a auctioner, the scrolls were beautiful.

Good Food and Excellent Company

During the summer, BBQ restaurants pop up all across town. Wendy had told me, Peter and she loved the BBQs along Shui Ke Lu. Kelly and I joined them for dinner and had a wonderful time. The BBQ restaurants are really just huge tiled areas with low tables and folding stools out front. They are a cultural phenomenon. When the evenings cool off people head to the BBQs to socialize and eat, sometimes for hours. Wendy said a single restaurant can clear over ¥50,000 a summer.

The BBQ here is delicious, skewers of thin slices of meat, vegetables and tofu. Most of the BBQ’s come from the north western province of Xinjiang. The spices are an earthy herb mixture with plenty of kick. The meat is typically mutton or goat as Xinjiang has a high Muslim population.

The game in the background.

I was shocked to find the extreme enthusiasm for soccer in China. You can’t swing a dead cat without hitting a screen playing the games at night. It seems like I’m back in Argentina. The BBQ place had a projector out front and the tables were full with engrossed fans. Peter and I stumbled through a Chinglish conversation about of favorite teams. We both agreed on Argentina!