Saturday night, four international faculty (including me) were invited to attend a reception at the Shanghai Exhibition Center to celebrate Chinese independence. Formal wear required. I took the bus, but traffic was terrible (due to the holiday) and it rained the entire time. Plus I was having INCREDIBLE pain in my feet and could barely walk, and the fancy shoes didn't help. I ended up being about 15 minutes late. I went with Navin (from India, teaches Hindi); Samira (from Morocco, lives in Canada, and teaches French); and Tomasz (from Poland, teaches Polish). We had a lovely conversation in the car on the way there comparing our four cultures; I love having conversations like this in China! Learning about different countries and comparing my country to theirs has been an englightening experience. The center looked like an elegant palace, with cathedral ceilings and Russian architecture. I felt like Cinderella going to the ball. And when we walked in, the flashbulbs popped. I felt like Madonna or Lady Gaga in front of the paparazzi. This is probably the closest I'll ever come to being a celebrity! We lined up behind a red velvet rope, and then got to see all the important political figures walk out, including the Secretary General of China. The Chinese National Anthem was played. The Mayor of Shanghai made a speech, which was also translated into English as he gave it. We then got to meet the Vice Mayor of Shanghai, who spoke with us for a bit in Chinese...she had an interpreter and said very politic things, like "Shanghai is a city of diversity." And then we all got some food: the selections were good, but I wouldn't describe them as amazing: they had beef, catfish, salmon (which went quickly), and things like vegetable soup. The desserts were more remarkable--I had my first moon cake (red bean flavor! quite good). I spent most of the time chatting with my colleagues, and then the car drove us all back to our apartment. It was a lovely evening!
Sunday, Kerry and I went to brunch at the Westin on the Bund. We actually managed to get a taxi quickly--we opted for a taxi to save my feet a bit--and then arrived about twenty minutes early. We checked in and were offered sparkling wine, cider, beer, or juice. Then they began to let people in about 11:30. We were led to our table--a map was provided of the brunch area--there were TWO FLOORS of food! I began with some seafood: clams, mussels, salmon....and I even had some cheese. Then I went upstairs for some Italian and some meat (duck and pork): the gnocchi in salmon sauce was incredible. Later on I also had some Indian food (chicken and lamb), and I also had some redbean ice cream and dark chocolate mousse. All the while, they provided endless refills of Veuve Cliquot champagne. Kerry, however, did not get the champagne brunch. Amazingly, though, Kerry was one of about six people to win the raffle!!! He won a lunch for two at their Italian restaurant, Prego. So nice! A lady at the next table gave us the "thumbs up." We started chatting with her a bit: she was from Northern Ireland, she said. "I am here for three weeks and my son Gavin is spoiling me," she gushed. So friendly! While the brunch went on an orchestra played, and then we got to hear opera singers (the woman was particularly amazing), see Chinese women doing Dutch dancing (Dutch was the theme that day), watch dancers, violinists, and acrobats. Quite a show! Kerry and I loved it. We stopped in at the gift shop and bought a Westin bear, and then we took the subway and bus home (it took over 90 minutes, but I just wanted to get practice walking). A remarkable--but exhausting--day.
Here are some pictures from the brunch:
Some food from the brunch.
Me with some Chinese women dressed like Dutch girls.
Kerry is ecstatic about winning his raffle prize!!
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