On our second day with Zach, we went to the Shanghai Museum. It was pretty rainy and cold out today, but fortunately we didn't have to wait that long to get in: only about 10 minutes. We saw a lot of ancient Chinese treasures, beginning on the 4th floor (jade, furniture from the Ming and Qing dynasties, and currencies) and ending on the 1st floor (statues and bronze). Beautiful artworks all around. We noticed a lot of Westerners there! As we were coming in, one young woman asked me (in French) if I spoke French. I said I did, but our conversation soon collapsed into English. She and her boyfriend, who accompanied her, were students there. It was nice to chat with them a bit and feel useful! They had a nice museum store, too, where I bought a pen, a couple stuffed animals, and a nice photo book of the museum's pieces.
After the museum, we went to Hongkou Plaza early before dinner. We had a brief bite to eat at a place that sold wraps; I had one with breaded chicken that was pretty good but very saucy and drippy. Zach got to experience Carrefour, where Kerry bought some Kleenex and bottled water. Soon after, we went to the Shanghai Restaurant, where I managed to secure us a table about 30 minutes early. For this dinner, we had Blair and Rebecca (two students in my reading group) and Deborah (my Chinese tutor) and her three-year-old daughter join us. The food was pretty good, and MUCH cheaper than Monday's dinner: beef with oyster sauce, broccoli with garlic, mixed vegetables (bamboo with mushrooms), pan-fried soup dumplings, and sweet and sour ribs (that Zach ordered). We had a very interesting conversation, where Blair revealed that her parents have not met her white Texan boyfriend because she knows they'd disapprove, and we talked about discrimination we've experienced as gay people. Fascinating conversation. I hated for the evening to end: Deborah's little daughter was so cute, but very quiet--she barely said a word. But we had to go home so I could get ready for class the next day: saved my lectures and handouts, made my lunch, and went to bed.
Pics from our second day with Zach:
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| Jade piece, Shanghai Museum |
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| Ancient cabinet, Shanghai Museum |
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| Currency showing German influence in China, Shanghai Museum |
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| Buddha statue, Shanghai Museum |
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| Bronze jug with animals, Shanghai Museum |
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| Dinner at Shanghai Restaurant: (left to right) Rebecca, Blair, Deborah's daughter, Deborah, Zach, Kerry, me |
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