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06.11.02 China Trip-Day 2 Aric woke up at 7am and got ready for work. His coworker picked him up around 7:30. Though I felt as if I barely slept a wink, I decided to get up and get ready for my complimentary breakfast. The Ramada Plaza in PuDong is a brand new hotel...built not too long ago...and it's really nice. Originally when I heard that we were staying at the Ramada, I was like *shrug* "Eh". But I was really impressed with this hotel. The whole area in PuDong is brand new and developing, so we were away from the city and in nowhere...but it's close to Aric's company. I got Ashlyn up, and we went down to breakfast. Breakfast was really yummy. It was a buffet style that had both chinese dim sum and your usual American fare -scrambled eggs, bacon, croissants, muffins, toasts, sausage, waffles, hash browns, etc...a made to order omlette station, salad bar, juice bar, and dessert table. Afterward, Ashlyn and I walked around the hotel, took some pictures, and checked out the shops, gym, spa, and indoor swimming pool. I worked out at the gym a bit and played around on all the different machines, then took the baby to the pool. She was freaking out at first and clung to me like a monkey. Then she started splashing around and enjoying herself. We were the only ones at the pool for a long time, then a couple of Indian guys showed up...in Speedos no less. hehehe We played in the water until we were both pruney then got out and headed up to the room. Ashlyn and I had a bath then Ashlyn went down for a nap. I napped a bit too, then got up and watched Channel [V] (their version of MTV/VH-1). I had a really sleepy baby on my hands...Ashlyn slept all afternoon. It must be the jet-lag. Aric got back around 6pm, and we decided to walk a few blocks to this food court thing he went to the last time he came. The wide streets were eerily desolate..only a handful of people walking or riding bikes. Occasionally a taxi, truck, or motorcylist would pass us. One thing Aric warned me about prior to coming was that pedestrians DO NOT have the right of way. Unless you're suicidal, you always yield to the bigger things. People yield to bikes, bikes yield to mopeds or motorcycles, motorcyles yield to cars, cars yield to trucks, and so on. It's pretty scary. Once
we got to CarreFour, I realized that all the people in PuDong were there!
CarreFour is like a grocery store, Target, Costco all rolled up in one.
On ground level, they have a mini-mall and huge food court. The second
level is a gigantic shopping mecca. You can get EVERYTHING there. Aric
and I walked around the food court and picked a place to eat. The food
was aiight...a bit greasy and salty, but it was damn cheap! One thing
I wasn't accustomed to was that everyone smokes. I mean, I'm no stranger
to smoke, but I can't eat when people smoke nearby. I felt kind of sick.
After dinner, we went up to the second level to buy a few drinks and
snacks to take back to the hotel. It was so crowded up there and pushing
the stroller around was difficult. Everyone stared and pointed at Ashlyn.
I didn't mind at first, but then it happened so much I had to peek in
on her to see if there was something wrong with her. Nope. *shrug*
Oh well. My stomach was starting to hurt so we got in line to pay for our stuff. The line was long and barely moved. We just stood in line and people watched. Let me just say that people in China are very aggressive and rude. I watched people hoard a sale item like vultures and yell at each other. Aric said that it's common. He noticed that regardless how much they raise their voice and get aggro, it would never go beyond yelling. We were finally next in line to pay for our stuff when I noticed some guy cut in front of me and place his items down on the conveyor. I looked at him and in a firm tone, I asked him if he was with the family in front of me. He was caught of guard, then removed his items and stood behind us. I was irritated and confused. Aric noticed that person originally standing behind us in line was futher behind in line....a bunch of new people had stealthily cut in along the way. I bet if my stomach wasn't hurting and if I didn't need to use the bathroom so bad, I would have let a dozen people cut in unsuspectingly. But when you gotta go...you gotta go! =/ Those damn Chinese! hehehe Once
we got back to the hotel, I felt better. Aric and I watched TV then
went to bed.
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