Circus Barelli

I'm a bit late on the normal rounds of travel pics, but I have to say that the parts of Germany I see are far less photogenic than the parts of China that I see...so I need to make a bit more of an effort to get to the photogenic parts of the country when I'm here. However, on serious jet lag & 3 days in the office it's sometimes a bit challenging to do so. However, the first day I arrived I made a mistake and missed my turn on the way to my hotel, but was excited to see a Circus Tent just a short distance down the road! Of course that means I picked THAT side of the road to turn around in so I could check out the details...and LUCK! The Circus is in Herzogenaurach from August 22-Sept 7! So, I get to the hotel and ask them about the circus, and they hand me a free ticket! How can a girl say no to a free circus ticket? Most especially when there is a photo of a giraffe on the ticket. (Like I really even NEEDED any more enticement and they go and add a giraffe. You'd have to chain me in my room to keep me from going at this point...) So I had tentative plans with a friend on Friday night, but I emailed him and said, "the Circus is in town, so let's skip dinner and do the circus instead." There was a bit of a miscommunication and tonight he ended up driving back home to Nuremberg thinking it was in Nuremberg and we'd just meet, so he cancelled, but I was quite the happy girl to just enjoy the circus on my own anyway!


Circus Barelli apparently does not draw a huge crowd. I can't imagine why, considering even when I was leaving they gave me a big stack of discount and free tickets, so it's really a wonder the place is not packed. Free is a good price, but maybe this area of Germany is a little stodgy to enjoy a good circus?


Apparently this circus normally has a Hunde-Revue- but no Hundes appeared in the performance at all, maybe they were on required Werkscouncil holiday time... I did see the Hundes though- this was the little one:

I loved these little trailers, I though they looked like little cabooses!

Waiting for the circus to start...yes, it was just a one ring circus...

The seats were these little slanted forward wooden seats. Not at all comfortable, but there was no way I was leaving. Free ticket, Circus, with a giraffe. No hard slanted seat is going to stay me from seeing a free circus with a giraffe!

This guy was a hard act to follow. He was one of the first, and he was beautiful, but this bowing thing was pretty cool. Now might be the time to admit also that my batteries in my extra flash were dead, and the lighting kept changing, and I don't have photoshop on this computer, so the pics are as is, good or bad...!

So then this sweet horse had to lay down while a little miniature horse ran around him and finally used him as a jump...oh mercy. Have pity on a poor circus horse! What indignity!

This is one of the two clowns. They were funny but I don't know how funny since they only spoke German. The advice I received tonight: Never trust German speaking clowns. Noted. thanks!

This woman was sure sparkly up hanging from the top of the tent. It was almost enough to make me want to get a diamond studded bra like hers. Then again, what would I ever wear it with? And so far, I've never ever accidentally found myself hanging upside down in front of a circus crowd, but you just never know. Sometimes these things just happen and you don't want to not have your diamond studded bra on hand if it does...

Tune in tomorrow...where I may interrupt the run of circus pics with Prague Pics...or then again, it might just be more circus pics. You still haven't seen Francois.

Popsicle Girls

I'm off to Germany before, but wanted to post a quick pic from a picnic we had recently...

this is at the Park by Mary's house, 3 of the girls loving their popsicles- Eva, Ruby & Zoe

More from Germany!

Just bought my first SUV...

or at least that's what the reviews on the REI website said...that BOB is the SUV of the stroller world. Mary & I went this afternoon to REI to check out the BOB strollers. I had planned to get a red stroller (BOB was not a sure thing, but a possible and maybe even a likely one since REI had them on sale for 20% off), but apparently BOB's don't come in red anymore. but, they now have Orange! Seriously, how can you not smile when you have an orange stroller? Okay RED would have rocked, but I quite like the Orange version BOB. This BOB, unlike the bad BOB of the Traffic calming neighborhood meetings two years ago, promises me smooth gliding with my little girl, no bumps and no wobbles and easy packing into my car...in essence, happiness and joy every day!

Okay so perhaps the advertising didn't say exactly those things. But I have to be honest, I've seen BOB in action. (Jodie and Heidi BOTH have BOB and both Liana and Sadie seem to be quite happy happy happy little girls, so I'm taking that as a cue...) Today Mary & I checked them out at REI. We pulled, we pushed, we strolled and we spun, finally we folded and we lifted and we even removed a wheel! I came home not 100% convinced but mostly there, so I logged onto the BOB website and found a couple little online "movies" showing a BOB salesguy (let's Call him BOB S.) telling me online all about how great BOB is! BOB S. had me convinced in a heartbeat. Then I read the reviews on the REI website, and well, that's where I heard that this was the SUV of strollers. Normally that would be a complete turnoff for me, but based on the fact that it's going to be a human powered/non-gas-sucking SUV, I figured I could cope. AND- this BOB can even to hiking with me. Yay BOB! Now....bring on the Baby!

Dance for the Sun

My neighbors are from Fiji and of Indian descent. They are a wonderful family, the grandparents, twin daughters, one living with them with her daughter, the other living just a few blocks away with her husband and two sons, and a lot of family very close by. (And I benefit from the most incredibly wonderful cooking smells coming from their house!)
Often on sunny mornings I'll see the grandmother walk out to the driveway and pray facing east.
As I sit at the table eating my breakfast this always makes me smile. (Forgive the horrible photo, I was trying to do it quick so as to not be caught.) This morning I felt especially warmed to see her do this, as I noticed she was holding marigold heads in her hands as she prayed. I've been thinking a lot about this lately, how the sun plays into the lives of various people in various belief systems.
All of this made me start to think how various religions around the world all interact with each other in such similar ways. East is the direction of Mecca but it's also the direction of the rising sun and Jerusalem and Bethlehem. It is the cradle of civilization and the direction of the Sun. I have friends who are Muslim, Christian, Wiccan, Buddhist, Jewish, nothing, and other things, and the sun and the east seem to be some of the commonalities in their lives. Add to that the general desire to honor and respect others, often worship of a higher spirit or acestor spirits, and we have a similar yet diverse global religion. It only becomes a problem when people start to close their minds and say "No you're doing it wrong, this is the only way..." How can anyone say that my neighbor, with flowers in her hands facing a bright morning sun, praying to her personal god is incorrect? They cannot any more than they can say that someone saying a Summer solstice prayer to the great spirit or kneeling in a Church and praying to their God is wrong.

I recently found a CD at the library called "Dance for the Sun" by Kira Willey that is all yoga songs for kids. One of the first songs I heard from it is for the Yoga series called "Sun Salutation" and it's called "Dance for the Sun." I copied it for 3 of my friends in addition to myself! I think one may be Buddhist, one is Mormon, and one is Wiccan. Yet all 3 of these women have this in common- understanding, patience, global sympathy and open minds, as well as a love for the sun and an appreciation for Yoga. I hope that my child will love this music and we do the Sun Salutation and remember how generous the earth is and how fortunate we are to be here, and the love we have both for others around us, as well as the love we receive from others around us.

Namaste

Photos of the Wall

So this is when I realize I what I've forgotten to take photos of! I didn't get any photos when we were knee deep in pulling lathe & plaster off the wall, but you can see the remnants of the lathe
and plaster on the floor...

And I have not yet taken photos of the wall with drywall back up on it, but it is there, and so is one layer of mud. Maybe tomorrow night I'll have a free night to sand & do a second layer of mud!
When my kitchen guy comes, he will continue the wall across the side of the Microwave, so it will just go into a shelf, instead of a shelf open on two sides. In this way, my new cabinet can reach across the length of the whole wall, AND he'll be adding a shelf above the microwave for cookbooks!
Under the front of the microwave we built a box into the wall before drywalling over it, so later we'll cut the center hole out and push in a pre-built (as in, pre-built by us) built in bookshelf for more cookbooks! Nice! Finally more accessible!

Another Busy weekend...

Saturday I went swimming with friends trying to avoid the 100+ degree heat, although the water may well have been 85 degrees, we still had a great time and managed to cool down! We finished off the afternoon of swimming with a little walk down memory lane for the adults by enjoying SLUSH PUPPIES! I think the last time I had one of those I was probably about 12, and had just come from the town pool...the only difference is this time I could identify the taste was most likely Kool-aid and ice, rather than some assumed special concoction by the Slush Puppie company. Ah well....doesn't diminish all the childhood memories!



Today was the big day- I'll try to post photos tomorrow...but today my construction friend (ie:The one who helps me build in my house) and I tore lathe & plaster out of my kitchen on two walls, moved an outlet & added 3 additional outlets. We then put new drywall up, and after he left for a soccer game, I put the corner bead on and mudded the screw holes & the corners, did a little mudding on a few little spots upstairs, and finally painted some wall behind the fridge that had not been painted in 7 years. Managed to make a menu for the week, do my grocery shopping, showed one of the neighbors the remodel as he hadn't seen the house since one of his family lived in it 10 years ago or so, talked to a friend on the phone for awhile, and watched "The Last King of Scotland". All in all a VERY productive day. Now if only I had gotten laundry done too...!

Free Form Chinese Cooking

So one of the things I've learned about Chinese cooking over the years is that it's not done the same way that I have learned to cook. Compared to the average Chinese Mama, I can't cook worth a crap. I am excellent at following a recipe and I turn out some amazing meals as a result of that, and I'm also pretty good at reading recipes to determine if they are going to be good or not. I have not had a failed recipe in quite some time, because I understand much more how different flavors & textures and methods of cooking work together, so I do a pretty good job analyzing recipes before making them.

I've watched Chinese friends cook, I've taken a cooking class in China, I've watched chefs in restaurants in China, and what I can see is that there is no actual recipe or measuring spoons of any sort. In the chinese cooking class I took in Yangshuo, the girl teaching it (She was very young!), she taught us to measure ingredients in the metal spatula we also used to stir food in the wok with. We added a quarter size amount of one ingredient, a half dollar size amount of another ingredient. She would come around and say "no, too much" or "not enough"- and just know exactly how much. Of course it was perfect tasting afterwards, and when I tried to replicate at home later, my amounts were all wrong and the taste was nothing like in the class!

I've watched my friend Mei cook, and she follows the same sort of philosophy. I am astounded at the food I taste from her kitchen- she always proclaims it "so simple and not very interesting", but if I could be so lucky as to eat her cooking every night, I would in a heartbeat!

So this is how I came to have a recipe from Mei. When I was in Germany in June she made this beef and potato dish that was just amazing. She explained to me how to make it, and sent me typed out instructions via email. Tonight is my first attempt to make it.

The instructions look something like this:
peel potatoes, how much depends what you like.
cut to blocks, throw in pot with water, boil the potatoes a few minutes. cut beef ribs and marinate in some soy sauce and salt and fennel. after 6-7 minutes, fry ribs in sunflower oil, meanwhile put in ginger, garlic, rosemary, cumin, caraway, cinnamon (stick). fry until not red (Judged by look!)
Pour fried things into potatoes and steam together, first big heat, then lower heat, 2-3 hours lower heat. Judge by looking if you should pour a little bit more water or not.

So this I am referring to as "Free Form Chinese Cooking", or also known as "a Giant Leap Of Faith." I *KNOW* how this srecipe should taste! I just hope it tastes as it should! Wish me luck!

8.08.08

And now the Olympics have started. It's an interesting place I've found myself in. Lately I have been thinking about how life takes you sometimes, rather than you directing where you think you want to or might plan to go. 20 years ago, if someone told me I'd be traveling the world I would think they were crazy. I was living in a small town in a small state, and I didn't know just what I wanted to do, but I knew there must be something more.

7 years ago I was living in China for 3 months when the Olympics committee announced that the 2008 Olympics would be held in China. The joy and excitement that we all greeted this news with was pure and true. I was living in an apartment with colleagues from China, Vietnam and Indonesia, and everyone was rejoicing for such exciting news for China. I was still in China a month later when the twin towers in NY came down.

3 years ago this month I started the process to adopt my daughter from China. A process that started as an estimated 1 year undertaking, and so far has lasted 3 years and still going.

3 months ago I was in China when the Chengdu earthquake struck, killing more than 70,000 people.

In these years I have changed so much as a person. I've watched a US tragedy occur while living in China, and I've watched a Chinese tragedy while in China. Neither is better, both are unbelieveably hard when you feel so tied to both countries. I have learned more about myself than I ever thought possible. I have learned the value of solitary time and the importance of friends and family. I have learned that sometimes it's best to let life take you, rather than to dictate it's path. I have watched families form and felt helpless as families were torn apart by disaster. On the one hand, life has taken me and led me on this path. On the other hand, I have learned to be open to let it.

I have learned to take solace in quiet mountain paths, and time spent in my garden, of early morning trips to farmers market and friday afternoons berry picking, in the loud squealing giggles of 3 year olds, and the joy of true friendships. I've learned of the joy of speaking chinese in China, of hiking through bamboo forests in China and exploring temples in Thailand, and people watching all over the world. Exploring Churches and Cathedrals in Germany and Paris, and learning the Tango in a flat in Italy, of opening up and truly enjoying life because there is so much to enjoy, and so little to dislike.

When they announced the 2008 Olympics would be in China, I had no idea at the time how profoundly this would affect my life. In the past 3 years I have felt many times that the slowdown is mostly due to the Olympics and putting on a good face for the world. I am sad if that is true, but I do understand why it would be done. I have heard people say "Oh I flew back from China recently and the plane was FULL of babies adopted from China!!!" Only to find out "FULL" meant there were 5 or 6 families. Perception is key. Perception and interpretation. And this I believe is what China has tried to prevent- misinterpretation of events. I'm not angry about the longer wait. I am sad that it may mean more children need to wait longer for their forever families, but the wait has given me many opportunities. I have strengthened friendships, been able to prepare more fully for my child, and I have continued to grow as a person. I am more ready to become a Parent to my child.

Coming up on the Olympics, I have felt trepidation about how I would feel. Would I be angry? Would I be relieved to see the Olympics finish? Many people I know have struggled with similar feelings. But tonight, we gathered together, our little group of single adoptive mamas and waiting mamas to be, to watch and celebrate together the opening ceremony of the Olympics in Beijing. As I sat on the floor with one of the little girls on my lap, I felt nothing but pure joy and elation once again for China and the people of China. It was that feeling from 7 years ago, rushing back in. I also felt such extreme fortune that we were so lucky for the little ones in our lives, and how truly special they are. I leaned forward and gave Eva an extra squeeze as I thought about how these girls have already enriched my life so. We all counted down with the drummers on TV to the start, and we all rejoiced in the amazing performance put on for the opening. And I realize, that even though this wait is not what I expected, and I am indeed tired from waiting, and ready to become a parent, I can continue to wait, and see where life leads me. I will continue to learn, as long as I remember to keep my eyes open, and let life lead me.

A Village trip to the Beach

Last summer some of the village went to the beach for a 3 day weekend. We had such a great time, we decided it should be an entire week this summer, so at the end of July, several of us packed up & drove to one of the more southern beaches for a week (Or in some cases part of a week) at the beach!
Dumpling has been very nervous of the waves and generally being close enough to see the waves- however there were some sand bars one day which created some great pools for jumping in that were far enough away from the waves coming in that she was easily distracted for a little while!
This is our friend Monkey. Monkey's name is, MONKEY. Monkey has a skirt, therefore she must be a girl, but we continually kept referring to her as "him" by accident this weekend. I don't know how since she was also wearing a pink unicorn shirt. But hopefully by now we all have it right, MONKEY is most decidedly a SHE MONKEY and not a HE MONKEY.
We had pretty amazing weather for most of the week, although it did rain one day. Dumpling, Zoe & Eva were the only 3 little ones left by the time we had our rainy day, and they had a wonderful time running on the deck in the rain. Probably all the more fun since I think they kind of guessed it was a "special vacation" thing to do and they were not getting in trouble for being out in the rain! Afterwards the 3 little girls got to take a bath together which of course was great fun for them! The "Baby burrito sisters" Zoe & Eva below:
Eva, Dumpling & Zoe on the beach by the "living room on the beach." We didn't encourage them to actually go inside it though, as we weren't sure they had followed strict building code requirements...

Dumpling & Mama on the beach
Eva & I after a little playing in the waves
Zoe was fascinated by the crab shells on the beach- she collected many and we all ended up with a few in our pockets by the end of this beach walk!
3 little girls early in the morning! Once we had been there several days and we all got into the swing of a routine, we had a morning routine. I would be up first and in the kitchen ready to start the coffee. Zoe would peek her head out the door to see if I was there, then run around the bar into the kitchen and give me a big hug. I'd scoop her up and give her a big good morning hug and we'd talk for a minute. Then she'd hop down and about 1 or 2 minutes later Eva's head would pop out the door and she too would race around the bar, and I'd scoop her up in my arms and get another wonderful good morning hug and we'd talk for a few minutes. Then I'd put her down & get on with the coffee, and within a few minutes, I'd hear footsteps on the stairs, and soon Dumpling's head would pop up from the stairs and when she saw me SHE would race around the bar into the kitchen, and I'd scoop her up in a big hug and we'd talk for a few minutes. After the coffee was going, we 4 would go into the living room and sit and talk or read books. The mommies followed shortly after, but I think they relished the few extra minutes where they were not being bounced on or begged out of bed!
This beach house that I rent has an indoor sandbox- the girls had a great time playing in it on a couple of occasions. It's especially handy when it's grey or cool at the beach and it looks like it's going to rain!

For the first weekend, we had Chris with Hazel & Ruby as well, but unfortunately they could not stay the whole week! Below Zoe, Eva & Ruby wait for the waves to come in.
Hazel often looks so serious in photos-sometimes I just wonder what grand thoughts she is thinking!
Ruby sporting her "Vacation necklace." The idea started because they saw the necklace I was wearing and asked about it. I explained, "this is my vacation necklace. I wear it when I'm on vacation." It's funny really- I made it when I took a backpacking trip around China about 5 years ago. I had never been backpacking before, and I wanted something that I could consider "kinda hippy" for the trip- so I made a very simple necklace on elastic with blue glass beads. All the same size, mostly around the same color. Since then I always keep it with my travel toiletries, and I wear it only when I'm officially on vacation. So the girls thought this was a great idea, so we went in search of beads and made napkin rings for all of us, as well as vacation necklaces for everyone at the beach (Even the Mamas!) Later we also made vacation bracelets for the last 3 girls who were there...
I love this photo- sisters...