| Thursday, September 13, 2007 |
| Chinese Beaches |
We had several reasons for going...
-Our anniversary is coming up
-School is about to start and once it does, we're tied to class schedules and lesson planning
-It was our last chance for a get-a-way before the baby comes
-This is a small window of good weather for traveling
-We want to see more of China outside our city
So, we decided on Wednesday of last week that we were going to travel to a city on the coast called Qingdao for the weekend. This was one of the rare occasions when we appreciated China's last minute planning for everything. We could book tickets and hotel reservations with no trouble.
We went and had a fabulous time. The city was amazing. It had a distinct European feel to it, much different than our city, because it was once under German rule. The beaches and mountains added a touch of California feel to it as well. People traveling to China for the first time might think we're crazy to make these comparisons, because it definitely was still very Chinese, but to us it felt much different than the China we know.
We were excited to spend some time on the beach. We soon discovered that Chinese beaches are quite different from any other beaches we've been to. Notice anything about the picture below?
Yes...everyone is completely clothed! No tanning-oiled, sun-worshipping bathers here.
Their lack of skin exposure may be partly for modesty's sake but it probably mostly comes from the desire to keep their skin as light as possible. And this does not apply only to women, as you can see from the this picture.
However the little guy below is young enough and carefree enough to enjoy the beach to the fullest!!
After seeing how much attention some swimsuit-clad Europeans drew (Chinese were asking to take pictures with them) we decided to keep our white skin under wraps, thus earning ourselves some oh-so-sexy farmer's tans.
Here's a preggo shot for those who keep asking if I'm getting bigger. As you can see, I'm starting to pop out!
We had a wonderful time. It was a great way to celebrate our anniversary and begin the year. |
posted by Danielle @ 1:11 AM  |
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| 3 Comments: |
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How terrific for you both!
Danielle, you're looking great!
Mom
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I wish you guys a Happy Anniversary. Love the pictures. I'm sure it's great to see the differences between these countries firsthand, I know I enjoy seeing them secondhand. Thanks!
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Happy Anniversary! I'm glad you got some alone time after the whirlwind homecoming this summer. You both look wonderful as always.Love You, Karla
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How terrific for you both!
Danielle, you're looking great!
Mom