A Few Random Pictures...

Hello all! I'm just adding a few random pictures to show you what we have been doing the past week or so. We had been doing a lot of shopping and sight seeing, so we wanted to find some fun things for the kids to do. Thanks to our neighbors, the Jagodas, we find out about all of the fun kid stuff around the city. Um, maybe it helps that he speaks Chinese. Go figure. Anyway, sometimes I can't believe they have this stuff here...I thought I was in a third world country. But, everyone keeps telling me that I need to go out of Beijing if I want the TRUE culture shock.

Kaleb, Barrett, and Savannah Jagoda at the Beijing Zoo

The next stop was the Beijing Aquarium, which is part of the Beijing Zoo. It is the largest inland aquarium in the world. It was the nicest building I've been in since coming here. The dolphin and seal show were the kids' favorite. Here are Trav, Kaleb, Barrett, and the Jagoda's (Brittany, Dan, and Savannah).

We had heard about a "nice" pool at Chouyang Park and decided to go check it out. We were leary because we had heard about the Chinese pools...Yuck. But, this one proved to be great and the kids were in heaven.

I didn't take this picture because I like Chinese men in spandex swimsuits. Rather, a funny story occurred and I had to add a visual. A group of 6-7 Chinese guys walked by us when Kaleb blurted, "Why do all of the boys here wear black underwear to swim in?" It was just a funny moment, because Brittany Jagoda and I were thinking the same thing. They are not quite spandex, not quite Speedos, and not quite biker shorts. Whatever they are, it must be the style, because they ALL wore them.

Something else interesting at the pool...we noticed that the only girls in bikinis were foreigners. But, the teeny, tiny Chinese girls all wore one piece swimsuits. Hmmm...now why is that?

Just a random pic of our day trip to the Forbidden City. I love the colors of the buildings...the pictures don't always do them justice

Another picture at the Forbidden City. It doesn't have any special meaning...I just liked it.

So, there you go...hope all is well with everyone. We love you all!