Xuanwu Lake

So when Jake had his week off, we went to Xuanwu Lake, a lake in Nanjing. It was a lot of fun, a little crowded, but hey it's China. I love people watching and this was a great place to do it. We got a lot of little kids testing out their English skills on us. We would say hi and then try and ask them a question. One kid had the deer in the headlights look when Jake told him he had good English. I guess that wasn't one of phrases he learned. I can releate, that is my life story in China and probably how I look most of the time! Sorry but there are A LOT of pictures.

Map of Nanjing

Me on the map

Jake found about where we live on the map

The old city wall of Nanjing

Entrance to the lake

Pretty flower towers

I thought the rock garden was pretty neat

Me with the rocks

Jake thinking 'Give me the camera and let me take the pictures.

They had this pretty cool waterfall

Me snatching one more picture of Jake

A part of the lake covered in algae

Lots of lily pads

A little of both algae and lily pads

The clean part of the lake where people take out little boats

So while we were there, a lot of couples where taking their wedding photos. This girls dress was pretty funny

Me along a hallway

In the rose garden

These were purple and gold flowers! Go Hornets and Bulldogs (Jake's and my high school colors)

Jake with the flower/plant dragons

So this isn't the first time I have seen someone break out a hammock in a public place. I guess as long as there are two trees to hang it on they're good. It seems like this is something that I need to start carrying around.

So I don't know if you can click on this picture to make it bigger, but kids don't wear diapers in China. The back part is just cut out, so when they have to go to the bathroom, they just squat wherever. Jake thought it was weird that I took a picture, but I think it is strange that their little bum is just hanging out!

On our way into the bird aviary

The English translation for things are pretty funny, so we take a lot of pictures of signs

The peacock cage...and if you look close you can see an albino one

Some more birds...you just walk through this area with a ton of different kind of birds

Me and the Emu, they actually kind of scare me!

Ropes Course

On Monday, the start of Jake's break, we decided to go to The Nanjing Massacre Museum with some of our friends (Chad, Sarah, Chaz, and Kirsten), but due to the holiday it was closed so we ended up going to this ropes course thing. This is something that is most likely not available in the US unless you sign your life away and promise you won't sue, but in China that is not the case. We had a great time riding the chair lift up and taking a toboggan slide down. At one point there was a lady there waving a red flag to tell you to slow down....but Jake just sped past her. At one point I was thinking this is something that I should probably be wearing a helmet for. After that we went on this ropes course, where you would step on swinging tires and boards, cross an area on logs, climb up a net, slide down a pole, etc... At the end, there was a metal slide (another thing that they have taken out of parks in the US) our friend Sarah sat on her jacket and slide down. She flew down the slide so fast and almost flew over a wooden railing at the end. The slant part of the slide was metal and then at the bottom it was wood, so she hit pretty hard and then flew through the air. We were all glad that nothing was seriously hurt. It was getting a little dark so the pictures aren't the best.

Fuzi Miao

Well I know I have been slacking a little on my posts, but Jake has had this entire week off, so we have been out and about seeing the sites in Nanjing. Jake and I had a date night about a week ago, we ate at this really good Italian restaurant called Bella Napoli. The menu was in English and the food was pretty tasty. We then headed over to Fuzi Miao where there is a Confucian Temple and a lot of places to shop. We then met up with some of Jake's friends talked with them while they ate. (There are a lot of food vendors along this path, with a lot of , lets just say interesting, smells). Then while we were eating, it started to pour down rain, Yang Yang ran and got one of the sun umbrellas to put at our table and we waited out the storm, since we hadn't bought umbrellas yet. By the time we got home our feet and pants were soaked, but it was a fun outing.

Jake's tasty and fancy salad at dinner

Me loving anything but Chinese food.

The street with all the shops and a lot of people.

Me and the lion outside the temple

Jake with the lion.

Me at the entrance to the temple.

Overlooking the river

It was hard to get a good picture because it was dark, but these are two dragons that are lit up along the river.

Yang Yang, got us these suckers that are made by drizzling the sugar stuff into different animals...we got the dragon one.

Yang Yang and Donny's friend (I can't remember her name). They had the horse and butterfly suckers

The Dragon...I wish I got to see them make this.

Jake devouring the dragon

Jake and Donny in the pouring rain

Jake might of been a little wet by the time we got home