Simon

Last December there was a knock on our door and this wonderful man was standing there with a gift for the Millers, the BYU couple who lived in our apartment last year. Jane was here and recognized him and we invited him in a visited. He became very close to some BYU teachers a
few years ago and researched to find out what makes they special. He had to go to Hong Kong last year for some business and so while there quickly took some lessons and took care of some other necessities and now shares the most precious thing to me. We have become friends and
although we have only spent a few days around him and can not discuss common beliefs it's like family in a special way. Yesterday we went to him home town and spend the day with him.

Greater Qingdao covers a very large area. The area that he is from is a 40-minute ferry boat ride across the Yellow Sea to an arm of land called Yellow River. What a pleasant change and beautiful surprise. I have known of it all year but just assumed that it was more of the same. Apparently it was a fishing village until 1989 when the first huge factory was built there. Now much of it is an industrial area. When the winds are high or there is too much fog the ferry can't run so the government is building a huge underwater tunnel with a speed train so people will be able to get from Qingdao to Yellow Island in about 10 minutes. Presently there are ferry's full of people and cars going back and forth all day.

These star fish were just lying out drying as we got off the boat. When we went through the gate there was a girl sitting with a pile of them selling them. I don't know what they do with them and didn't get a chance to ask.

Simon was able to borrow his father's car for the day and it was great. I would never have tried to see the areas that we did by bus or without a local. We drove through a rural area with just small villages to a beautiful national park. I believe I was able to triple or perhaps quadruple my daily dish of stairs in the process but it was gradual and had landings about every 10 stairs so it wasn't too bad. The area was beautiful and I couldn't believe I was still in what many refer to as Qingdao. Where we are in the heart of 7 million this was so peaceful.

We were not left without the opportunity to enjoy some Chinglish.

Included in this park is a newly remodeled Buddhist Temple. Apparently it is one that monks are pleased to be sent to because of the beautiful area and the air conditioning in their living quarters.

For lunch we went to KFC. Out in front were these 24 accordions and some of the owners. I was sad that we weren't able to hear them play. They were the first accordions I have seen in China and I have never heard more than 2 play at the same time.

When we walked in Simon was happy to introduce us to his sister who we met by surprise. She is a professor at a University there and just got married this last October.

When you ride down a street in Qingdo there is always traffic. Usually there are about 5 lanes of traffic on a 3 lane road. We have NEVER seen beautiful wide roads with light traffic like we saw all day. Even when we went downtown it was more like being in Provo than Qingdao.

Before we headed back home we visited a very famous beach called "Golden Beach". It truly deserved its name. The sand was beautiful and golden. They had tents to rent, I guess if you want to get out of the sun, put a baby to sleep or something. There were these big circular balloons that you can get into and roll around in the waves and something like water bikes. It was foggy and windy when we were there so there was no one riding on them.

I took this picture just as we were getting back to Qingdao. We were glad that we left when we did because it was getting very foggy and we would hate to have been stuck there.

Mike has spent much of our time here looking for a hand operated cobbler's sewing machine like we often see on the streets here. Because it has no motor you can set it up and use it anywhere. It is great for stitching leather and other heavy materials and would be handy in a shop. We have had Simon and four other Chinese friends looking for places to buy them.

Simon had really done his homework and found a store that sold them in Yellow Island. He had spent most of a morning earlier in the week locating the store (it was in an apartment building so not in the place you would usually look for it.) Mike and he were in the store for over 2 hours because the first one they got out to give him wouldn't work. I sat in the car with our friends, the Shields and made plans for a trip to their place and time share in Canada in September. (Mike will learn to leave me with time on my hands.) I'm really very glad that he found one, that it is in a nice box to get home and that he has something different that he really wanted from China.