Absolutely LOVE this time of the year!

Last night I was at a local grocery store by my home. I was in desperate need of dish soap so I thought it would be a quick errand run. I was waiting in a line and then a grandma cut in front of me! 

It’s ok though, she only had a couple of items. It should be fast!

And here I will be practicing my Chinese typing. (Which I use on a daily basis, texting to my friends/teacher/husband!) 

As I was paying, she was still bagging her items.

SHE GRABBED MY DISH SOAP!

我：啊。。啊。。。对不起，这是我的!

她：不是，这是我的！我买了！

我：哎呀。。。请看看你的包里面

她：天吶！对不起啊！对不起啊！

我：哈哈哈！没有问题啊！我明白啊！

她：谢谢啊！谢谢！哈哈哈！

——

Pretty funny experience, I have to say. Grandma is funny, she was so nice when she realized she accidentally grabbed mine. We laughed a bit and she asked if I am a foreigner. So I said that I’m Korean and she told me how much she likes Korean dramas! HAHA. <3

I can’t write Chinese by hand too well but I definitely recognize the characters when I type them on the computer and my phone. I think it’s good practice for me and hopefully one day I can read a full book!

I’m almost done with book one in my Chinese class and can’t wait till I start on unit two!

The past few days have been rather busy. We are heading to Hong Kong this Friday and we’re visiting family, friends and eating lots of Cantonese food. (YAY!) The weather’s going to be hot and muggy, kind of like Shanghai.

The above picture is inside Plaza 66 Mall, I love the lights and their decor always makes me smile. Last night, we had dinner with a new friend E. She’s really nice, her English is quite good and she’s Shanghainese. She has a husband, who is Dutch and we instantly clicked. I believe we’ll be taking painting classes together, I think it’s traditional Chinese watercolor class but won’t know for sure until we actually go.

E, hubs and I ate at one of E’s favorite (upscale) Shanghainese restaurant. It’s inside Plaza 66 and is located on the 5th floor. Xia Mian Guan is really authentic according to our friend and is a fancy version of traditional Shanghainese food. We had dao miu (snow pea leaves and of course I wrote that the way Cantonese people would say it), fish soup that was very delicious and milky, cold appetizers and my favorite: hairy crab (and roe) with shrimp. YUM.

I would only suggest Xia Mian Guan if you’re looking for traditional Shanghainese food that is fancy and will be a lot more expensive than your regular Shanghainese places. This is great for taking people out for a treat but I would save your money and go to Chun. Hmmm… I’m not even sure if I wrote about going there, it was a great experience and the food was amazing. (Only four tables there though and very local)

Anyway, we all had a great time talking and I felt very happy to meet her. She’s really nice and it’s awesome that her English is so good! She even taught me a few Shanghainese phrases.

Hello: “Nong ho” Korean pronunciation: 농호
Thank you: “Xia Xia” is the way it’s spelled but the locals say “Xia Ya” 샤야
Good bye: “Ze Wei” 즈왜이

I’m going to try these out with our doorman and my doctors who are all Shanghainese.

I made myself lunch the other day and I stumbled onto something amazing. I had spaghetti and looked in the fridge to see what else I can eat with it. I had an avocado and greek yogurt. Guess what? It tastes buttery and creamy like an alfredo sauce! I used garlic, sea salt and ground pepper to season and it was heavenly. Healthy alternative too.

We’ll be seeing the hubby’s friends (gosh, they’ve known each other since they were in grade school) and one of them had a baby six months ago. I made a few gifts for little Sophie, a rabbit hat (with dual tone ears), a little rabbit amigurumi and a flowered headband.

The flowered headband was inspired by the mobile I made little Zoe. It’s actually the left over yarn from her mobile and I thought… hmm, wouldn’t it be pretty to make a headband using the same flowers and leaves? So I gave it a try and made it! The green adjustable strap reminds me of vines and I wanted to make it pretty so I added leaves and flowers to it as well, but at the bottom.

What do you guys think? I feel like it’s so little to give as a gift but at the same time, it took a bit of time for me to make. Plus he’s a really good friend of the hubs so I wanted to give them something I made. I would have sent them baby gifts (and I even have a blanket that I made when the baby was born) but I can’t figure out for the life of me how to send something from the post office by myself. Sad. LOL

I’ve been so tired recently, I don’t know if I’m still recovering from the surgery or what. But my body is feeling a bit run down and I’m really hoping that I’ll feel better before we go to Hong Kong on Friday!

Please send hugs, prayers, good thoughts… rainbows, glitter, unicorns…..

Ya know, happy stuff.

I was texting my teacher today and this was the first time I’ve texted a semi conversation before!

Quite proud of myself.

PS: I want to thank all of you who checked in to see if I was ok, asked me if I’m better and to those that understood that recently, I’ve been stressed out of my mind. Even though most of you are busy (and some, stressed too) you let me know you care, you love me and I appreciate that. Xo

My friend Wendy posted on her Facebook wall an article by CNNGO.com about Chinese Dining Etiquettes. I thought it would be fun to share and comment on each one based on my experience.

1. Do not rest chopsticks vertically in rice

Meaning: It’s a harbinger of death.

This is very true, the chopsticks in rice looks like a tombstone and I’ve been told many times that it’s bad luck and rude.

2. Never turn over the fish

Meaning: You’ve capsized the boat.

I didn’t know this at all but then again I don’t recall us ever turning over steamed fish. I’ll have to pay close attention next time I go eat with my in-laws!

3. Birthday noodles

Meaning: It symbolizes longevity.

This is also true in the Korean culture as well. During new years my in-laws like to eat noodles, now I know to take them on their birthdays as well.

4. Tea tapping is a must

Meaning: It’s a show of thanks.

I learned this the first time I had dim sum with my husband. He taught me that is a way to show thanks after someone pours tea into your cup. He said the reason is because it looks like bowing, use your index and middle fingers (with your other fingers tucked back) to tape the table twice.

5. Always order an even number of dishes

Meaning: Odd number of dishes symbolizes death (again).

I never noticed this before but I think we’ve always ordered even numbers. I’ll pay attention (again) when we go out to eat with my in-laws.

I find it very interesting how each culture has its own etiquettes. For instance, slurping is considered rude in western countries but in the east it shows the food is delicious!

Have you ever experienced different dining etiquettes when you traveled?

post via CNNGO.com

I can now text pretty well in Chinese! Here is my texts between my teacher and I. The content is about when to have lesson. I’m just feeling a bit proud to have made it this far in Chinese!

I can’t wait to speak and write fluently! Wish me luck!

汉语很难。该学习汉语了。
Chinese is very hard. It’s time to study Chinese.

I’ve been studying for the past two hours in a coffee shop. Another 30 minutes and then dinner with a friend!