Expo 2010 Day 2

The family set out for the Expo at 7:30am on Tuesday - Mason and Regan on the electric bike and Scott driving the three wheeler with Cynthia and Landon on the back.  I am sure we were quite a sight for the early rising Chinese.  It was only about 3 kilometers to the metro station where we caught the subway to the PuDong side of the Expo.  The view of the China Pavilion filled the horizon as we joined the thousands of fellow Expo-ites for a day filled with walking, walking and more walking.  In total we took in 39 pavilions over the course of two days.  One of our favorites was Indonesia where we partook of the worlds most expensive coffee - Kopi Luwak.  One small cup was $56.  However, by purchasing this most rich cup of coffee you were treated to a luxurious coffee lounge with soft leather chairs and specially made Indonesian coconut treats. The coffee was prepared table-side in a most elaborate process that reminded me of Chemistry lab.   I would tell you what makes Kopi Luwak so special but I think you will appreciate it much more if you were to Google the term and learn first hand why this is such a delicacy.  (Yes, this blog requires a bit of homework!) We drank the coffee black and it was silky smooth in texture with just a hint of berries.  Mason and Regan even tried it but we couldn't persuade Landon.  Another favorite was the Caribbean pavilion.  It was just like going home and brought back lots of good memories.  We visited Dominica (our favorite of all the islands we visited during our time in the USVI), Jamaica, St. Kitts, Belize, Antigua and many others.  The displays were manned by local natives of each island and we had a great time talking with them and reminiscing about our days in the sun.  The Jamaican folks were especially friendly and offered us two small airport bottles of rum.  Cynthia made an off the cuff comment of "Oh thank you, we really missed this" which then brought a reply of "Well den dear you mus have de whol box den"  She disappeared for a minute in the back room and came out with a dozen bottles of rum for us (airport size of course).  We also met someone from the Shanghai Caribbean Association and got invited to their annual get together being held next month.  Apparently there is quite a large Caribbean population in Shanghai - go figure.  Mason and Regan decided to part ways with us and head back home around 2 pm.  They had no problem finding the exit gate, making their way to the subway, changing trains once, finding the scooter at the final stop and heading home - whew!  I must admit it is a bit unnerving releasing your kids to travel halfway across Shanghai but I guess it really speaks to how safe and easy it is to get around this huge city.

Cynthia, Landon and I finished the day at the New Zealand pavilion and really enjoyed all the flora and fauna that was exhibited.  I would really like to visit there someday.  We finally left the Expo around 5pm but not before Landon posed for literally 20 photographs with various Chinese.  Landon was the only 9 year old westerner for miles around and it seems the Chinese think he is sooooo cute!  Landon is a bit camera shy but he obligingly and patiently posed for all the pictures.  We finally met a young girl on the subway home who was also 9 years old.  We started talking with her in Chinese (her Dad helped translate) I was using my very basic words like counting to ten, reciting and pointing to colors.  I would count to ten in Chinese then she would count in English. I would say an animal name in Chinese and she would reply with the English name.  This went on for several stops and we became quite the source of entertainment for those around us.  An elderly Chinese man had been observing this entire exchange and finally addressed me and said that he was glad I was speaking Chinese and that the US and China are very good allies (this all came via the little girls dad translating). It was fun and made me realize how much I really want to be able to converse in the local language.

Finally, I wanted to let you know the name of the orphanage/foster care facility that we want to support with the funds raised by all of you clicking on a Google Ad on our blog page.  The group is called the Bao Bei (bao-bay) Foundation.  BaoBei Foster Home in Shanghai is a temporary home for orphans from other provinces. These children come to Shanghai to receive medical attention or to undergo medical procedures that will save their lives or restore them to health. Before and after a medical intervention, the children receive loving care at Baobei Foster Home which prepares them physically and emotionally for an intervention and helps them recuperate from it. The services of BaoBei Foster Home are free but not the medical procedures. Therefore BaoBei Foster Home depends on its volunteer network for financial support.


Once the children recuperate, they can either be placed in local foster homes or they can be returned to the orphanage from which they came. One way or the other, the children will leave BaoBei Foster Home only once they are fully recovered from the operation they needed.

I have also included a link on the blog so you can get more information - to date we have earned about $35 from the blog ads.  The price for one cleft palate operation is $400.  I would love to be able to raise that much to impact the life of one child.  Thanks for your support.