We just got back home from THE best fireworks show EVER!! When I heard that Xiamen did a long fireworks show for the trade fair I was kind of skeptical about really being able to enjoy fireworks for a whole hour. I mean seriously, 30 minutes is usually more than enough time for me. Tonight made me see that fireworks really can entertain a person for hours... really!
Our evening began with "happy hour" at the local Mexican restaurant, Coyote... the same place we had pizzas at the other night. I must admit that the food there is pretty darn good... for it being somewhere other than California or Texas, anyway! I had a couple of Budweisers and some chips and salsa... and what was especially nice is that it was all paid for by the school! Okay, so our "main purpose" was to meet and discuss ways to make the transition smoother for incoming teachers, but free food and a lot of discussion wasn't all that bad!
After dinner, we went to try and stake out a spot by the lake to watch the fireworks. There were guards roping off the sidewalk around the lake (for safety reasons or something) along with a couple of roads we really wanted to walk down (us and half the rest of China). We finally found a spot in the "front row", right where we could see the show perfectly. Or so we thought. 45 minutes (and two little boys peeing on the post next to me) later, the show began... only to realize that we totally FAILED on our choice of seating! The lake is huge, so how could we have known the show would be blocked by the trees to our right? We rushed (along with all the other people who had been standing by us) to get to the side of the lake with the best view. We were working like crazy to get some good footage for you guys to watch, so I hope you enjoy our video and pictures =) (view video in my video section)
We heard so many rumors about how long the show would go... and I even told Rex from the beginning that if it went for longer than 45 minutes that we would need to start walking home. I couldn't believe it was so good that it actually held my interest for an hour and a half!!! It was seriously finale after finale after finale! It was all to music, but most of the time the sounds around us blocked that out. SUCH an amazing show!
So I guess that China really does know how to do fireworks =-D
It's been nice having these past couple of days "off". Yesterday we did the team building thing all day long. It wasn't as bad as I thought, thankfully. We were warned to "wear comfortable, cool clothes and shoes" and to "bring plenty of sunscreen and a hat". Everyone was pretty much dreading spending a day out in the heat trying to bond with fellow teachers. Thankfully the venue was moved indoors into a room that was actually COLD and all we did was play games and do brain-teaser-type stuff all day. Not super fun (or educational) but better than doing all that in the blazing sun!
We got our last flight booked for the holiday coming up at the end of the month... we are officially going to Palawan! We fly into Coron Island and will probably spend 10 days island hopping, snorkeling, and exploring underground rivers and caves =) I'm really excited!
Speaking of boats, this weekend we're supposed to join a group of teachers to go on a mini-cruise around the Xiamen bay area. Those who went last year reported having an amazing time for an equivalent of $4 per person (for like 4 hours). I really am crossing my fingers that the waters are calm. If you remember the story about our "deep sea fishing" trip the weekend we got engaged in South Padre, you remember how well we usually do on boats. *crosses fingers* I sure hope we don't get sick!
Brittany's husband, Ross, got back from Afghanistan today! I am so happy for their little family to finally be reunited after so many months. Congrats, Clark family!
Firework festivities kept us up past bedtime, but I hope you enjoy my little update =)
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