The Tanner and Katherine Chronicles: 2009

China 2009!

CHINA!! What an incredible trip. In 12 days, we visited 8 cities, flew 3 times, cruised the Yangtze River for four days, saw the Great Wall, Terra Cotta Warriors, Tiananmen Square, learned how to play the real Mahjong, set one ship cabin room on fire (with my Chi - oops), and had four knives thrown at us (by Chinese acrobats at Tanner during a performance - hilarious). Also, we now understand the very personal nature of the term "Traditional Chinese Massage" - we DO NOT recommend it, by the way. We went to a handmade oriental rug factory, a Chinese silk embroidery shop, a Jade workshop, and numerous museums.

We learned a great deal about what it's like to live in a Communist country, which of course made us so very grateful for just everything. We are so blessed to live in such a place. Our guide "Nancy" (actual name: Yuen) was very open about Chinese policies, customs and traditions, including the "one child policy" and other aspects about life there that just seem so foreign (sorry there's just no other word for it).

After 26 hours of travel and numerous Swine-Flu-Related airport delays, we were exhausted, very jet lagged, sad to return to the real world, but happy to be home. What a WONDERFUL trip!!

My Husband, The Rockstar

As anticipated, Tanner was a rock star in China. People kept coming up to him on the street and asking for photos. Finally, I started taking pics of all of these people with him too.

Ming Tombs

The emporers from the Ming dynasty are buried here. My husband was not in a very reverent mood. I should've titled this entry "Tanner Drinks 120-proof 'Chinese Firewater' at Lunch, Hilarity Ensues."

J'adore Beijing

I think Beijing may have been our favorite city.

Tiananmen Square was just HUGE. I didn't expect it to be as big as it was.

Tanner and me with Chairman Mao.

This is of one of the "five star bathrooms" in Tiananmen Square (yes, there's a star-rating system for the facilities). I took this right before I decided I could hold it until we got back to the hotel.

We went to the Great Wall!! Technically it was more climb than walk, and since I had the bright idea to wear a dress and flipflops, the 60 to 85 degree incline was much more of a challenge than I expected. The trek was well worth it though and I'll never forget the view from atop the fire-watching tower.

So two priests, a banker, and a blonde set out to climb the Great Wall...

His name is Tanner.

The Forbidden City.

The Emporers' Throne in the Forbidden City.

The roof of a pagoda at the Summer Palace.

This walkway around the Summer Palace was more than a mile long.

The boat we took to get to the Summer Palace.

"You buy watch? Yes?"

Tanner, you're doing it wrong.

The Bird's Nest!

Tanner's face pretty much the whole trip.

Peking duck in Peking!

At the Peking Opera. (His name is still Tanner.)

It would be awesome if I knew how to do this. It was one of the coolest things.

The Peking Opera consisted of an all-male cast screeching Chinese in falseto. It was truly painful.

Terra Cotta Warriors and Kung Fu Pandas!

No relation.

We saw the Terra Cotta Warriors - Tanner's favorite part of the trip! The farmer who actually discovered the relics was signing his book there. Unfortunately we couldn't get a photo because he thinks camera flashes will burn his eyebrows off and holds a fan over his face to prevent people from taking pictures. I think some parts of this story may have gotten lost in translation.

We visited a school in Yueying, and the kids there were adorable. 65 kids per classroom, no air conditioning - I can't wait to tell my teacher friends all about it.

The one I wanted.

The Tree of Enlightenment. (Not really.)

A Kung Fu Panda!! This was at the Chongqing zoo, where we disembarked the ship before flying to Xian for Terra Cotta Warriors.

The phrase "all the tea in China" now holds new meaning for me. There really is A LOT of tea in China!

Toddlers and babies in China all had their little pants split front to back like this for easy diaper access. This child was one of the few who actually had a diaper on. Most were going, shall we say, "commando."

Yangtze River and 3 Gorges Dam

This was a performance on relics of some kind of bells. It sounded nothing like handbells.

Going through the Three Gorges on the Yangzte. This was just breathtaking. There are no words.

A cave in one of the Gorges.

These pictures don't do the Gorges justice because they were SO massive.

Our boat was thisclose to the side of the dam as we went through the locks. We could put our hands on the wall from our balcony.

The Three Gorges Dam - from the top. And Tanner never tired of the whole "dam" thing. Sampling: "What time does the DAM lecture start?" "Could I please have a DAM brochure?" "Do they sell any DAM beer in this place?" Seriously it never got old. Really it didn't.

DAM those are some good looking people. (sorry, I couldn't help myself.)

People were washing their cars in the Yangtze.

Tanner with Miss Lucy, one of our favorite trip friends.

This was an abandoned monastery on the banks of the Yangtze. It was literally crawling with hundreds of monkeys. If you look closely at this photo you can see them sitting on the wall.