Another Day Down

Whooo, finally a good night’s sleep! Seriously, the beds at our hotel in Jinan were like sleeping on a concrete floor, okay, maybe a concrete floor with a blanket over it. They were so hard. Plus our room was like a sauna for a week. It was so hot, and we could not get the thermostat to work. We even had the hotel staff come “fix” it, but it still was very hot. Here at the Victory the beds are so much more comfortable and the room is much more bearable plus we can open our windows if needed.

We started off the day with breakfast. Let me tell ya, Kalia is a good eater. She fills up with every meal.

Yes, all three plates are hers, and yes, she finished all but a few of the tomatoes.

From there we headed to get her medical exam done. We were there fairly early and did not have to wait in a massive line.

This was during her hearing test which obviously was normal.

After the hearing test she had the physical exam which she did NOT like. She was NOT happy at all. I can’t say that I blame her. She had to take off her pants, shoes, and socks and have some strange doctor examine her. Then, they focused too much on her left foot which is an unrepaired club foot (I think). They kept making her walk back and forth and calling over more doctors to look at it. She walks pretty normal, has a slight limp, but they couldn’t figure out how to describe it in her paperwork. All I can say is that she and I were both relived when it was over.

She had her height and weight checked and a vision test. If that wasn’t enough trauma for one day, she had to get a TB test as well. So far it looks good, we go back on Monday to have it read.

After the medical exam, our guide, Richard took us to a shopping area that reminds me of Times Square in NY. There is a big jumbo tron and a McDonalds on tow of the four corners. There are shops everywhere, and shops within shops. Kalia got a few Barbie movies; the girl LOVES anything Barbie and Princess, especially moves and books. She also found a pair of boots. I have been trying to get her to buy a pair of boots but she couldn’t find anything she liked. I was thinking maybe something like the fuzzy lined, suede boots, but she apparently had something completely different in mind. She picked out a pair of white boots with bows up the side at first, and we were able to compromise and she got the black one. Still not quite what I wanted to get her, but they will work and more importantly, they made her happy.

After that we ate McDonalds and headed over to the fabric district. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but was So excited. It did not disappoint. There was fabric everywhere; I didn’t even know where to begin. I picked out three different fabrics, and several buttons and trims. I cannot wait to get home to start sewing again. (I may even need to make one more “quick” trip back to the fabric market). This stuff is so cheap here, at least half, if not more of what I would pay back home.

Other than that, it was a pretty dull day. Below are pictures that I took today around the city. Oh, I was able to find a new lens, again more than half of what I would have paid at home.

In the Cannon store making sure the new lens worked

Yes, McDonalds delivers here!