Sunday in the park

Here we are in the park at Shamian Island. Nan is warming up to me. She's learning English quickly and was yelling "Hello!" while playing hide-and-seek. She and Aslen are true sisters, fighting over who gets to push the buttons in the elevator, sharing snacks and giggling. Yes Nan is shooting the peace sign at the camera. Don't know where she learned that but she does it often.

Today (Sunday) we went to visit a Buddist temple that is 700 years old. A monk-type guy was performing a blessing ritual so Aslen and Nan were officially blessed. He sang a song that sounded exactly the way you are imagining it would sound and flicked some water on their heads. Then I practiced my negotiation skills at the jade market. I'm torn because if you don't negotiate then you insult them but it's hard to forget that we're only haggling over a few dollars, and I'd really like them to have a few extra bucks. If I walk away looking like a sucker then so be it, they need the money more then I need to pay $1 less for a bracelet.

I really like it here. There are many Americans so we don't draw crowds when we go out or get a dozen camera phones flashed at us. People still want to touch Aslen's hair though. People come out of their shops to give her fans or dolls. Then we have to buy the same for Nan so there are no hard feelings (I think the shop keepers have this trick down) It's a nice rainy day, very misty and cool. Plus there is a Starbucks around the corner from the market for live eels and turtles (not a pet store). Tonight we are joining the other families for an authentic Cantonese meal. BTW, we had Thai for lunch yesterday and Nan ate about half of my green curry chicken. I figured it would be too hot for her but she loved it.