Day 8 - Change of Scenery
Once again, the kids wake us up at the break of dawn. All five of them are sleeping in the same room, and it's really a hoot to see how they get themselves arranged. Here are three sleeping in one mattress.
This was our day to spend with the Pagels, so Jon and Amy took us to eat at one of their favorite restaurants: Marvin's. Another small restaurant on the side of the sidewalk, it was very busy the whole time we were there.
The food was great, and we waited there to meet Alicia Edwards, Allison Edwards, Bethanie Pagel, and Cole Edwards. Jon took the kids to the park while Amy, David, and Sandy walked through the day market. Think a farmer's market with everything imaginable for sale that a person could grow or cook. Raw fish and pork, fruits and vegetables, clothing, and even incense and god money were there. The people selling their stuff are hard workers, some of them family operations. This couple had brought their kids for the day, and apparently enjoyed posing for this picture.
The fruits and vegetables looked delicious. Some of the meat wasn't as appetizing.
This picture brings back bad memories from my childhood. At least we would chop the heads off. They needed something to put the hook through. Amy tells me they cook the chicken with the head still on. She isn't sure if they eat it or not.
I stayed away from the meat and bought an apple.
The girls went off to get Anna's hair fixed. She received a special hairstyle to make her match the other little girls. The hair stylists did it for free and even gave the girls free cookies while they waited.
Anna really enjoyed spending some time with girls after being stuck with the boys all week.
Bethanie walked us from the Edwards' to the Pagel's (about 5 minutes away). For an 8 year old, she has a lot of confidence navigating the part of the city we were in. Of course our kids were glad to see a new houseful of toys, and we were happy to see the Pagels for the first time in over a year. After Angie fed the baby, they took us down to their favorite restaurant ("Fried Rice Heaven"). What a selection of food! Scott ordered a variety, and it was all delicious. We had some fried dofu, pepper chicken, fish, egg something, beef and empty heart vegetable, fried rice, and who knows what else. All of it was super!
Dessert was green bean soup. On the way out the door, they remembered that we were supposed to have it for the close of the meal. I prepared myself for some hot broth with long green beans in it. It sounded interesting, but not offensive. In reality, it was completely different. Scott and Angie have learned to like it. I possibly could if I tried it a few more times, but my first impression was that there were too many things wrong with green bean soup. The soup was cold, not hot. They weren't even green beans like we have, but more like split peas. The flavor was kind of sweet, but not really. And it was served at the end of the meal, instead of the beginning or during the meal. This is probably the only thing I've eaten on the trip that I couldn't enjoy. Sandy thought it was ok. This picture shows you what it looks like and what I thought of it.
After lunch, we returned to the apartment for a few minutes, then Scott and David went to a place elsewhere in town loaded with computer and technology stores. It was like having any computer part or system you might need at your finger tips. The hot items seem to be MP3 players and cell phones. I saw a really nice butane torch that I wanted to buy for soldering. The man told me it would be good for lighting incense and god money. I resisted the temptation, afraid of what things I might set on fire with it. So I went to another booth and bought a new flashlight. I saw more laptops in one afternoon than I could count. Each store would have dozens, and we walked through a couple of dozen stores, at least. The stores also had movies, video games, books, and anything else technology related.
While Scott and David were shopping, Sandy and Angie were catching up on life at the apartment. Angie made a delicious supper of lasagna, bread, and salad. Right in the middle of supper, we heard the telltale song of Fur Elise, which is played by the trash truck announcing that it is time to empty the garbage. This is no joke. Now, I found the answer to my question yesterday of how often do they empty the trash. I suggested it isn't very often, but the reality is that the trash truck comes to pick up trash twice a day every day. When you hear the song playing down the block, you grab your bag of trash, hustle downstairs, and prepare to put it in the truck. This really works well, seeing that it's hot here and there's no room in your house to store several bags of trash for a week. Compared to Moberly's once per week trash pickup, I would say this is an improvement. Angie had already been delayed from eating a few times to feed the baby and take care of Joshua. So I offered to take down the trash. Sandy followed me down with the camera. The elevator stopped at every floor to pick up more trash-bearing tenants. We finally got full and could take no more passengers. Here I am waiting for the truck to drive up.
The kids enjoyed playing with new toys and new friends. Even though we spent about eight hours together, the day went too fast. We enjoyed the relaxing day at the Pagels, along with the food and conversation. Before leaving, we snapped this picture of everyone together.
Scott put us in a taxi for the trip home. Our first trip all alone! Scott gave good directions and we wound up right across the street from our destination. $75 NT ($2.35) for a 10 minute taxi ride in a major metropolitan area. Seems reasonable to me.
The kids headed to bed after a story from Obi Jon Kenobi and the adults tried to keep from falling asleep before 10:00 p.m.
Tomorrow: Day 9 - Worshipping with the believers
This was our day to spend with the Pagels, so Jon and Amy took us to eat at one of their favorite restaurants: Marvin's. Another small restaurant on the side of the sidewalk, it was very busy the whole time we were there.
The food was great, and we waited there to meet Alicia Edwards, Allison Edwards, Bethanie Pagel, and Cole Edwards. Jon took the kids to the park while Amy, David, and Sandy walked through the day market. Think a farmer's market with everything imaginable for sale that a person could grow or cook. Raw fish and pork, fruits and vegetables, clothing, and even incense and god money were there. The people selling their stuff are hard workers, some of them family operations. This couple had brought their kids for the day, and apparently enjoyed posing for this picture.
The fruits and vegetables looked delicious. Some of the meat wasn't as appetizing.
This picture brings back bad memories from my childhood. At least we would chop the heads off. They needed something to put the hook through. Amy tells me they cook the chicken with the head still on. She isn't sure if they eat it or not.
I stayed away from the meat and bought an apple.
The girls went off to get Anna's hair fixed. She received a special hairstyle to make her match the other little girls. The hair stylists did it for free and even gave the girls free cookies while they waited.
Anna really enjoyed spending some time with girls after being stuck with the boys all week.
Bethanie walked us from the Edwards' to the Pagel's (about 5 minutes away). For an 8 year old, she has a lot of confidence navigating the part of the city we were in. Of course our kids were glad to see a new houseful of toys, and we were happy to see the Pagels for the first time in over a year. After Angie fed the baby, they took us down to their favorite restaurant ("Fried Rice Heaven"). What a selection of food! Scott ordered a variety, and it was all delicious. We had some fried dofu, pepper chicken, fish, egg something, beef and empty heart vegetable, fried rice, and who knows what else. All of it was super!
Dessert was green bean soup. On the way out the door, they remembered that we were supposed to have it for the close of the meal. I prepared myself for some hot broth with long green beans in it. It sounded interesting, but not offensive. In reality, it was completely different. Scott and Angie have learned to like it. I possibly could if I tried it a few more times, but my first impression was that there were too many things wrong with green bean soup. The soup was cold, not hot. They weren't even green beans like we have, but more like split peas. The flavor was kind of sweet, but not really. And it was served at the end of the meal, instead of the beginning or during the meal. This is probably the only thing I've eaten on the trip that I couldn't enjoy. Sandy thought it was ok. This picture shows you what it looks like and what I thought of it.
After lunch, we returned to the apartment for a few minutes, then Scott and David went to a place elsewhere in town loaded with computer and technology stores. It was like having any computer part or system you might need at your finger tips. The hot items seem to be MP3 players and cell phones. I saw a really nice butane torch that I wanted to buy for soldering. The man told me it would be good for lighting incense and god money. I resisted the temptation, afraid of what things I might set on fire with it. So I went to another booth and bought a new flashlight. I saw more laptops in one afternoon than I could count. Each store would have dozens, and we walked through a couple of dozen stores, at least. The stores also had movies, video games, books, and anything else technology related.
While Scott and David were shopping, Sandy and Angie were catching up on life at the apartment. Angie made a delicious supper of lasagna, bread, and salad. Right in the middle of supper, we heard the telltale song of Fur Elise, which is played by the trash truck announcing that it is time to empty the garbage. This is no joke. Now, I found the answer to my question yesterday of how often do they empty the trash. I suggested it isn't very often, but the reality is that the trash truck comes to pick up trash twice a day every day. When you hear the song playing down the block, you grab your bag of trash, hustle downstairs, and prepare to put it in the truck. This really works well, seeing that it's hot here and there's no room in your house to store several bags of trash for a week. Compared to Moberly's once per week trash pickup, I would say this is an improvement. Angie had already been delayed from eating a few times to feed the baby and take care of Joshua. So I offered to take down the trash. Sandy followed me down with the camera. The elevator stopped at every floor to pick up more trash-bearing tenants. We finally got full and could take no more passengers. Here I am waiting for the truck to drive up.
The kids enjoyed playing with new toys and new friends. Even though we spent about eight hours together, the day went too fast. We enjoyed the relaxing day at the Pagels, along with the food and conversation. Before leaving, we snapped this picture of everyone together.
Scott put us in a taxi for the trip home. Our first trip all alone! Scott gave good directions and we wound up right across the street from our destination. $75 NT ($2.35) for a 10 minute taxi ride in a major metropolitan area. Seems reasonable to me.
The kids headed to bed after a story from Obi Jon Kenobi and the adults tried to keep from falling asleep before 10:00 p.m.
Tomorrow: Day 9 - Worshipping with the believers
posted by Central Christian College of the Bible at
7:38 AM
