Ninth day in China

[aadler]

As usual, Susan got up before I did. I rose eventually, and we had some more ice cream for breakfast. Around 9:30 we gave Kevin a call, and he said he’d be over in a bit.

When he arrived, we went out walking in the near vicinity of his apartment. (There’s a major terrace on the third level of the building complex, sort of a mini-plaza, and we spent some time there.) Down on ground level, there was a particular place he wanted to take us for lunch, but a lot of the businesses in the area are still closed for the remainder of the holiday. We wound up having our lunch in — of all things — a pizza place. Not bad, actually, as a change of pace.

We continued in the direction of other things in the walking vicinity that we’d not seen yet. One of them was a kind of stadium/park that a lot of people used for recreation and relaxation. Yesterday at Splendid China, Kevin bought me a coconut: the vendor made three cuts with a small machete to provide a triangular opening through which I could drink the juice with a straw. Today at the stadium/park he paid a man to use a small machine to squeeze the juice from a length of bamboo into a plastic bottle for me to drink. Surprisingly good, and even a hint of sweetness; are bamboo and sugar cane distantly related?

After we had relaxed enough at that location (and Kevin played a few games of ping-pong with a local couple who invited to join them), we walked till we reached the nearest — believe it or not — Wal-Mart. Did a bit of shopping, but mostly just looking around. On leaving the Wal-Mart, Kevin bought a bouquet for Mei-li (it’s Valentine’s Day!), and we took a couple of cabs to meet her at a place called Coastal City, a sort of multi-mall with a big outdoor central plaza.

Except, Mei-li hadn’t left home yet. We stopped at a Häagen-Dazs shop (honestly, we love Chinese food, but everywhere we’ve gone today it’s been Western-style establishments that were open) to snack while we waited.

She arrived eventually. Her mood seemed a bit down, and I wondered if she was still feeling bad from being sick and just not willing to admit it. She and Kevin arranged for us to attend a movie together so they could have a little private time away from her family’s apartment. Wisely, they picked a Chinese movie with English subtitles, since Kevin had warned us that English movies with Chinese subtitles had Chinese audiences talking all through the showing about what the subtitles said to them. The one we saw? Journey to the West: Conquering the Demons. Entertaining, and funny in several places, but by the end we could tell there were references to a central legend that wasn’t familiar to us.

We went out of the theater, got a few hundred feet on our way back to the area from which we’d started, and were hailed by Kevin from one level higher. So, we reversed course and went up to join him. Mei-li was there, too, of course …

… and she showed us her new ring. The one that had once belonged to Susan’s mother, and that she had agreed to accept.

Jackpot!

We had dinner at a steak restaurant to celebrate, the four of us. (Yep, we managed to finish out the day without having any Chinese food. Kevin is still a little stunned, trying to come to terms with how much things can change when something you’ve been wanting for a long time finally comes to pass. Mei-li, it appeared, much of the same. But they’re happy, and so are we.

By 9:30, Kevin had returned us to his apartment. He has to return to work tomorrow (just a morning shift), and Susan and I will go shopping in Hong Kong with Mei-li and her mother.

A very, very happy Valentine’s Day.

Next Day