from China, for the last time?

The guys have had a crazy week of post-season team obligations: team dinner, TV talk show, meet the mayor + high-up-CCP people, team soiree, meetings with agents, trip to Li-Ning shoe headquarters (Steve, Freddie and Salvador all scored some free swag) – and that’s all since their return on Monday afternoon. Now, it’s Thursday, and in four days at this very moment we’ll be sitting in BUSINESS class on our flight from Beijing to Toronto (ohhhhhh yeah). Steve’s upgrade certificates expire on February 28th, so we’re sneaking in with just a few weeks to spare and I can’t wait! I’m never excited about airplane rides, except when it involves sitting up front. Really, after this year Hendrik will wonder what lowly world he’s been thrown into – mom has to clean her own house again? What’s economy and why are these airplane seats so small and close together and why aren’t we sitting up there again? Before I get thick into this blog, I have to post these two videos: the first, of Hendrik reciting parts of The Gruffalo’s Child (you have to watch the whole thing), with a few made-up lines of his own; and the second – some eye-popping volleyball skills. Yup, my eyeballs were popping:



Over a dinner of fah-bu-lous leftovers thanks to Shanti (or thanks to Freddie who didn’t eat it all), Steve and I briefly started talking about how our experience here measured up with our expectations – we could have gone a bit deeper, but I spilled a carton of milk. Anyways, first thing to clear up is this: we definitely did not live like locals here. We live in a posh posh building with housekeeping that comes twice a week and a five-star hotel’s pool and workout room facilities downstairs. There are doormen that open doors 24 hours a day, and a front desk staff that will help you do just about anything. If something breaks or needs fixing, you call customer service (“Simon”) and a building maintenance person is at your door in 10 minutes. If there’s nothing in the fridge for dinner you can order room service, and if you don’t feel like going for groceries, those can be delivered too. (On that note, Carol – Salvador’s wife – didn’t go to the grocery store once. Not one single solitary time.) So we didn’t quite get a glimpse into the real China – though Steve might have a bit on his trips. I didn’t. I saw the hustle and bustle of hutongs (alleys) and local life from taxi cab windows, but never explored areas of the city that feel more like real-life (as opposed to five-star living); with two little kids, mountains of polluted air and cold weather, that kind of exploring was off-limits for me. We enjoyed what we did do: playgroups, playgyms, mom groups, local walks, mall walks, lots of time at home and at the pool and - ? It was all good. I enjoyed my time here but am so looking forward to breathing clean air and spending time outside.

So, back to how our experience measured up to my expectations. The one point that I did get in before I spilled the milk was that it was way less busy than I thought it would be. I expected crowds and throngs of people everywhere all the time, but besides Tiananmen Square just after the Communist Party Congress, and the subway at the wrong time of day, it wasn’t too bad. Both Steve and I thought we’d have to have Hendrik on a leash every time we left the house, but never did we have to put it on him. I didn’t realize how dependent we’d be on taxis to get around, and I had no idea how ridiculously crazy the driving is here. I didn’t know what to expect when Steve went on the road and left us here alone, but it was all a-ok, and that’s 100% thanks to well-behaved, happy kids. The food? I didn’t eat much Chinese food. The grocery stores? Interesting. There was actually very little that I could recognize. I mean, besides the regular stuff: milk, juice, produce, some meat. Pictures:

Every year with a season spent in a different country, we learn a few things (or more than a few things), and this year is no exception. Besides the tiniest smattering of Mandarin, I learned that I can get by with one trip to the grocery store every two weeks. I realized that I take clean, breathable air for granted. I learned how to leave the house with two kids in a crazy, big, bustling city. And I could go on – with much more that has nothing to do with living in China (I smile way more now, with two little ones – love!), but I won’t. The biggest thing that I could say I learned is something that I already knew: we are more than lucky to call Canada home. Only a few more days and we're there!