Friday Funny Dec 30, 2011

I've been sitting on these photos for a while and I thought, "Let's just purge them all so my iPhoto will be all clean and fresh if we survive into 2012." Yeah, that's exactly what I thought.
My apologies in advance for those who are offended.

Guess who actually works on this avenue?

Yes! The Reluctant Relocator's husband. Maybe this is why he wasn't so reluctant...

This one is for my friend, Cynthia.

It was a bumper sticker of sorts for sale at a souvenir store in a water town, which shall remain anonymous (only because I can't remember how to spell the name which is a Chinese tongue twister).

Here's a spot in Shanghai I've never had to visit, thankfully!

I know! Imagine how you would feel walking ummm...maybe trotting into this place. Those of you who know my "difficulties" with duty will appreciate why I like this sign so much. N, you'll be thrilled to know I exercised a tremendous amount of self-restraint in not writing some of the scatological remarks that sprang to my mind. We'll leave that for P!

If you're a patient of the above clinic, you'll probably be relieved (ar, ar) to see this:

Actually, this was taken at the Guangzhou hotel where Vivian and I stayed, 

as was the photo below.

Phew! Wouldn't want a noisy toilet seat interfering with my suffering. 

Finally, after having your eyeballs seared by looking at 

all these horrible images, a word of warning:

May 2012 be a wonderful year for you and your loved ones.

Elizabeth gets sauced Dec 13, 2011

This isn't what you expected, is it? Sorry to disappoint. I tell you, I wasn't disappointed by this tour given by the Shanghai Expat Association (SEA).

As is tradition, here is the SEA blurb:

Day Trip: Handmade Heritage Soy Sauce

Red cooking or hongshao is the word for Shanghai cuisine. For centuries, the city's culinary culture has been stewed, simmered, sautéed and braised in soy sauce. We are proud to say this will be the only tour in China that takes you to a hand-crafted soy sauce factory which has a history of over 130 years. It is believed to be one of few in the world that still make soy sauce the traditional, old-fashioned way. We will meet the soy sauce master who has been making soy sauce for nearly 30 years. In fact, the way he makes soy sauce hasn't changed since the days of his forefathers. Their soy sauce making process was listed as one of China's Intangible Cultural Heritages - the only one in the industry.

Before we walked around the factory, we had a movie and a lecture on how soy sauce is made and the differences between Qian Wanlong soy sauce and mass produced soy sauce. Nowhere near as bad as learning how hot dogs are made, but I am only buying Qian Wanlong soy sauce from now on. No, I'm not the new company spokeswoman.

Janny Chyn was our fearless tour leader.
Here she is pointing out the competitors' ingredients. 

How do you spell MSG?

Time to compare and contrast

Bottoms up!

We could actually discern the differences between the two brands.

Out we went to the factory.

 These will be explained all in due time. Just enjoy the view for now.

First, more history.

These were some company artifacts that survived the Cultural Revolution. 

This wooden plaque was given to the Qian Wanlong company 130 years ago when they were recognized as official soy sauce supplier to the Emperor. That was a fortunate thing because if a company didn't have a government connection, it was difficult to assure a supply of salt to make the salt water essential to soy sauce production. 

The plaque survived because a company carpenter recognized its intrinsic value, brought it home and hid it. He had caught wind of the impending destruction re-education and didn't want to see the plaque harmed ehhhmm...ruined ahhhh.... changed, yeah, that's it, changed. Today, this is the only remaining imperial plaque given to a soy sauce manufacturer.

Copies of utensils used in soy sauce production

Old shoes or a reasonable facsimile

Now on to how the soy sauce is made.

Thank you, Janny, for explaining because my Mandarin is nowhere near
good enough to understand the company guide.

Bags of wheat flour used in the process.

Bags o' soy beans

These are non-GMO variety from a certain province in northwest China known for its consistently good soy bean production. Don't ask me which province, you know I can't remember. I could make it up and you'd never know...

A tub for mixing the beans with salt water and the mould that kick starts the fermentation

After all the ingredients are mixed, the tubs are taken outside (yes, outside) 

where they are left to ferment for an entire year.

I'm glad they were covered!

Now let's take a closer look...

(Cue suspenseful shark approaching type music)

Dah na...

... dah na...

Ewwww! Yes, fermenting soy beans do look like you-know-what.

When the year is over, and the retching stops, the bean and 

mould mixture is taken inside and pressed. 

The remaining paste becomes pig food and the soy sauce goes back into tubs 

and outdoors again for a year's worth of aging. 

The master taster took a dip.

Uh, yeah, can I have my sauce from a different tub?

Tucking in the tubs all cozy to finish their year of aging. 

See you next year in a bottle, soy sauce!

Friday Funny Dec 23, 2011

No Friday Funny for you this week, but I do have a modern take on the Nativity

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GkHNNPM7pJA

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Elizabeth gets outdoors Century Park Dec 9, 2011

Today was the day I finally visited Century Park, the largest park in Shanghai and one that is actually in my neighbourhood. I can't believe it took me this long to go check it out, but you know how I am. I try to avoid the great outdoors. My friend Eliza came with me. The crowds were held at bay through a combination of entrance fees, it being a week day and a temperature of zero degrees Celsius (32 degrees Fahrenheit for my metrically challenged readers). That was cold for Shanghai! Eliza and I had the park to ourselves. 

Let's explore!

Century Park obviously has a big lake/pond. Whaddya call these things? Too small to be a lake, too big to be a pond. Time to invent a new word, how about "lond"? It sounds less rude than "pake" and "poke" was already taken. 

My friend Esther lives near the building with the flying saucer on the top.

You can see the famous Shanghai World Financial Center, 

aka the Bottle Opener, in the distance.

Canada is everywhere! Who knew that Montreal was twinned with Shanghai in 1985? You do now! This, like the sign says, is the Montreal Garden, built in 2010. A decade earlier, Shanghai had built a Chinese Garden in Montreal. What a nice thing to do for your twin city. You are SO going to win at the next Trivial Pursuit game, which was invented by Canadians, probably so we would be forced to remember achievements made by Canadians, who are usually too modest to mention them. 

Yours truly, the Reluctant Relocator, was all Canadian-ed out, too. 

That was a fortunate co-incidence! 

Recognize that piece of landscaping at the far right?

Yep, the mascot of the Juste pour Rire (Just for Laughs) Comedy Festival.

 A live green depiction of the Montreal Jazz Fest

My Canadian jazz hands.

You figure out the next one!

Yes! Cirque de Soleil! 

Wider view

Last one, the Montreal Film Festival

No, being reminded of home and the great times I experienced in Montreal this past summer with my friends Linda and Eliza and the my two sons didn't make me cry. Honestly. I must be getting tougher. 

Back again for another Heritage Salon Dec 6, 2011

Yes! Another Heritage Salon at the Fairmont Peace hotel!

Even though this evening featured an Indian poet, Rakesh was not interested available to attend. 

The added bonus of this evening was an opportunity to check out one of the famous themed suites. 

Now would be a good time to confess I have a "thing" 
for hotel bath rooms.

My first stop in the suite, just to look, folks, just to look.

The shower enclosure (behind the half-frosted glass doors) 
has a view of the Bund. 

Bedroom

No Chinese hotel is complete without one of these.

Notice how this one is waaaay nicer than the one in 
the Guangzhou hotel?

That's the power of a beautiful, customized velvet bag.

The sitting room where the poetry reading took place.

Detail of ceiling light

Door frame closer up

Decorative detail

Door from sitting room to dining room

A window

My experimentation with a different camera technique

It worked! Maybe there's hope for me yet as a photographer. 

Now you also see the view over to Pudong.

The furniture

After the reading, which had me enthralled, and some savoury Indian snacks, it was time for me to go. I decided to take the back stairs instead of the elevator to see the the side not often seen. 

The back stairs

A different view of the landing

A window on the back stairs

Original fixtures, original tile

A few floors down, a very pretty stained glass window

Talk about a hidden gem!

Not anymore...

I wonder what surprises the next salon will bring?