Well, kids, let me tell you...

Well, kids, let me tell you how China is different than the US. I was at McDonald's today grabbing a quick lunch after my lunchtime massage when a young college student came up to our table. Her English name is Cathy and she speaks quite fluently in English. She was a delight to visit with and as we continued talking, she inquired about our plans for the rest of our visit. We shared that we were leaving tomorrow and had things to do this evening. She said she was so disappointed because her mother wanted to invite us to her home to learn to do some Chinese cooking. Well, this is an opportunity that can't be passed up so we made arrangements for her to meet us in the hotel lobby this evening. Her father's driver picked us up at 6:00 (along with Cathy) and we drove to their apartment about 15 minutes from the hotel. Cathy informed us that they had invited some other family and some friends over since we were visiting.

When we arrived at her home, there were a number of people there and we were invited to sit in the living room for some tea and snacks. This included moon cakes, lychee fruit, and other area treats. We went into the kitchen and got to help roll and put together dumplings and then each of us (Pat, Janelle and I) each made a dish in the wok. I was told my wok skills are excellent :-) We continued to eat the amazingly delicious food (made with love, as Cathy says) and ended the evening with photos and a walk to the park nearby. I will try to post photos soon. I laughed tonight as I reflected that I would not likely go to the home of a stranger I meet in McDonald's in the US but I will in China.

It's hard to sum up the warm feelings I have for the people of China. Tomorrow will be a difficult day as we say goodbye to the Chinese college students, students and people of Linfin who have been gracious beyond words in welcoming us to their city that seemed so foreign to us just 12 days ago.