Wednesday afternoon - Daddy time!

After the temple, we stopped at local toy market. It was basically a warehouse packed with tiny stalls and shops selling every "Made in China" toy you can imagine. Children would go absolutely nuts in this place. We did some shopping for our kids, but can't go into much detail 'cause they read this blog too - don't want to ruin any surprises!

Our friends the Adcocks met us for lunch. Our guide Simon did a wonderful job of setting up arrangements at a Dim Sum restaurant near our hotel. When we arrived there, they had a table reserved for us in a back room, and Simon had selected several items from the all-Mandarin menu that seemed safe for westerners. We all were very full and somewhat embarrased by leaving lots of food still uneaten, but it was great fun and a great lunch. One thing we all agreed on was that they do not have a habit of overcooking their meat here. This keeps it very tender, but makes it a little unappetizing, especially for those like Sherri who prefer very well done. It is always hot all the way through, and we haven't yet gotten sick on any of it, but it would take some getting used to if you needed to survive here long term.

Enjoying Dim Sum

The girls enjoying their lunch time together

After lunch, we walked to the Adcocks' hotel, which took us through some of the street-vendor shopping. The shopping on the island, where the Adcocks' hotel is located, is geared toward tourists, while the shopping near our hotel is more local. The Adcocks enjoyed the chance to get some of this local experience.

Local pet store

Yes, the pink cage on the left does contain chipmunks!

A local tea shop near our hotel

By the time we neared their hotel, there were several tourist shops that Sherri and Tracey wanted to visit. Tracey suggested that the girls go shopping while the dads take the girls back to the White Swan hotel's playroom. About halfway through her sentence, she realized that she was asking for Lina to go with Daddy, leaving Mommy behind, which up to this point seemed completely impossible. Daddy used his best Mandarin to see if Lina wanted to go play with her friend while Mommy shopped. She agreed, and off we went!

We were at the playroom for about two hours, including several sessions of play between Lina and Daddy! Just before Mommy came back, the play had gotten pretty "energetic" and included sprinting around the room. Lina fell, and this, combined with getting tired, started her back into her "I don't want Daddy" mood, but all in all it was a great reassurance to Daddy that someday he'll get to shower all his affection on this precious little princess.

Near the end of their playtime, Daddy also noticed that Lina and Jing Shu also seemed to be calling each other "jie-jie" - "sister"! They've developed quite a friendship together!

We finished the night off by ordering Papa Johns pizza with the Adcocks for a little taste of home. It was pretty good pizza!