Bull in a China Shop.... and Pork Surprise...

Second half of day two was spent at the pearl market.... I still can't understand how women can spend all that time in one store and end up buying just one thing... I spent my time talking to my new Naval psychologist friend. It was a fun trip overall ... A few minutes into it and I was already haggling with the vendors.... One of the store owners , an old roundish chinese lady and I got into it over some pashminas I was going to buy for my mother and aunt...we went back and forth for a long time with her asking ridiculously high prices and me countering with ludicrously low ones.. towards the end she was so exasperated with my hard nose negotiating that she kept laughing and hitting me.... a good time was had by all and I ended up getting a good deal...and a sore forearm....
I wonder if I can do this in nyc...


Later that night we met the entire reunion posse for dinner at another chinese place...:).... it was wonderful to meet old friendly faces again....dinner was as usual a banquet.... but thanks to our fearless leader there were plenty of non chu-ro(pork) dishes for me... My memories of my past china studies trips are littered with a myriad of dishes- all made every part of a pig you can imagine....I used to presented with pig feet, tongue, ribs, snout, rump.. you name it... and the one dish we couldnt identify - it was safe to consider it Pork Suprise...so I used to just eat rice and hope the ONE chicken dish that was coming wouldn't be chicken claws like last time in Datong....

Running a reunion is a like running a ship that just finished hitting an iceberg... u need organization, attitude, effort, patience and more patience...(in the wake of some hissy fits) and my friend Justin had it all except for one thing...... an affinity for Harry Potter books. Thanks for the efforts Hoss.