China, Spring 2010, Part 6 – The Cat’s Brain Trust

I had Aunty P and Aunty M that helped to inspire me and shape who I am today.  The Cat had several people who helped to inspire her.  I took this picture at a tea house in Shanghai (more on the tea house on a separate post).  

The Cat's Brain Trust

 The woman on the left, Teacher Cheng, is a published poet.  The man on left (her husband), Director Li, is an accomplished film director.  Both of their children are also TV and film directors.  The woman on the right, Aunty Tang, is a published author, university professor, actress, and singer (the whole package).  The man on the right (her husband), Uncle Wang is a film editor.  The Cat is in the middle.  Apparently they like me because they said they would adopt me too (they think I’m funny). 🙂  

The Cat’s father also taught her lessons about life.  He was a high school physical science teacher.  He didn’t talk much but his lessons included both how he lived his life and the choices he made.  This is the gate of one of the schools he taught at.  It has been turned into a community college.  We didn’t know it at the time we booked the location, but the gate is right across the street of the apartments where we stayed. 

High School Where The Cat's Father Taught

One of the main reasons for this trip was to perform the Chinese ritual of burning paper money and offering food at a family member’s gravesite so the soul will have money and something to eat.  In this case, it was for The Cat’s father. 

Teacher Cheng wrote a poem about The Cat’s father that was engraved on the back of his headstone. 

 

The Cat said the poem described her father and celebrated his soul. 

The Mouse is Verklempt.

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China, Spring 2010, Part 5 – Old, Now, New, and Growing

Here are some pictures I took within a two block radius of where we stayed.

"Thousand Layer Pastry" Shop

This shop specializes in making “thousand layer pastry” both savory and sweet from the Haerbin region.

Outdoor Bakery

This stand, a few doors down from the pastry shop sells Chinese style baked goods.  The oven is in from of where the man in the black t-shirt is standing.

Interior of a Multi-Story Shopping Mall

Multi-Level shopping Mall, Another View

This multi-level shopping mall was less than two blocks away from the outdoor markets.

European Style Bakery in Multi-Level Shopping Mall

The customers in this bakery tended to be younger Chinese and non-Chinese.

We preferred walking around the more traditional areas. 

The Mouse

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China, Spring 2010, Part 4 – Offal, Not Awful

Whenever we’re in China, we try to eat dishes that are difficult to find at home. 

This is braised pig intestines on “cao tou”.  The restaurant is well-known for its Shanghai dishes.

Braised Pig Intestines on "Cao Tou"

The chefs use rice wine as part of the seasoning for the vegetables.  The wine makes the dish fragrant and tasty.  See page on a pig banner for my pig intestine cleaning experience.

On another night, at a restaurant that served Cantonese style food, we tried goose intestines.

Stir-Fried Goose Intestines

The taste lighter than the pig intestines, the texture was crunchy instead of chewy.  I prefer the pig intestines.

Yet another night, our friend X took us to dinner and ordered pig ears.  X’s wife, D, served as The Cat’s maid of honor when we got married (just in case you’re following who’s who).

Shredded Pig Ear Salad

Because the ears are mostly cartlidge, the texture was very crunchy.  The ears were tossed with a sweet vinegar dressing.

I’m not sure this counts in the offal category but another dish we tried was fish skin salad.

Fish Skin Salad with Cucumber and Peanuts

Last but not least.  This is a picture of half a duck’s head that’s been smoked.  The Cat’s brother ate this at a teahouse we visited.  He said it was a little spicy, but very good.

Smoked Duck Head

The best was the pig intestines.

The Cat and The Mouse usually eat more vegetables at home, however, this trip, the balance shifted to a little more meat than normal.

The Mouse

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