From Grits to Chopsticks

We recently joined the 100’s of millions of people who traveled during the National Holiday, heading north to visit Tim and Caitlyn in Chengdu.  It was wonderful to spend time together talking, walking, and eating.  Our first walk took us toward the downtown area where things were a bit crowded (Timothy is the tall guy with dark hair):Along the way, we stopped at CoCo for some pearl milk tea:We then went to “The Blue Frog” for some real hamburgers (a rare treat):One of my Kunming students gave us some moon cakes from northeastern China, so we conducted a taste test together:Our second walk was a bit more peaceful:We eventually ended up at a genuine southern barbeque restaurant, a unique experience for all of us in China:It was amazing – mouth watering ribs and tender pulled pork:The slaw and bread were different than we might’ve expected, but they actually had “South Carolina Mustard” BBQ sauce:Other than the usual air pollution, the weather was nice.  Timothy and Caitlyn worked hard to clear away a huge pile of demolition debris, allowing us to sit on their rooftop and play Bananagrams:A short walk from their apartment, you will see many idol shops and religious bead sellers:

There is also ethnic food.  We went to a nearby minority restaurant and had MoMos and meat pies:While it is often hard to breathe the air in Chengdu, it certainly has some of the best food and family in Western China: