Today we realized that Qingdao is HUGE. We left the hospital at 10:30 am & after an hours drive, we reached our first destination...the beach. It was hazy (I think it was the humidity because it kept fogging up the camera lens). The smell wasn't the best but it was a nice view. We spent $1.57 on sea shells at a seaside stand since we were unable to get any of our own. We had been told to stay off the beach because of possible sand fleas. After we left there, our journey began. Our driver took us down roads made for one vehicle with oncoming vehicles flying by us. We would get behind a slow driver & he would go around them with cars coming at us. I thought we were going to die. We finally made it to our 2
nd destination:
Jimo. It's a huge indoor flea market. Apparently you never pay tag price
for anything. If you pay more than half price, you paid too much. It consists of 2 stories below ground and 2 above ground. I was on the low
est level thinking that we could easily be buried if an earthquake hit. Anyway
Jimo con
sists of hundreds of stores about the size of our spare bedroom. We bought 3 pairs of name brand thongs for a total of 70
RMB's or 10 US dollars. We got a couple things for our family back home but we just weren't into the shopping scene so we decided to leave early. Apparently our driver thought we would spend 4 hours shopping so he left the van & didn't return until 5 pm. We h
ung out on the steps in front of the van for 2 hours waiting for him to come back. After
Jimo we went to a hotel/restaurant for dinner. The
Shangri La was a really nice place. They had a buffet so we ate until we couldn't eat anymore. Unfortunately they don't tell you how expensive it is until you go to pay. We nearly choked over our 1254
RMB bill. It was the best meal we have had since boarding the plane in Colorado Springs but it will also be the last time we eat there. We got back to the hospital 10 hours after we left it - completely drained. Good thing the weekend is here so we can just relax for a couple of days before we have treatment #2. Monday's treatment will also be Brandon's first spinal. We've explained to Brandon what to expect and
he's being such a good sport. He's ready to get started.
Pictures: 1st - Hanging out at the beach 2nd - Dolphins statue (it would look better at our house!) In the background you can see the ships. 3rd - You thought your job was bad. This is China's version of the "garbage man". We watched him pull that "wheel barrel" thingy up & down that steep road gathering trash from the garbage cans. 4th - Jimo on the right side with the red roof. I was so scared Nick would run off. We would've never found him in that crowd.
Today we realized that Qingdao is HUGE. We left the hospital at 10:30 am & after an hours drive, we reached our first destination...the beach. It was hazy (I think it was the humidity because it kept fogging up the camera lens). The smell wasn't the best but it was a nice view. We spent $1.57 on sea shells at a seaside stand since we were unable to get any of our own. We had been told to stay off the beach because of possible sand fleas. After we left there, our journey began. Our driver took us down roads made for one vehicle with oncoming vehicles flying by us. We would get behind a slow driver & he would go around them with cars coming at us. I thought we were going to die. We finally made it to our 2nd destination: Jimo. It's a huge indoor flea market. Apparently you never pay tag price
for anything. If you pay more than half price, you paid too much. It consists of 2 stories below ground and 2 above ground. I was on the lowest level thinking that we could easily be buried if an earthquake hit. Anyway Jimo consists of hundreds of stores about the size of our spare bedroom. We bought 3 pairs of name brand thongs for a total of 70 RMB's or 10 US dollars. We got a couple things for our family back home but we just weren't into the shopping scene so we decided to leave early. Apparently our driver thought we would spend 4 hours shopping so he left the van & didn't return until 5 pm. We h
ung out on the steps in front of the van for 2 hours waiting for him to come back. After Jimo we went to a hotel/restaurant for dinner. The Shangri La was a really nice place. They had a buffet so we ate until we couldn't eat anymore. Unfortunately they don't tell you how expensive it is until you go to pay. We nearly choked over our 1254 RMB bill. It was the best meal we have had since boarding the plane in Colorado Springs but it will also be the last time we eat there. We got back to the hospital 10 hours after we left it - completely drained. Good thing the weekend is here so we can just relax for a couple of days before we have treatment #2. Monday's treatment will also be Brandon's first spinal. We've explained to Brandon what to expect and 
he's being such a good sport. He's ready to get started. Pictures: 1st - Hanging out at the beach 2nd - Dolphins statue (it would look better at our house!) In the background you can see the ships. 3rd - You thought your job was bad. This is China's version of the "garbage man". We watched him pull that "wheel barrel" thingy up & down that steep road gathering trash from the garbage cans. 4th - Jimo on the right side with the red roof. I was so scared Nick would run off. We would've never found him in that crowd.
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