Saturday, September 22, 2012

china trip - donghuamen night market

Donghuamen Night Market

It's our final full day in China. Tomorrow we leave for the airport at around 2pm. We fly at 6pm and I tell you... it's going to be a verrrrrrrry long flight! Yikes!

We did a little more shopping today. We also visited the local sitdown Haagen-Dazs location which is (far too) close to our hotel! Then this evening, we went out for supper - back to the same famous Peking Duck restaurant we'd been to with our guide on Wednesday evening. We enjoyed another delicious traditional Chinese meal. It was very memorable. The traditional (restaurant) food here is incredible... if you know what to order!

After supper, we took a walk down to the Donghuamen Night Market.

We have passed it several times now, in fact, the hotel we are staying in (Crowne Plaza) is only two blocks away from this food zoo! My friend, from Canada, who lived in China for a while, told me to be sure to visit it and backed that up by saying: "Bring your camera and a strong stomach!"

And rightly so!

The food! Oh man, the FOOD!! Actually, I'm not even sure if 90% of the items there could be classified as food! There is basically everything and anything on a stick, including silk worms, sea horses, grasshoppers, starfish, eyeballs, scorpions, snakes and a whole lot more. I couldn't even attempt to eat any of those items, goodness, I could hardly look at them, never mind eat them! And the sheep tripe, it smelled about the worst smell I've ever smelt in my life!

Well, maybe not the worst. But it came in a close second to the Public toilets we visited in the market... can you believe it? Lilah decided she REALLY needed 'to go' in the middle of our excursion. I tell you, I should be getting the mother-of-the-year award. I gagged three times in that hot and humid washroom, before my sense of smell became somewhat seared from the aroma.

And to top it off, Lilah told me her favourite part of China, other than climbing The Great Wall, was the squatty potties. Really?

9 comments:

  1. oh wow Jill these are amazing! LOL to Miss Lilah! too funny. I will be thinking and praying for you as you make your journey home. GOD SPEED my friend.

    lea
    xo

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  2. I pray your girls will sleep well on the flight home, so it can be peaceful! The night market is an experience, the squatty potties... not so much!

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  3. I am laughing so hard about the hot, humid squatty potty... Those are the worst......I don't ever look forward to using them again!

    I love all of your photos...just wonderful!!!
    I know you must go home but I will o miss your travel posts!!!

    Prayers for safe travel!!!

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  4. Looks like an interesting and memorable place for an evening stroll. How funny that the squatty potties ended up being a highlight of the trip for Lilah. Praying for safe travels with content and sleepy girls.

    Gin =)

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  5. Laughing out loud here about the squatty comment!

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  6. Oh your Lilah makes me laugh!!

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  7. Wish I had found your blog at the beginning of your trip, but it was still fun to look back over.

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  8. Safe travels and mercy as you head home! Liliah enjoyed seeing China through your pictures. She thought the eating bugs thing was yucky!

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  9. LOL! Paul and I toured that night market before we adopted Claire and I, and even though I had been told what to expect, it's still startling to see it all there before you. Great night photography, by the way!

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