Tina in China: Shanghai.

Shanghai. Shanghai Shanghai Shanghai. I LOVE SHANGHAI! It was our last big trip before we head home in a little over 2 weeks. We went straight to the train station and got tickets for the next train that left. We noticed that there weren’t assigned seats written on the tickets but didn’t realize what that meant until we were in line walking onto the train. Sara and I were in a different car than the other girls and while we were in line looking in the windows at the crowded train it donned on us that the reason we didn’t have seats written on our tickets was because we didn’t have seats! We had standing tickets! We didn’t even realize. It was hilarious and quite ironic since I promised myself I would never get a standing ticket on one of those trains. It was only three hours though so we didn’t worry too much about it. Plus we were going to SHANGHAI so the excitement was still present! J Anyway, we got on the crowded train and a really nice boy took my bag right away and helped me find an empty space on the top rack to put it on. He became the excitement of the train ride as Sara and I tried to scoot closer to the nice boy with the cute smile. So we started off standing in the aisle and listening to music on my ipod. At one stop a seat opened up next to us so we both squeezed into the seat together. Eventually a man got on the train whose seat it was, and as we started to stand up to let him sit down he motioned for us to stay seating then the man across from us got up and motioned for the nice man to sit in his seat (which of course he refused) and then the man across the aisle from that guy got up and motioned for him to sit in that seat and all these men around us were up trying to be the gentleman and we were all in a huge clump in the middle of the aisle trying to get each other to sit down. It was so funny! Eventually they insisted that we sit back down in the seat and we were the ones who had the standing tickets in the first place! People are so nice. It was seriously so nice. So we sat the rest of the train ride together on one seat and I was on the very edge of it and only fell off once! And the nice boy with the cute smile was there to help when I did. J haha Anyway, we got to Shanghai and the excitement of the city was all around as we stepped off the subway and walked down a busy shopping street filled with skyscrapers and lights and people and yes, even Christmas. It is Christmas time in Shanghai! There were Christmas trees around and little Christmasy touches to things. Not as abundant as America, but it was there! JYay for Christmas!

We stayed the weekend at the Gilgers, a couple in the Shanghai branch. We hadn’t meant them before the weekend but we asked the branch president if he could help us find somewhere to stay and the Gilger’s offered their home. We walked into a beautiful apartment complex which also had Christmas trees all around and were in awe as we rode the fancy elevator up to the 15^th floor. We knocked on the door and Sister Gilger answered with a warm smile and welcomed us home. We walked in to a beautiful apartment that was decorated for Christmas and smelled delicious and truly felt like home. It was wonderful. It just felt so good. It smelled good and was so clean and was just home. It was wonderful. Brother and Sister Gilger really are angels. They made us the most delicious dinner of pasta with this divine tasting spaghetti sauce and clean cold water. For desert Sister Gilger brought out some delicious peanut buttery brownies with chocolate frosting on top. It was heaven. It really was. Then they helped us make a fun plan for the next day of places we could go and things we could see. Then we crawled into warm comfortable beds with mattresses and fluffy pillows and comforters and full stomachs and everything. It was so warm and cozy and just thinking about it I am in heaven.

The next day we woke up and Sister Gilger had made us pancakes and spice cake and hot chocolate. It was so delightfully delicious. Then we got bundled up and went out in the cold to start off a really fun day of shopping!!! I got really good Christmas presents for everyone and I can’t wait to give them to everyone!!!!! We went to two different shopping places and it was so much fun. Then that night as the sun was setting we went to The Bund. It is a place on the river that you can walk down and right across the river is the other part of Shanghai with the huge buildings. It is so pretty at night. The river is filled with yachts and boats and is lit by all of the lit skyscrapers. It was beautiful but so so so cold. So we only stayed for a little bit then went to the Shanghai ward party that the Gilgers invited us to. It was so fun! It was seriously a ward party!!! There were delicious goodies and socializing and the primary reenacted the nativity and sang a song. Then we all sang Christmas carols and in walked Santa Claus! It was so exciting! It was all just so much fun.

Sunday morning I woke up and got in a hot shower that was so clean and amazing and felt so good. For breakfast we had blueberry muffins, pumpkin bread, bagels, and more hot chocolate. It was so heavenly. I love food!!! I now remember why I eat so much more at home than I do here in China. Then we went to church. I love church so much. After church the young single adults came over to the Gilgers’ apartment and we socialized. I love the Shanghai branch so much! It is so international. There were young single adults from France and Australia and Sri Lanka and all over. They were such fun people! I also decided I have to marry someone from France. But anyway, we all talked and ate Chili topped with cheese and corn bread. Then for desert we had trifle. It was so delicious! It was just a wonderful Sabbath day. I miss Sundays being like that. We then purposely missed our train that night and changed our tickets to Monday afternoon so that we could stay another night at the Gilgers’ wonderful home.

Monday morning we woke up to another divine breakfast of toast and scramble eggs and fruit with yogurt and of course hot chocolate. Then we left the Gilgers’ beautiful home and went to the Oriental Pearl Tower. I love the Gilgers so much. They are wonderful people. If I am ever living in a different country the young single adults or anyone away from home will be welcome at my home and will be treated the way the Gilgers treated us. They provided us with so much love and food and comfort and it was so heavenly and I wish they knew just how angelic they are. I wanted to cry when we left, I just wanted to stay at home. I just wanted to either stay there or walk right into my house in Provo or Manti. It definitely made all of us ready to go home in 3 weeks!

The Oriental Pearl Tower was AMAZING. It is a huge tower that you can go up and it has amazing views all around of Shanghai. In one of the “pearls” there is a glass floor. So you are thousands of feet high walking on a glass floor and it was so so so thrilling and so so so so so so so scary. I didn’t think it would be but it REALLY was. It was so exciting and so fun. We spent hours up there because it was just so incredible. It was a good end to the trip.

On the way home we sat next to the cutest little family on the train. The mom and dad and their two (yes two- you don’t see that very often here!) little kids, one little girl probably around 4, and a little boy not much younger. They were adorable!!!! They cuddled in our laps and played with us and it was so fun.