Weekend Wind-Down #4 - China Edition

Hey Y'all!

So, it's been a while since the last Weekend Wind-Down...in case you didn't know already, we were recently away on a business trip in China and Hong Kong for a couple of weeks. We came home this past thursday morning, a little bit past midnight, only to find Missy's parents here. Over the weekend, they managed to paint a door, seal up a hole in our roof that squirrels were getting into, and install a brand new screen door - and we also squeezed in a visit to the Dekalb Market in Decatur and the Cyclorama. They left this morning and me and Missy finally had a chance to crash...we both took long naps this afternoon. Now, we're just chilling out in the living room. Missy's playing with her new Blythe dolls and we're both watching the premier episode of REAL WORLD - HOLLYWOOD. Yeah, I know. And now, we're just trying to get back into the swing of blogging on a daily basis. With our trip to China, content will be no problem at all...we plan on giving you all a day-to-day break down of our adventure...I'm just worried about blogging about the past two weeks along with anything new that may happen in the next couple of days...so, we'll see how that will pan out. Basically, I'm just worried about spending too much time on the internet. So with that said, without further ado, here's the "CHINA EDITION" of our Weekend Wind-Down:

WHAT SURPRISED YOU MOST ABOUT OUR TRIP TO CHINA & HONG KONG?
MISSY: It wasn't as hellish as some of my co-workers made it out to be.
RAOUL: I knew I would enjoy the trip - just not as much as I did.

WHAT WOULD YOU DO DIFFERENTLY ABOUT A TRIP TO CHINA IF WE GET A CHANCE TO DO IT AGAIN?
MISSY: Pack differently - pack less clothes and less food.
RAOUL: Definitely pack less food. And less Wet Wipes. Maybe use a bigger piece of luggage.

WHICH CITY DID YOU LIKE THE MOST?
MISSY: Hong Kong.
RAOUL: Hong Kong.

WHICH CITY DID YOU LIKE THE LEAST?
MISSY: Huangyan.
RAOUL: Huangyan.

FAVORITE TOURIST ATTRACTION IN CHINA?
MISSY: People's Park in Shanghai.
RAOUL: Nanjing Road in Shanghai.

FAVORITE TOURIST ATTRACTION IN HONG KONG?
MISSY: Victoria's Peak.
RAOUL: Riding the Star Ferry across Victoria Harbour.

WHAT DID YOU LIKE MOST ABOUT THE TRIP?
MISSY: I like seeing all the variety of the different places in the country.
RAOUL: Culture shock...I liked seeing all the cultural differences. And all the surprising similarities.

WHAT PHOTO OPS DO YOU REGRET MISSING?
MISSY: Not having a bigger memory card for Victoria's Peak.
RAOUL: A lot of amazing scenes passing by us during the car rides - a lot of them were just impossible to capture or sped by too quickly.

GROSSEST THING YOU SAW IN CHINA?
MISSY: Animals hanging in the delis.
RAOUL: Huangpu River...a.k.a. "Who Flung Poo In The River?"

WORD OR PHRASE OF THE PAST TWO WEEKS?
MISSY: "ok, bye bye"
RAOUL: "xie xie"

FAVORITE MOMENT OF THE PAST TWO WEEKS?
MISSY: Victoria's Peak.
RAOUL: Looking down on Hong Kong from Victoria's Peak.

IF YOU HAD AN EXTRA DAY IN CHINA, WHERE AND HOW WOULD YOU SPEND IT?
MISSY: I'd spend it in Hong Kong - and I'd probably go back to the CTMA Center (a.k.a. "The Toy Mall")
RAOUL: Hong Kong - I'd like to explore Central...and ride on the escalators.

FAVORITE HOTEL FROM THE PAST TWO WEEKS?
MISSY: The Japanese-style hotel (at the hot spring resort)
RAOUL: The Sheraton Grand in Shanghai.

LEAST FAVORITE HOTEL FROM THE PAST TWO WEEKS?
MISSY: The second room we ended up getting at the Yao Da, because it didn't have the cool sliding door window in the bathroom.
RAOUL: The japanese-style hotel at the hot springs resort...not very roomy, thin walls, and you had to sleep on mats on the floor.

FAVORITE RESTAURANT OR MEAL FROM THE PAST TWO WEEKS?
MISSY: The dinner buffet at the Mandarin (Yeoh Wa) Hotel in Quanzhou.
RAOUL: I concur - dinner buffet at the Mandarin. We ate like we never saw food before.

WOULD YOU BE WILLING TO GO BACK TO CHINA AGAIN?
MISSY: Yep.
RAOUL: Yes!

CITY OTHER THAN HONG KONG THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO EXPLORE MORE?
MISSY: Shanghai.
RAOUL: Shanghai.

PERSONAL SOUNDTRACK TO THE PAST COUPLE OF WEEKS?
MISSY: Lullatone & The Blow
RAOUL: Warp Records & Trojan Records