The Seaside-Qingdao

The seaside was beautiful in Qingdao. We really fell in love with this city and the scenery.

We could really envision ourselves living on the shore and  running with Chara in the afternoons along the Yellow Sea.

The seaside to the East of the city center, we found most enjoyable.

It was much quieter and beautiful, with lots of parks and nice walkways.

We had fun posing with these statues.

The shore is lined with walkways.

There were tons of great places to sit and relax.

Unfortunately, we didn't go to any of the famous beaches, which we imagined were very crowded, and it was a little chilly. So we don’t have much to say about Qingdao beaches.

We did go to the seaside in the West, where most of the popular tourist attractions are, in the old city.

We didn’t like the West side of the city as much. It was crowded, dirtier, and just overall less enjoyable for us.

Stinky Tofu. It tastes as bad as it sounds. Bad.

Roasted corn and candied dates.

Check out that huge chunk of granola bar! 

This granola stuff, sold by some Chinese from the West, was great!

 But if your in Qingdao, be careful to make it clear how much you want, preferably in Chinese. 

We told him we wanted 8 yuan worth, you know, just a taste. We thought we had communicated that well but were surprised when he cut us 110 yuan worth of it. We said we only wanted 8 and that we had told him that but he started fighting with us about it. 

Tons of people crowded around us, watching the action. Really this guy should have paid us for all the publicity! :P

Some people started telling us we should call the police.

 We found out that this happens a lot, and if you just leave, a big group of the granola guys, will surround you until you pay. Eek. 

Finally, through people translating, the guy said he would cut it in half, and we could just pay 60. 

Still really expensive! But since we couldn’t walk away, and we were unwilling to call the police, we paid the 60.

I was happy to find that it was delicious! Packed with protein, and very filling. I told the guy it was delicious! Zachary gave him a good handshake, and so we went on our way, 60 yuan less, and getting a smile from the guy, despite all our arguing.

A note on this: We have tried to act most like Jesus in these situations. Each time is a little different, depending on the circumstance and what we feel about the spirit of the person. We are never trying to be unwise or stupid or the dumb foreigner. But in a world where so many live on less a week than what we make an hour, we have tried to deal with each situation, in the most loving way as possible. And, in the end, money isn’t what matters most to us. So, we spent 60 yuan on some granola. But still we tried to leave this guy, in peace, and in love. 

But I will admit that it never feels good to be cheated. It's frustrating and sometimes embarrassing. A lot of the time it really sucks. We have to remind ourselves often to walk in love in these situations, though it is difficult.