Sarah got to spend her birthday floating down the Nile River - I got to spend mine in Beijing, walking the Great Wall, seeing a crazy acrobatics show, and having a traditional dinner at Lillian's parent's house. Okay, okay, so the whole Great Wall experience was actually the day before my actual birthday, but it's pretty damn close. On my actual birthday we spent the day sightseeing in Beijing which was awesome. Lillian and Sarah secretly worked to plan an amazing birthday evening...
Lillian's parents live in Beijing and were generous enough to invite me, Sarah, Holly and Charlie to their home to have a birthday dinner celebration. Unfortunately Lillian's father was out of town on business, but her mom took the day off from work to cook all day for me, so cute. As we were getting ready to leave the hotel Sarah mysteriously disappeared and came back with a few bottles of wine to bring over to the house, and a big box from a bakery. I had no idea what could possibly be in there. We arrived at their house and were happily greeted by Lillian's mom. She was so excited to show us around the house and took out tons of photo albums from when Lillian was a little girl. We hung out and had some wine and before we knew it, Lillian's mom starting bringing tons of plates of food out from the kitchen to the dining room. She truly made me a birthday feast - chicken, several kinds of stir-fried veggies, rice. Everything was delicious and I was so thankful to be surrounded by such a great family.
After dinner was over the festivities began, Lillian and her mom insisted that I partake in some Chinese birthday traditions. I had to roll an egg up my arms and over my head for good luck in the coming year, and I had to pick up noodles from soup as high as I could to see how long I am going to live. I got to 100 years, chopstick skills. Then the lights dimmed, and Sarah came out with a birthday crown and a cake covered in candles. It was seriously one of the best chocolate cakes I've ever had. Everyone sang to me and it was just a great night. By the end we were all just sitting around the dining room table talking and reminiscing about the past 3 weeks that we had all spent together. We miss Holly, Charlie, and Lillian and think about them often. The next day we said our goodbyes and parted ways - Holly and Charlie stayed behind in Beijing for a few days, Lillian started another tour, and Sarah and I headed into Vietnam. Ho Chi Minh City, here we come.
Lillian's parents live in Beijing and were generous enough to invite me, Sarah, Holly and Charlie to their home to have a birthday dinner celebration. Unfortunately Lillian's father was out of town on business, but her mom took the day off from work to cook all day for me, so cute. As we were getting ready to leave the hotel Sarah mysteriously disappeared and came back with a few bottles of wine to bring over to the house, and a big box from a bakery. I had no idea what could possibly be in there. We arrived at their house and were happily greeted by Lillian's mom. She was so excited to show us around the house and took out tons of photo albums from when Lillian was a little girl. We hung out and had some wine and before we knew it, Lillian's mom starting bringing tons of plates of food out from the kitchen to the dining room. She truly made me a birthday feast - chicken, several kinds of stir-fried veggies, rice. Everything was delicious and I was so thankful to be surrounded by such a great family.
After dinner was over the festivities began, Lillian and her mom insisted that I partake in some Chinese birthday traditions. I had to roll an egg up my arms and over my head for good luck in the coming year, and I had to pick up noodles from soup as high as I could to see how long I am going to live. I got to 100 years, chopstick skills. Then the lights dimmed, and Sarah came out with a birthday crown and a cake covered in candles. It was seriously one of the best chocolate cakes I've ever had. Everyone sang to me and it was just a great night. By the end we were all just sitting around the dining room table talking and reminiscing about the past 3 weeks that we had all spent together. We miss Holly, Charlie, and Lillian and think about them often. The next day we said our goodbyes and parted ways - Holly and Charlie stayed behind in Beijing for a few days, Lillian started another tour, and Sarah and I headed into Vietnam. Ho Chi Minh City, here we come.
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