It is tradition in China to have dumplings on New Year's. It is lucky and we need all the luck we can get. My students invited Terry and I to make dumplings with them on New Year's eve in their canteen. We had a great time going around to my various classes and learning the process. It is not as easy as it seems. The kids all looked like ghosts because the dumpling making turned into a "flour" war, but they had a blast. They are incredibly hospitable and we enjoy them so much! I confess we left without eating the spoils of our labor, but after watching the dough be dropped and handled we decided to go out to dinner on our way home. We had a quiet dinner together and came home to listen to the fireworks and ring in the new year and pack for our morning flight to Harbin.
(dumpling album)
We spent New Year's in the frozen North, Harbin, Northern China about as close to Russia as you can get....about as cold as you can get too. We braved the icy conditions to see the fantastic cities of ice and world renown snow sculptures. But the best was the tiger sanctuary. Incredible!The town (8 million) has a Russian history and it was very fun. We will be happy to fly "south" tomorrow for our Southern China vacation. Click for more photos
