The Redden Family

Guangdong tourist celebration

2010-01-16T07:05:00.000-08:00

We were special guests to the big tourist celebration of Guangdong province. We got a nice meal, big show, and red jackets. It was a spectacular show all to promote tourism in that province.

Kuala Lumpur

2010-01-16T06:58:00.000-08:00

Happy New Year 2010!

We spent then night in KL and visited the famous Petronas Towers. We walked on the bridge that connects the towers. The bridge was on the 41st floors.

Nick's Pension in Ubud

2010-01-16T06:51:00.000-08:00

Oh so happy to have finally arrived! (grumpy teenagers)
Beautiful grounds!

White Water rafting!

2010-01-16T06:45:00.000-08:00

Easy rapids but great fun. Lots of water fights and racing!

Waterbom

2010-01-16T06:37:00.000-08:00

Super water park in Kuta, Bali!

Mt Batur

2010-01-16T06:26:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas
2009 Merrry Christmas! We got up at 3am and hiked to the top of Mt. Batur. It took about 2 hrs. We were greeted by a beautiful view on Christmas morning! Also we were greeted by a few monkeys.

Ubud, Bali

2010-01-16T06:19:00.000-08:00

Everday sights!

Slow Ferry to Lombogen

2010-01-16T06:12:00.000-08:00

Best seats on the boat....next to the roosters!
Seats were removable planks that could be used as a floatation device.

Island off of Bali

2010-01-16T06:03:00.000-08:00

Nusa Lombogen Sunset from the pool of our hotel!

View of village from our ferry boat!

Nusa Lombogen, Indonesia

2010-01-16T05:57:00.000-08:00

Snorkeling Again!! This time with the Kipfer Family.

2010-01-16T05:46:00.000-08:00

Tough day at the beach for McCall!

McCall the model

2010-01-16T05:37:00.000-08:00

Put on your makeup, pick out an outfit from the tarp on the sand, and get dress behind the gray tarp(private dressing room)!

2010-01-16T05:22:00.000-08:00

This is our 1st class transportation to Turtle Island from Sandaken. We got sprayed with a little water and bounced around a bit.

Turtle Island in Borneo

2010-01-16T05:14:00.000-08:00

Flying the best
economy flight available to Sandaken.

Tracks in the sand made by large sea turtles that came up on the beach at night to lay their eggs.

Rangers dig up the eggs and put them in a hatchery to help increase the number of baby turtles that survive.

2010-01-15T23:33:00.000-08:00

Herd if wild Yaks running through the water in Kota Kinabula. I guess the jellyfish don't bother them.

2010-01-15T23:31:00.000-08:00

Derek scaling a climbing!

Brad and McCall ready to drive a dune buggy on the beach but Watch Out for the herd of wild Yaks!!!

Redden Family - August 2009

2009-08-20T16:26:00.001-07:00

GREAT WALL!!

2009-05-14T05:11:00.000-07:00

Narrative of Beijing vacation

2009-05-09T18:26:00.000-07:00

April 26th to April 30, 2009 Beijing, China

What an exciting, tiring, and fun filled adventure in Beijing. We traveled with 2 teachers from QSI. When we arrived in Beijing we met up with 2 other QSI teachers.

We arrived at the Shenzhen International Airport at 8:00am and checked in. Fairly nice airport but small for International. The flight to Beijing was 3 hrs. and we were fed a decent lunch. No in flight movies but....... the stewardess led the passengers in chair aerobics. It was funny to listen and watch. They counted (very loud) in Chinese as they circled their wrists and arms. It woke me up from a little nap.

After disembarking from the plane, we got our bags and hopped into the van that was sent by our hostel. The hostel we stayed at was called Downtown Backpackers Accomadations which had a manager named Apple. She is Chinese but speaks excellent english and helped us find buses, taxis, etc. Great location right in the middle of the Hutongs which is a place many people tour while on vacation.
http://enwikipedia.org/wiki/Hutung for more information.

Our room was like going to summer camp. We had 3 sets of bunkbeds and a private bathroom with shower. The bathroom was a toilet/shower combo which means the toilet got wet and the floor flooded when someone showered. We paid $10 a person but got breakfast included. GREAT DEAL! Every morning we got 2 eggs, 1/2 banana, glass of tang, 3 pieces of toast, 1 saugauge, and slice of apple. Our room had 2 windows one with no curtain so we arose with the sun around 6am - no wake up calls needed for us. After we checked in we found out no towels were provided so we had to rent them for $8.00 RMB per person.($1.24) The best part was the location..... we were smack dab in the middle of cute little streets with quaint shops, pubs, coffee shops with couches etc. Very modern yuppie Chinese.... Great places to eat and relax!!

The first night we went to see a Chinese acrobatic show at the Tiandi Heaven and Earth Theatre. It was arranged through our hostel and they took us in a van so we didn't have to figure out transportation. We were in the fourth row right in the middle. We were surrounded by other Western people. We decided it was reverse discrimination. The white faces were all in the middle and upfront. Nonetheless the show was great! The performers looked very young and it hurt just watching them put their foot around their neck while standing on one leg. They were simply amazing. It was like going to the circus but no animals.

Next morning 6:40am we boarded buses and headed to the "Great Wall". There are several locations you can go to visit the "WALL"! We chose Jinshanling/Simatai which was a 2hr drive away. Once outside of the city we saw houses and farms and countryside that reminded us of Cle Elum, WA. Now supposedly this area of the wall is not very popular with the tourists because of the distance and the fact that it hasn't been refurbished. Also, no food vendors and shops. When we pulled up in Jinshanling to get off the bus to begin our hike much to our surprize was 2 big buses full of chinese students on a field trip. The all wore matching red/white sweatsuits and looked to be in high school. So much for no crowds on the wall.

We hiked/crawled 8 kilometers and it took about 4 hrs. We walked over crumbling stones and up and down loose stairs. Several tower locations (there were 30 total on our climb) were a little tricky with loose rocks and steps that with all the people it was quite a log jam. We were even diverted off the wall in 2 spots where there really wasn't any safe place to walk. Along the way little Chinese women and men showed up with there wares to sell. I managed to bargain for a few Great Wall t-shirts. The kids were laughing because this lady was running after me trying to get me to buy her shirts. The only english she could say was -"you buy ok" and "thank you very much" which she rattled off continuously while chasing us. Finally, we got to the end of our hike and had the option of riding a zip-line off the wall down over a lake. Which the kids and I did while Rick took pictures and eventually walked down. When we got off the zip-drive a little boat came and picked us up and took us to place to meet up with our tour group. Oh, did I mention no bathrooms on the wall.(use your imagination) McCall says she left her DNA on the GREAT WALL of China. It was pretty amazing to think we walked where so much history has taken place. http://enwikipedia.org/wiki/Great_Wall_of_China for more information.
Finally, we got back to hostel and headed for dinner. The boys were very excited that we found a Sizzler in a mall. It was a great dinner. We eat chinese food all the time so to find a good western salad bar/buffet for a good price is rare. That night we all slept well.

Tuesday was a jammed pack day. We went to the Forbidden City, Tiannamen Square, Silk road, and the Olympic Venues. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiananmen for more information.
We walked through Tiannamen to get to the Forbidden City. Lots of vendors trying to sell hats, watches with Mao, and postcards. Lots of people just hanging around.
The Forbidden city was very large and interesting. Some facts that I remember is that there are always 2 (two) Lions at each entry. One is a male with his paw on a ball and the other is female with her paw on a cub. We saw their drainage system with gargoyles that had the holes in their mouths. Large black vats were everywhere throught the city and they were used (years ago) to collect water in case of a fire. "The City" was damaged by fire by the French allied forces but rebuilt. A lot of the grounds and areas looked to be still untouched and in its orginal state. The path ways are crumbling and have weeds growing around them. http://enwikipedia.org/wiki/Forbidden_City
Next stop was Silk road for a little snack and shopping. We were told the best deals were at Silk Road. It was fun to barter. After that we hopped on the subway and headed out to the Olympic venues. It costs 2rmb ($.26) to ride the subway anywhere. The Bird's Nest(track staduim), Ice Cube(swimming pool) and surroundings were very clean and new looking. It was nice to see that they are still taking care of the Olympic venues. When we left we were mobbed by vendors with Olympic souvenirs to sell. They followed us and swarmed us and didn't take NO for an answer. I think our mistake was we bought one thing then they kept offering us more and more and more (junk).

Wednesday we decided to go to the Summer Palace (Imperial Palace) http://en.wikipedia.org/?wiki/Summer_Palace It seems the Emperor hung out in the Forbidden City (central Bejing) and the Emperoress preferred the Summer Palace (northwest Bejing). The Summer Palace was huge and beautiful - lots of park like areas. The grounds are kept up and it is much prettier than the Forbidden City. Of course, like everything else much had been destroyed by fire from the Allied Forces (French) so it was rebuilt. There is a huge (KunmingLake) man made lake that offers boat rides and pedal boats. We chose to get 2 boats and pedaled around for 2 hrs. since yesterday was full of walking. We saw a hugh marble boat that the Emperoress had made - I don't think it ever floated - just set on the edge of the lake. Later, when we were walking around, we found a shop with a calligrapher. He could paint with his elbow. We had our last name painted in Chinese on scroll with other Chinese sayings. The most fun was the Chinese paparazzi that showing up everywhere we stopped! They had their cameras and would want pictures of and with McCall. The boys were absolutely amazed!!

Finally, on our last day (morning) we went to a market called Yao Xiu (pronounced Ya Show). It is like an indoor flea market. We told the kids it was time for them to try to barter. Brad was excited that he got a NBA Jersey with shorts for 80rmb. The lady's starting price was 480rmb. Derek bought 4 Chinese flutes for 50rmb. At first the man wanted 50rmb for 1 flute. He chased us down and just kept adding flutes to the deal. Jacob wasn't into bargaining or shopping. McCall gave her unwanted opinion on everything. She always suggested more than I wanted to pay so I had to ask her to be quiet. She did pick out many Chinese shirts to give as gifts.

At last we headed back to Shenzhen around 3pm. We were exhausted but glad we saw all the famous Beijing historical sights!

Summer Palace in Beijing(Imperial Palace)

2009-05-07T23:08:00.001-07:00

The Summer palace was spread out with beautiful grounds. The Qing dynasty misappropriated funds from the navy to build this palace for the Emperoress.

The Emperoress's marble boat. I don't think it actually floated. It was set in Kunming lake which is a man-made lake for the summer palace. I guess if you are royality you can get a lake front property - anywhere!

We walked under these beautifully painted covered walkways to get around a lot of the grounds. The Emperoress didn't want to get wet.

This is one of the many bridges built on "HER" personal lake.

At the palace we found a calligrapher that painted with his elbow. He wrote our last name in chinese on a scroll for us.(for a price)

The most fun was hiding from McCall's paparazzi fan club. Everywhere chinese people wanted to take pictures of her and with her. The boys were a little jealous. Brad said we should charge them.

Palace living quarters in the background. It was like a city in itself. It was more beautiful than the Forbidden City. Pretty nice for a second home.

Olympic Venues in Beijing

2009-05-03T19:43:00.000-07:00

Signs in both chinese and english to direct you to the differet Olympic venues.

Subway(Metro) in Beijing on our way to Olympic venues.

We arrived at the Bird's Nest(track stadium) around 5pm so we didn't have to deal with any crowds!! Although the subway was crowded.

The famous "ICE CUBE" is where the swimming took place. It looked blue.

Boy's QSI Basketball

2009-05-03T06:06:00.000-07:00

QSI wins Southern Delta Region Conference Middle School boys Basketball tourney in Guangzhou, China.

Bathroom

2009-05-03T05:09:00.000-07:00

Funny chinese signs

2009-05-03T05:08:00.000-07:00

This sign was above a toilet in the Men's bathroom!!

Beijing Vacation

2009-05-03T05:06:00.000-07:00

9am at the Shenzhen Airport our group is heading for a "historical" vacation. Our family traveled with two other QSI teachers and later ran into two more QSI teachers in Beijing.

Our posh 5 star hostel accommodations. Three bunkbeds and our own bathroom. What more can you ask for???????? It felt like a dorm room in college. We did get free breakfast and a free pool table in the basement.

Local garbage collector on bike in the Hutongs. We stayed at super hostel here in the heart of the Hutongs.

In the background is the Forbidden City. It is huge. You can walk for hours and get lost.
We are standing in Tianamen Square getting ready to go in the entrance to the Forbidden City.

Hong Kong Soho District - Chinese New Years

2009-01-31T21:46:00.000-08:00

We went with several families via ferry to Hong Kong for the yearly Chinese New Year parade. After arriving we had to take the Star ferry from Central to Kowloon.

The parade started at 8pm but we staked out our spot at 5pm so we could have a good view. Unfortunately we chose the wrong side of the road. We had a great time with our large group trying to get the chinese people to do the "wave"!

Within our goup of about 25 people this was the men's favorite parade entry. The Washington Redskin cheerleaders. For some reason the chinese people weren't that impressed.

The parade was sponsored by Cathay Pacific Airlines. This was one of the better floats.

Chinese New Years is a major holiday for the chinese. It rivals a western Christmas
This is a Chinese New Year tree to symbolize good fortune for the new year. This year it is the Year of the OX! These little orange bushes/trees with empty red envelopes are everywhere. (just like Christmas trees everywhere in the USA)
The oranges on these bushes are sour and not good for eating. They are just decorations.

Early in the morning on Jan. 26th(Chinese New Years) the kids found "red envelopes" on their bed! It is a tradition to give children & single adults "red envelopes" for Chinese New Years. You put money in the envelopes as a gift. Many employers give their employees "red envelopes" at this time of year. (year end bonus)

Soho District!

McCall by a statue of Yoa Ming in the Mall at Giga sports.

The next morning we went to do the tourist stuff. We all rode one of the world's longest escalator in the Soho district. It took us up the mountain of Hong Kong while allowing you to get off on many intersections to explore the Soho District. We actually found a great mexican restaurant. We have been craving mexican food even Taco Bell would be good. There aren't any in China.

Sunday afternoon in the Park!

2009-01-14T22:53:00.000-08:00

At Si Hai park we saw how the chinese enjoy their Sunday afternoons. The park was huge with lots to see. Many people were fishing. I don't think I would eat anything out of this pond.

The lady is selling sugar cane. People buy a stick for 1 or 2 yuan. Then they cut it into pieces and peel off the bark. After that they just chew on it.

The older folks sit around in groups and play cards.

In these bins is a wheat like rice. The man is selling it. It is sticky and sweet. He uses his stick to beat on the bins to let people know he is there. Kind of like hearing the popsicle truck back in the USA.

This bull symbolizes the development of Shenzhen. Shenzhen is part of the new territories(special economic zone) Twenty five yrs ago it was a fishing village with dirt roads. Now it is very commericalized and has western businesses everywhere. The bull stands for hard work, spirit, and never giving up. Shenzhen is one of the wealthier areas due to all the manufacturing. Lots of expats live and work here.

The gentleman is playing an "er hu". It sounds like a cello. We hear them every night and it is very relaxing music.

New Year's Eve at Happy Valley in Shenzhen

2009-01-14T00:30:00.000-08:00

Only the strong can survive this ride. McCall and Nikki had to pull themselves up with the pulley rope. It was a good workout.

McCall, Rachel, and Nikki on a thrill ride at Happy Valley. Happy Valley is like a Silverwood or Lagoon but not as many rides. It does have a water park that is open when it's warmer.

Nikki, McCall, and Vecka dressed up like little chinese girls at Happy Valley. It was free to dress up but then they charged 10rmb to take pictures with your own camera. Of course many chinese people walking by stopped and took the girls picture.(for no charge)

King of Thailand

2009-01-14T00:21:00.000-08:00

The Thai people love their 81 yr old King. Everywhere you look there are posters and shrines to the King. Evidently on Mondays they wear yellow to show respect to their leader.

No one is allowed to tour the Grand Palace grounds and view the Emerald Budda without proper attire. This means no shorts, tank tops etc. Your knees and shoulders must be covered. Hence the skirts and pants that they loaned use at entrance.

The guard didn't move a muscle or even look at us when we took his picture. The gate in the background is ajar and the building is the King's home. No one is allowed in that area.

Bangkok sights from a long boat

2009-01-13T22:06:00.000-08:00

Private long boat tour on the canals.

Old historic Fort

We rode on a long boat to tour the canals and waterways around Bangkok. We had the boat to ourselves.
We saw lots of sights - these are just a few.

Reclining Budda in Bangkok

2009-01-13T21:49:00.000-08:00

This Budda was in temple next to the famous "Reclining Budda". We got to go in and see how the make offerings to the Budda. Michelle was given a flower to place in a vase, a candle to light and put below the statue, and a small gold paper to stick to the small Budda. You must take off your shoes and never point your feet towards the Budda.

This is the head of the Reclining Budda. We are standing right in front of it, so it is hard to get the whole Budda in the picture. This Budda is huge!

This photo is taken from up above the Budda.

The bottom of the Reclining Budda's feet are beautiful. The are covered with pictures made with mother of pearl.
After viewing the Reclining Budda, the kids were given a small handful of coins to put in these pots. The pots are offerings to the Budda and you are to make wishes. They are suppose to wish for happiness, good health, and good fortune etc

WELCOME to Koh Chang!

2009-01-12T23:19:00.000-08:00

What a postcard view! This is our arrival from Trat via a ferry. Every house, hotel, and business has a temple out front to honor Budda. We saw flowers, oranges, and many other gifts laid before the temples as offerings.

Our lodging was clean bungalows about 50 yards from the beach. The beds were comfortable and we had hot water. The bungalows are small so we had to rent three for our family.(2 per bungalow) Luckily it was only $33 a night per bungalow and it included an all you can eat breakfast buffet.
Buy your gas by the bottle. No gas stations on the island. We rented mopeds for about $8 a day. McCall had loved riding on them. NO we didn't let her drive. Of course there doesn't seem to be any rules against who can drive. We saw a lady driving a modped with an infant between her legs.

This is our favorite local vendor. Every night we walk up to the street for fresh homemade crepes. The cost of the crepes was about 75 cents. The kids usually ate chocolate crepes and Michelle usually had banana. Rick opted for chips and pepsi from 7-11.

Activities in Koh Chang!

2009-01-11T23:42:00.000-08:00

McCall and Nikki were building sandcastles daily!

Derek enjoyed snorkling all day on a boat tour that we all took. We swam with schools of striped yellow and black fish, pink fish, and many more. Thank God - no sharks.

McCall and Rick did a little kayaking. The boys all kayaked over to an island and found a cave with bats. It took them a good hour to paddle over and back. When asked if it was fun? Jacob replied, " sorta but kind of tiring".

Khlong Plu Waterfall

2009-01-11T23:14:00.000-08:00

We all hiked up to Khlong Phlu waterfall in the Koh Chang National Park. The hike was about 10 minutes. (very easy) Once we arrived at the waterfall, Michelle was the first to brave the icy cold pool of water below the waterfall. It was a good distance away from the actual waterfall.Getting out of the waterwas a bit difficult because of the slippery, slimy rocks. Luckily there was a rope that you could use climb your way out.

Everyone took turns jumping off the rocks into the water. Here's Derek checking out the water below. You had to jump out a little bit to clear the rocks.

Brad jumped on one side while our friend, Jack Rundell proceed to climb up the other side to find a new jumping spot. (which he found)

Swimming with pink dolphins!

2009-01-08T00:34:00.000-08:00

Yes - that is really a pink dolphin!!!

Rick, Brad, and Jacob splash the water to call for the dolphin.(irawaddy) Derek taking his turn riding the dolphin in the water. We all had a turn. You ride it by clasping your hands together and placing them around the back fin. When they turned it was hard to hold on.

TREE TOP ADVENTURE in Thailand

2009-01-05T21:05:00.000-08:00

Brad,Rick and Jacob zipping through the jungle at 36 feet in the air.

The Treetop Adventure was the boy's favorite activity in Thailand. They googled it on the computer and found out there is a Treetop adventure in Bali. I guess will go there on our next adventure.

Elephants!!

2008-12-28T00:01:00.000-08:00

McCall, Michelle and Rick got to ride elephants for about 1 hour on a trek through the jungle in Koh Chang. It was a very slow bumpy ride. Our rear ends got a little tired from the hard seat. At times the elephants would just stop and not want to move. Usually when the trail got narrow or steep the guide would have to poke them in the back legs with a sharp stick to get them moving!

Jacob, Brad, and Johnny feeding the elephants bananas after a long trek through the jungle.

Derek and Brad helped wash the elephant in the stream. They said it was hairy.

Rachel, McCall, and Nicole used a little scrub brush to help wash the elephant at the elephant reserve in Koh Chang, Thailand. They said the water was freezing!!!

Guangzhou, China

2008-12-27T11:23:00.000-08:00

McCall, Derek, and Brad outside our hotel in Guangzhou (formerly - Canton) with the Pearl River in the background.

Along the Pearl River walking path people were exercising with swords. Also large groups were dancing to music.(aerobics) It was an "older" crowd!

We went shopping at the pedestrian street market in Guangzhou.

ASPIRING ACTRESS!

2008-12-27T11:17:00.000-08:00

Such a determined face!

DECEMBER ACTIVITIES!
McCall was the mouse deer in the play - Why Are There No Tigers in Borneo?

This was an after school activity class that she was involved in since Sept. 2008!

BASEBALL!!!

2008-12-27T11:04:00.000-08:00

Baseball in China!!!! The boys were invited to practice with the Shenzhen University baseball team. The University has no scholarships and most players started with limited baseball experience. Finding places to practice and teams to play is another challenge. They practice on the soccer field at the University and at Tongle Middle School where a serious middle school baseball team is being developed.

Coach Yu (red shirt)coaches Shenzhen University and Tongle Middle school. In the 80's he was drafted by the Yankee's farm club team in the USA. He came back to China and played for the Chinese National Team. He has coached several current chinese national players. He doesn't speak much english so sign langauge was needed.
Luckily several of the Shenzhen University players spoke english and were able to translate for the boys. The boys enjoyed practicing but were quite shocked on arrival to see the coach smoking on the field. It is interesting to see so many people puffing away in China. Especially people in sports and health careers. (Doctors)

Rugby Team

2008-12-27T10:57:00.000-08:00

Brad, Derek, Lucas, and Jacob starting the game!
Here is the diverse team representing QSI rugby! The players/Coaches are from New Zealand, USA, Australia, Korea, Brazil, Japan, Taiwan, Israel, and Malaysia. They placed 3rd in the tourney.

QSI Rugby Tournament in Guangzhou!

2008-12-27T10:50:00.000-08:00

Brad, Derek, Jacob and teammates are waiting for the game to start!

Derek was the Team Captain and won a medal for sportsmanship!

Winter Concert

2008-12-27T10:40:00.000-08:00

The boys performed in the Winter concert. (required for a grade) They had to quickly beat these plastic tubes in their hands to a fast beat. It was very cool.

2008-12-27T10:36:00.000-08:00

McCall is pictured here with 3 of the para professionals from QSI. They are dressed in traditional chinese dresses for the school's Winter Concert performance. McCall dressed in her own style of costume for the concert. She sang with her class.

2008-11-02T01:52:00.000-07:00

This is a pomelo. A cross between an orange and a grapefruit.

View from half way up Nai Shan hill hike.

Family day in Shekou - November

2008-11-02T01:26:00.000-07:00

Our family took a hike up Nai shan hill in Shekou. This hill has steep stairs leading to the top. There are over 800 stairs. When you arrive at the top the view is of Shenzhen Bay and all the way across the sea to Hong Kong. After the long hike we treated ourselves to the all you can eat Brazilian BBQ. Derek ate camel meat while Jake and Brad enjoyed OX's tongue. After consuming too much food we went for a foot massage. Foot massages don't just mean a foot rub. They massage almost your whole body for 70 minutes while your feet soak in a tub of hot tea. All this for the mere price of 38rmb which is about $5.50 us dollars. They also throw in a free beverage.

2008-10-14T04:01:00.000-07:00

Misty Mays? NO McCall playing beach volleyball.

Logan National H.S. on Malapascua Island, Daan Banyayan, Cebu, Philippines.

Brad, Jacob, McCall & Derek in the water on the eastern shore of Calangaman Island, Philippines - Oct. 2, 2008

Scuba Girl McCall!! Yep, that's McCall getting ready to get into the water to go snorkeling
with her brothers and friends somewhere between the islands of Malapascua and Calangaman, Philippines - Oct. 2, 2008

2008-10-12T06:37:00.000-07:00

McCall and her two buddies, Kate and Nicole. Kate is from Colorado and Nicole is from Utah. Both of the girls parents teach at QSI.

August in China

2008-10-12T06:31:00.001-07:00

Rick 44th birthday celebration in our new home. It was also the first day of school.

McCall holding our first Dragon Fruit. It is soft, white and has what looks like poppyseeds inside. It is very mild in flavor.

Local wet market in Shekou. Strong fish smells. Michelle says yuck (Need to appreciate seafood)!

We just got off the ferry and into Hong Kong! What an amazing city.

2008-10-12T06:23:00.000-07:00

These are the sidewalks throughout Malapascua. Sometimes we even saw people sweeping the dirt.

A fairly decent local home. There were many that didn't have as good of craftmanship.

Local bakery that we visited daily. They made fresh cookies, breads, and cinnamon rolls. Of course there were days when their generator went out so the treats weren't as plentiful.

Early morning catch!! Fishermen and women were hitting the nets with sticks to knock the little fish onto the tarps. Many of the little fish were stuck in the net holes.

GAMING IN MALAPASCUA

2008-10-12T06:14:00.000-07:00

Redden Boys and Curry Boys played locals in a game of basketball. They had to bet 100 pesos to play or no game. WE LOST! Check out the locals feet. They play in thongs. That must have given them some kind of advantage.

The bidding is open for the first round of the local cockfight. This is their regular Sunday afternoon sport. Right after church. Afterwards, the winner and the loser share a pot of chicken soup using the losers roosters!

Lots of men getting people to bet.

The boys are getting bored waiting for the fight to begin. Then it was over so fast. They weren't impressed. Thats probably a good thing.

Papa Johns Pizza Eating Contest!

2008-10-12T05:57:00.000-07:00

Papa Johns Pizza Eating contest was held in the middle of SeaWorld. Representing QSI in the Pizza Eating Contest are Rick Redden(14), Marty Curry(6) Carl Braun(8) and Ian Hanson(not pictured)! They had to eat as many pieces as possible in 3 minutes. Rick got third place while Ian Hanson won. GO, FIGHT, EAT, QSI!
Jacob Redden(13), Brad Redden(12) and Michael Curry held up the kids ends of eating pizza for QSI. Derek Redden couldn't participate because he broke his 2 front top teeth earlier while playing basketball. He claims he accidently slipped on wet cement but maybe he just wanted to get out of school for the rest of the afternoon. He forgot about missing out on eating pizza.
Even McCall (27)got in on the eating contest. Of course I(michelle) signed up my whole family so I wouldn't have to cook dinner.

Just one more bite!!!! I don't think Rick is enjoying his dinner.

Soccer in Guangzhou

2008-10-12T05:44:00.000-07:00

Rick and McCall at the Olympic Stadium.(just a name not part of real Olympics)

Derek playing defense for the QSI Dragons soccer team at tournament in Guangzhou.

Olympic Stadium looks as impressive as its name. This stadium is used by local pro soccer team.

Derek getting ready to play the next game.

2008-10-12T05:33:00.000-07:00

OCT hosted an Autumn Tea Festival and is was like Disneyland minus all the rides. These are rows of tea plants that they grow.

A beautiful Pagoda off in the distance from the Tea Festival!

A festive parade and show to kick off the tea festival. The green confetti is shaped liked tea leaves.

Cultural Activities we attended in Late September.

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International Brunch at QSI - lots of great and different foods. Everyone dress in their country's costumes.

Autumn Tea Festival at OCT! This is how they dry tea leaves. We got to smell and then roll the leaves. Later we sampled the tea.

We were served chicken feet for lunch. (very rubbery) Luckily they also served fried rice, dumplings, and many other tasty dishes.

This is the infamous toilet in the floor that is available at all public buildings. Squatting low is key to keeping your ankles dry.

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Malapascua sunset at 7pm!

Just arrived at Manilla airport and saw our first jeepie!!

Boat ride over to Malapascua Island at 9pm. The boys look a little tired after a long day of taxis, bus, metro train, airplane, van, and boat rides.

Redden boys taught the local boys how to play stickball on the beach in front of our hotel. Speaking a different language was not a barrier.

Malapascua vacation

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The boys enjoying a seaweed.
Can't you tell by Jacob's face!!!

Happy snorklers on Calangaman Island. This island is owned by the Vice President of the Philippines.

McCall & Michelle took a ride on a motor tricyle for 40 pesos(about 90 cents) in Cebu.

After the first day of shell collecting - What a haul!!!

Malapascua Island

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Here is a Starfish McCall found during low tide.

Here are the girls. Each of them found a Starfish. From left to right is Molly, Miranda, McCall and Amber.

Jacob caught a starfish and a crab and put them in a shell he found.