Easter in Guangzhou

Happy Easter everyone! We started off our stay in Guangzhou with a good night's rest, a great breakfast complete with "pomatoes" and a visit to the local Shamian Christ Church. Without a doubt, Shamian Christ Church was the hit....we were so delighted to see two different cultures worshiping one great God. We went to the English/Chinese service....most of it was in Chinese....probably our favorite part (this won't surprise those of you who know us well) was the music....we started the service by hearing "Because He Lives" being sung in Chinese....awesome! This song is one of my favorite hymns. Then we were given a show by the school age Chinese children of the church who sung "This Is The Day"....hearing these songs in Chinese was just cool....the service lasted at least an hour and a half....the boys were disappointed when we told them there would not be a "Kid Venture" at the Chinese church....they handled themselves well and entertained those around them by coloring pictures (thanks Mom for the activities you packed the boys....on days like today they have been very helpful)....after church we opted out of the hotel Easter buffet (their menu included the delicacy "Fried Frog Legs" which is just something we were not up for today)....so we had Starbucks hot chocolate....yes, John K. and Mom, they do have Starbucks in China....the part of Guangzhou that our hotel is located in reminds me a lot of like Charleston, SC....we are located right on a river with a lot of boating activity, there are shops and street vendors on every corner, the parks are very pretty with lots of flowers that are in full bloom, the buildings have that historical look to them and the restaurants are tasty....we had Lucy's last night (it has a lot of comfort foods to help us Americans feel more at home....grilled cheese and burgers being a favorite of the Drafts' boys)....tonight we tried a Cantonese style Chinese restaurant, good but.....back to our afternoon though, after our lunch we went to visit the Chen family temple.....it was nice and then we went to this local store to buy water and diapers....the thing is that here in China there are people EVERYWHERE....today was one of those days that I just prayed that my three children would all be in my care tonight....with the hustle and bustle on the street it is hard to keep up with three children....MK is in the stoller so she pretty much is always with us but Colin and Pryce strike up conversations with just about anyone, Chinese or English, and honestly we have lost them a time or two....normally they are right behind us but it is scary.....they do this in the US stores and it isn't a problem because there are not so many people, but here oh my gosh, it is nuts....it didn't help that today is a weekend day and apparently the crowds are much worse....blah, glad that shopping trip is behind us......just picture the worst traffic jam you have ever been in with every car known to man and that is what it is like in these Chinese "marts" except there are no cars, only a million people all trying to get to their destination as quickly as possible....not so much fun. Anyway, goodnight from Guangzhou....