Anniversary, Parks, & Trains

We celebrated our 3 year anniversary on the 11th! It's been such a great 3 years so far...we're looking forward to many many more years! Interesting marriage fact: we've been married longer in China than in the states!
We ate a funfetti cake to celebrate!

The weather has been getting warmer lately. So we've taken advantage of it and gone to the park several times in the past week. Eden loves getting out in her fantastic Bjorn carrier...and all the people LOVE looking at her!

These ladies were super sweet. We couldn't communicate with them very well because they were pretty old. They didn't speak "the common language" but we were able to catch a few words here and there to understand they thought we weren't wearing enough clothes. (something just about everyone tells us...they'll wear long underwear underneath their long sleeves and pants until it reaches 80 degrees F)

While we were out I thought I'd take some pictures so you all can see what goes on in the parks here....
People do random exercises. Like pushups on a park bench:

People bring their brooms and dust pans out to the park to help clean up. No they aren't paid...the must just enjoy cleaning up the park! There were several ladies out there sweeping stuff up.

People take naps on the park benches. This is the most common activity in the parks. In this one area alone, every park bench had a person taking a nap on it. They aren't homeless. In fact, they are probably all just taking a break from their jobs....and they choose to spend their break in deep slumber at the public park. :)

The park benches that aren't taken by napsters are usually covered up with couples making out. I spared you those pictures.
Rarely do people walk on the grass or gather and throw frisbees...the sites at parks here are pretty different from those in the states. None the less, the park is a fun place to go on a nice day!

This weekend Eden took her first train ride in China. Trains around these parts are a little different from those elsewhere in the country. We have "bullet trains" that travel about 200 km/h. They are so convenient...in fact, we prefer them to taxis or airplanes! They are super cheap and as you can see in the picture, really nice! We always take "First Class" because it's about a dollar more, a lot more spacious, and usually less crowded because Chinese people pinch and save cash where they can!

Eden's first train ride...and a little of the country side: