Day trip on the train

Last summer Austin was working on memorizing Bible verses and completed a good number while we were in the US. At the end, we told him we would take him on a train trip as a reward, hoping to take the short train from Richmond to Newport News. However, we ran out of time. Since returning, we had sort of forgotten about it but lately Austin remembered and has been asking about it. Wanting to be keepers of our word, we finally planned a daytrip today to Tianjin, another city not far from us. We rode the bullet train- it goes 200 mph and takes just under 30 minutes. It took longer to get from our house to the train station via subway than to get to Tianjin. But we had beautiful weather and a really fun day as a family.

Posing outside the bullet train.

We splurged on the way there and bought VIP tickets - because they were in the first car right behind the drivers. The boys thought it was cool to watch them driving and be able to see right down the track.

Austin spent the rest of the ride glued to the window. At the end of the day, the train rides were definitely his favorite.

The boys probably would have been content to play here right outside the train station the rest of the day. It is right by the Hai River, with lots of steps and climb and cool architecture. We took a boat ride at the end of the day right here at the pier.

Trying out the well-known local cuisine- "gou bu li baozi". Baozi is steamed bread filled with either meat or vegetables. "Gou bu li" literally means- the dog can't ignore it. The waitress gave us a long explanation of the origin of this name. Some of it was lost on us, but it was yummy.

More of the river and surrounding buildings.

This was one of the many European style buildings we saw on our boat trip and throughout the day. Tianjin used to have many "foreign invaders" during past colonial eras and still has some original buildings, as well as keeping up some western-style architecture. It also was often the last line of defense between the sea and the capital, giving it long military history.

Another story- we took the subway there. We had to switch lines, which is always a big pain with kids and strollers. We took the double stroller since we knew we would be doing a lot of walking. When we got off the first line, we looked hopefully but doubtfully at the nearby elevator. All the subway stations have an elevator and I have NEVER seen them in use. They are always "temporarily stopped". But we asked a worker if he could turn it on. He gave the usual half hearted response indicating we had clearly asked for something impossible. However, after a few minutes of waiting, the elevator actually opened. Inside was a really nice guy who rode with us down. Chris pushed the guy a little, telling him they really should use the elevators if they want handicapped or others with needs to actually use the subway. He actually agreed with us that it should always be on, but said it was the policy to not keep them on. THEN he escorted us all the way to the next line (quite a trek), opening an escalator for us where there were steps. When we were about to get on, he asked us where we were going to get off. When we got to our last stop, a lady was waiting to escort us to another elevator that was on! I think that was really is actually always on, because it is where the subway meets the train station. However, I have never had such service (or any service) on the subway and was impressed. In the past, workers are either extremely passive, claimed they did not even know there was an elevator or otherwise unsympathetic. But I am thankful for the guy that helped us out today. Our return was a more normal experience, having to walk the boys and carry the stroller up lots of steps, but I didn't mind so much that time.

And yes, the boys did have haircuts. I did it in our backyard and sort of butchered it I think but there long, thick hair makes it passable.