A Letter to Erin

*This is letter from Dad that I decided to post. The references may not make sense to everyone, but there is some interesting info included.--erin* Hi Pooh, How are things going for you now. School still so busy or do you have a short break here for Christmas? There are more signs of Christmas here than I expected - people is some of the restaurants wearing Santa hats, the decorations at the hotel, Christmas lights, but it still doesn't feel too Christmas-ie. Mom told me that the store got broken into last night and they lost $35,000 worth of equipment. She also said that they broke the sliding glass cases instead of trying them to see if they were locked. Hope that they catch them. What is the schedule for your visit to Suzhou? How long is the group going to be here? I'd like to take everyone out for a meal and there are several places that we could visit. There is a really good Chinese place where all of the dishes are on display, and you just point to what you want. All of the fish, crab, eel, etc. are live in the tanks, so you can pick your own out too. They have lots of chicken, pork & beef dishes too. Watch out for the one that looks like beef & green beans. They a really peppers and if you are expecting green beans it is a big surprise. They have a deep fried corn dish that is great. The Amazon is a "Latin" restaurant. You have a buffet of more traditional Chinese foods, but then the guys come around with meats on skewers and slice or put them on you plate. They have a live band that is starting to get to know us. There are several more western places in town that we've tried. The Blue Marlin has burgers, steaks, Italian & German. The Drunken Chef is has English Pub food. The Southern Cross has burgers, Italian & Mexican. There is also a little mall area that has a Thai place, a couple of pizza parlors, and Italian & a French restaurant. There is a McDonalds (with the worst Cokes I've ever had), a Pizza Hut and a bunch of KFC's which the Chinese seem to really like. A couple of the places have Dr. Pepper on the menu, but like the French Onion soup at the Maples in Korea, they never have it. I'd also like you to come out to the plant. We can have lunch at the place we do every day. The plant restaurant is not too bad, but we prefer to go across the street to this hole in the wall (and I'm being nice). You pay your 5RMB and then you go back in to the "serving" area and get a plate full of what she has cooked, get your rice and soup, then head for one of the three "dining" rooms. An experience you will never forget. None of us have ever had any problem with the food staying in and it is a side of China that your guide probably won't show you. Just keep the Pepto tabs handy. Attached are the phone numbers for the guys here and our apartment address in Chinese. Just wanted you to have something with you when you came. You never know if you will get sent to Pusan or something. At least you can speak the language some this time. Dad