A Swedish Wedding - Part II

After the ceremony, a massive party commences. (It even said on the invitation: MASSIVE party to follow.)

As soon as the groom leaves the head table, all of the guys rush up to kiss the bride. The girls all kiss the groom if the bride leaves the table too. Not just once - every time either of them leaves.

There are a lot of songs sung by everyone, usually ending in a toast. We also saw lip-sync performances, many speeches by their parents and siblings, and various fun activities by friends.


During one traditional game, they had to answer questions about which partner had more of certain traits by holding up the shoe of that person.

After the dinner, toasts, games and general fun, we went to another building for coffee and cake (this was at 11 PM. Swedes love their coffee!)

The dance then started about midnight. I think it was 3:30 AM when we left. It was certainly a massive party!

A Swedish Wedding - Part I

An excited bride! Hanna was one of the most expressive (and fun!) brides I've ever seen.

We all got on a boat to take us to the castle grounds.

Approaching the castle... it was actually the summer home.


A simple ceremony was performed outside. Because they had so many international guests, it was in both Swedish and English.

Silhouettes in a castle

These were taken in castle ruins about 20 minutes from Jonkoping. It was raining and the sun was setting.

Wedding

We just got back from a week in Sweden. Our best friends, Hanna and Henrik, tied the knot. We had a wonderful time and you'll be seeing photos from it for several days!!


They asked me to do a reading (in English) during the ceremony. It was really an international wedding, so a lot of things were both in Swedish and English.

Whisk

Whisk is a little cafe on Huaihui Lu that is famous for its chocolate! It is so rich! Jon and I also love their antipasto platter.

Glasses Market

I'd read about the glasses market a while ago and wanted to go, but we'd never made it there yet. Hanna had bought 2 pairs of glasses in Beijing and decided she wanted to look at some more, so we made our way there one afternoon. It is in the Railway Station Metro stop, exit 3 or 4. Glasses are about 150 RMB, or more if you want the expensive lenses.

There were thousands of choices from probably hundreds of vendors. You can either bring your prescription or have their person test you. They also have sunglasses and contacts, though Jon is quite dubious about the quality. (Remember the tainted and recalled contact solution in the US that was manufactured in China?) Hanna was quite happy with her glasses and the price was about 1/5th of what we'd expect in the West.

the Pearl TV Tower

Thursday it finally stopped raining for a while! Jon went to work while we went site seeing. We went to the Pearl TV Tower first.

On the right is the Jin Mao tower, and the taller tower is the World Financial Center.

There are 3 different levels of the TV tower you can go to. The lowest level even has a roller coaster in it.


The museum has a bunch of miniatures in it from different periods throughout Shanghai's history.

The Bund Site-Seeing Tunnel (aka The Disco Tunnel) is a tunnel decorated with super-cheesy, migraine-inducing lights. It costs 40 RMB to go through, while the subway costs 3 RMB. However, it is right on the Bund while the subway forces you to walk back several blocks, so if you can afford it it is worth taking.

The classic view of the Pudong skyline.
(All Hanna's photos, once again!)

View of Shanghai

I merged together about 5 photos Hanna took from the TV tower together. Click on the photo to see a large panorama of the view.

789 Nanjing Lu

After dinner we decided the evening shouldn't end just yet. We went to 789 Nanjing Lu, which is the bar at the top of the Le Royal Meridien Hotel. It is on the 65th floor and overlooks Nanjing Lu.



This is the Radission - we haven't been there yet but decided we need to try it sometime. It looks cool!
(These are all Hanna's photos.)

Picking up clothes

Wednesday after work we went back to the fabric market to pick up our clothes.

You need to try everything on so they can make adjustments if needed, and check if the buttons are all there, etc.

Hanna and Henrik both got suits made. Hanna's is a copy of one of mine (which I also had made there.)

I got a couple short-sleeve button down shirts. My boss called just as I was trying them on. Custom made clothing really makes you feel good about wearing it, since it fits perfectly!

(These are all photos Hanna took.)

Roof-top dining over the Bund

Wednesday the weather cleared up a little so we decided we HAD to take advantage of that. Emily made reservations for Finestre, a restaurant on a roof-top terrace overlooking the Bund.





The atmosphere was the best of any place we've ever eaten in Shanghai. It may have been the company, the view, the food, the wine.... or most likely all of the above! We'll definitely be going back sometime.

the Maglev

The Maglev (short for Magnetic Levitation) is the fastest train in the world. It connects the Pudong airport to Line 2 of the metro system. Jon and I take it to the airport whenever we don't have much baggage because it is a lot faster than waiting in traffic, especially since our apartment is right on Line 2.

Besides being a convenient option to get to the airport for locals, it is a tourist attraction. I've never actually taken a photo of it, but Hanna and Henrik did.... They rode it during a rainy day. it was a good way to get out of the wetness.

The Jin Mao Tower

The Jin Mao tower is currently the highest building in Shanghai that you can go in. The World Financial Center has beat it, but it's not open yet.


The top disappears into the clouds.


The bar at the top is called Cloud Nine.

It's the rainy season now, so very rainy and foggy all of the time. Most of the time we were in a cloud, but suddenly it blew away for a short time so we could see out below.

(These are all photos Hanna took.)

Pet Market & Sushi

(These are all photos Hanna took.)

We wandered down a small side street to find a pet market we'd read about. We didn't find a real market, but the street definitely catered to locals looking for animals.


After a walk down Nanjing Lu, we were starving.

In the metro stop is a Japanese restaurant with sushi going around on the conveyor belt. You just grab whatever you want to eat off of the belt. There are also hot water spigots between every other person so you can refill your own tea whenever you like. Fast and convenient!

After eating, Jon needed to go back to do some work on bidding documents, and Emily took Hanna and Henrik to the Pearl Market. Susan is happy to see everyone that Emily brings to her and gives them all great discounts - no bargaining needed, even!

After a rest at home, we decided to go to a little cafe that Emily had book club at once. It is full of unique items and all are for sale. The food is good, atmosphere homey and prices reasonable, so Jon and I think we'll be going back a few times.

People's Park

(Hanna took all of these photos.)

Jon, Henrik and Emily at People's Park.


Parks are really a gathering place, especially for older people. You can see lots of people playing cards or doing Tai Chi.

Cold Stone Creamery just happens to be very close, so we had to introduce Hanna & Henrik to the best ice cream in the world!! There is a couple Cold Stones in Sioux Falls and I was thrilled to find out they are in Shanghai too!

Sunday

Sunday we went to the clothing market. It's fun but can be exhausting because there are so many options! Hanna thought she could spend days there, but came to agree a few hours at a time is enough. We took them to our favorite cafe, Always Cafe, to have a late lunch.


In the evening, we spent time playing Guitar Hero and enjoying some drinks on our balcony.

Hanna & Henrik visiting

Our friends Hanna and Henrik are visiting from June 7 to 16th. We are super excited! We all went to school together in Jonkoping, Sweden (they are Swedish). In 2004, we visited them while they were living in Prague. In 2006, they visited us in South Dakota. We were planning to visit them in 2007 bu we moved to China instead. This year, they came to Shanghai, next summer we are going to Sweden to visit them, and in 2010 we've discussed driving Route 66 in the US!

You can read about and see photos from their journey in their travel journal.

All of us celebrating in Shanghai again!

Our friends Hanna and Henrik have been visiting the last 9 days from Sweden. I have been taking hundreds of photos, even though I haven't been posting them. I promise to make it up. Scroll down for highlights of our vacation! 

Wine Tasting Group

Crystal, Carl, Lura, Shon, Hanna, Henrik, me and Jon.

Grapes

We did a wine tasting at the Wilde Prairie Winery in Brandon. Very nice people and very fun!

Roughlock Falls

Another of the falls in Spearfish Canyon

Bridal Veil Falls

We climbed over the river and to the base of the waterfall - very cool!! We've seen it several times but had never gotten right up to it before.

Mallard Duck

Mallard Duck

Ducks

Ducks at the DC Booth Fish Hatchery

Devil's Tower

Hanna and Henrik at Devil's Tower

Prairie Dog

Prairie Dog at the town near Devil's Tower

1963 1/2 Ford Falcon convertible

Jenni's 1963 1/2 Ford Falcon convertible - let's just say it made up a debt from many years ago! :-)

Mount Rushmore

Mt Rushmore

Face

Look at the face!

Badlands II

Warm glow of the setting sun at the Badlands.

Badlands at Dusk

The Badlands at dusk.

Hanna and Henrik

Hanna and Henrik sillouted at the Badlands.