A Wonderful place called Xiamen- part 3

      Welcome back to our trip to Xiamen! On day three we walked to the 胡里山炮台(huli mountain fort), then to Xiamen University, and then back to the beach to relax. So, first to talk about the fort. I am still missing a ton of pictures from this, and I still totally don't know what happened, but oh well. We learned that this fort was used during the Qing Dynasty to fight the British invaders. It was really cool to see all the old cannons and soak up all the history of the place, which I like to do anywhere I go (except of course Shanghai, where everything is too new for that). While I was there I was trying to imagine what Xiamen would look like under siege. It was quite thrilling. I believe this was also the time when I started taking pictures of the English explanations for my family. I guess its great for all of you too!

After that we ate a quick lunch, and then we were off to Xiamen University after a long walk, but we found there was an enormous line to get in. Yes, you heard right, a line to get into a school. We thought we could pay to get in around back like we did in Suzhou, but the lady we payed just shoved us into the line close to the front, so it was kind of a rip off, and we both felt a little bit rude for just skipping the entire line. The school was fantastic though. I thought all the buildings were really creatively done, and I could understand why someone would want to go there. Hui said that when he took the gaokao exams he really wanted to get into Xiamen University, but it didn't work out, so he was finally able to get to Xiamen to see it with me.

After a busy day of walking around and sightseeing, we went to relax at the beach. One thing that left a really big impression on me  was the behavior of kids at the beach, mainly that most of the little boys were just naked. If you go to a natural place where there might be swimming involved, this will almost always happen. All the little boys will be naked, so you'll just have to get used to it. If you can ignore all the naked babies running around, then the beach is a really nice place to go and relax. I mean, if you do go during the national day holiday, there are going to be thousands of people on that beach, but you can still relax....maybe. hahaha You can't tell that in the pictures though.

      After a great time on the beach, we went off to a different street away from the beach a little bit. We went there because Hui heard they would have a lot of good street food. I was exhausted though, and I just wanted to go and sit down. We went to one restaurant where you choose your own fish from a fish tank, and then they cook it for you. We chose some interesting shrimp that I have never eaten or even seen before, and they were great, but also a little hard to eat, because they were so sharp. It was during this dinner that I found out something big about Hui's personality. He must have rice. We were in that restaurant, and he asked for rice. The shrimp came, but no rice, so he started yelling at every waitress that came by for rice. I was joking that the staff were talking downstairs saying "oh, there's the crazy rice guy", so his alter ego was made. Now, every time we don't get rice on time I always comment that he is becoming the crazy rice guy. hahaha!
      When we were finished eating the shrimp, we went out into the street to get some street food. I know, you all have been waiting for this moment for a while now, I ATE THE JELLY! Yep, you remember that worm jelly I mentioned before? Well, I ate it. Did I almost throw up? Yes. Did it taste delicious? Yes! I REGRET NOTHING! We also bought more clams, which were delicious. It was a great end to a great time in Xiamen, but not the end of our trip. After going back to the hotel to sleep, it was time to head out to the small countryside town of 南靖(nanjing), which is also in Fujian province. See you next time. Here's a picture of those shrimp I mentioned to send you off.