After picking up our chicken, we headed up the street to the original family home for dinner. This was to be our last evening in QingDao, so having dinner here felt right. This last dinner was to be bittersweet for the Missus…. the home is scheduled to be razed in the near future. It would be the last time She'd be walking up these well worn stairs, up to the flat where She was raised.
Entering the unit, we could hear laughter coming from one of the rooms…. the Missus's Aunts were making Jiaozi.
From the left, it's the Missus's Fifth Aunt, Second Aunt, Sixth Aunt, and Third Aunt.
Meanwhile, Fourth Aunt was busy at work in the kitchen.
Making Jiaozi is a family tradition. When the Missus's Grandmother was alive, every Saturday would be Jiaozi day. The Missus has some wonderful memories of those Saturdays; there was only a half day of school, and in the afternoon, whatever family was in town would get together and make Jiaozi. The Missus told me that Fifth Uncle would always bring a book to these gatherings, but he would never open nor read it…. She could never figure out why. Things changed after Her Grandmother passed on, so this dinner was a special one.
And of course there are snacks……..
The Missus told me that Her job on those Saturdays was to peel and pound garlic in the mortar, a job She hated with a passion. So I thought it was really funny when I slipped out of the room to see what was going on in the kitchen, and I found the Missus doing this.
Old habits die hard, don't they?
I managed a peek at some of the items that were being prepared for dinner.
And I got a preview sample of the Jiaozi……..
When I had heard we'd be having Fish Dumplings, I had a some reservations. I'm not a big fan of fish dumplings… whenever I'd had them here in the states they were mushy, and most times, had an off taste. The fillings in these however were moist, smooth, and tender. I was told that Fifth Aunt had mixed pork into the filling. The wrappers were tender and pillowy, the Missus told me that Fifth Aunt had procured some special flour from friends who plant, harvest, and mill their own wheat.
Here's dinner…..
And I had two whole bowls of Jiaozi…. sooooo good!
My MIL brought over some plates that her mother and father got when they got married all those years ago…..
There a lot of history in this home……..
I sat in the room where the Jiaozi had been made after things had been cleared and cleaned…..
And a feeling of warmth wrapped around me, I could catch a whisper of laughter…. it was as if the room had absorbed so much over the years it had attained a life of its own…….