March 2002

The Morgan & Morgan Report

Morgan Schulman and Morgan Ostrander, both 10, travelled with their parents in late March to China to meet their new sisters, Phoebe and Casey. We asked our Morgans to tell us about their experiences.

Photos by Sara Markarenko, Morgan Ostrander’s mother

Correspondents Schulman and Ostrander visit the Great Wall

Bargaining for Elephants

I went to the indoor market in Beijing to search for elephants and jewelry. The jewelry sections was on the third floor and we soon found out it was crowded and noisy and expensive. There were rows and rows of pearls and bracelets and earrings and necklaces, and four coral elephants that were far too expensive as a gift for my friend. So we searched through the stalls until we found green glass elephants for 10 yuan each. I bargained with the lady at the stall and finally bought two elephants for 5 yuan each. I was very proud of my first bargain on my own.

Morgan Ostrander

Stories for my friends

Just prior to leaving for Canada, Morgan Schulman was asked what she was going to tell her best friends.

Everyone paid attention to me because I am blonde. They want to take a picture with me because I am blonde with blue eyes and they rarely see that in China. I like it because then they can show their family that they saw a blonde girl from Canada.

I climbed the Great Wall and almost made it to the top!

At the Temple of Heaven I decided to surprise my Mom by dressing up as the Empress. I put on a costume like she would have. It was made of silk. It had flowers on it. It had a hat with a big flower and two long, long strips of silk that stuck out.

I sat in the Empress’ throne. It felt embarrassing because all the people on the trip took my picture plus all the Chinese tourists that could see me took pictures too. Because everyone was looking at me, I decided to not just sit there, but do something they would enjoy. I put my hands together like I was praying like a Chinese goddess and I made a sour look like I just ate a lemon. Everybody started laughing and I felt better.

When I first met my sister, Phoebe, I just saw her walking and I was surprised that I could see her walk because she was only 14 months old. When I first saw her, she just gave me life – she was so cute. And now I finally have a sister! I like her because she’s kind of like me – active, like I was.

Morgan Schulman

The Revolving Restaurant

In Hefei, we stayed at the Holiday Inn. On the top floor, there was a revolving restaurant where breakfast was served buffet-style. I finished eating my breakfast one morning and wanted more juice, so I got up and found that the juice had mysteriously moved around!

Morgan Ostrander

Playing an Erhu

When we toured the Temple of Heaven, we saw two people playing the erhu, the Chinese violin. I play the viola, an instrument that's larger and has a deeper sound than a violin. The first man with the erhu was older and he was playing while another man was singing. We walked further on and saw a boy playing what sounded like Frere Jacques. We were told that the erhu playing is dying out, for not many young people learn anymore.

Morgan Ostrander

The Disappearing Poems

On our trip to the Temple of Heaven, we saw some people writing poems on the stones. They wrote with calligraphy brushes and water. They worked silently, concentrating. By the time they were finished, the characters were blurred and unread-able. Then the poems evaporated into the air.

Morgan Ostrander

Some of My Favourite Things

From a fun interview with Morgan & Morgan

Funniest? The bicycles!

The bicycle that I like was stacked up with 4 or 5 big bags and I couldn’t even see the person and it was only a two-wheeler.

I saw a bicycle with a cart on the back. The cart had huge bundles in it that look ridiculous compared to the man.

Best about the hotels? The pools!

They were spacious with spotlights and trees in pots and water things to play with. It felt great to use the pools. It was great to relax after a long day. It was fun, if you like pools.

Best  activity

Climbing the Great Wall! I could see all the view. It made me feel like the Queen of the World! I would love to make everyone else go away so I could have it all to myself.

If I had the wall all to myself, I’d go running around. I’d invite all my friends and play tag.