The Feast of Easter
I really enjoy seeing the pictures of my family-and-friends' children in the Easter finery. Back in the US, we certainly love to break out the prettiest dresses, the handsomest ties, and the shiniest shoes for Easter morning. I thought about this as I was laying out our clothes for Easter Vigil Mass. We don't dress up; we dress thick.
Late March nights in Beijing are usually at or below freezing. Easter Vigil is often so packed that not only do we not have seats, but we also don't have access to kneelers. Most years we've knelt on the hard floor or the pavement just outside the church doors. Each of us wore our heaviest-weight long underwear, thick wool socks, and a few layers of warm sweaters and fleece. I even wore dark blue jeans, something I would never do at home, at least not on Easter. We needed to stay warm, though, and not be worried about our knees looking dirty.
The next morning, though, we did have an occasion that called for a little fancier dress, or at least dressy without layers. In what has become our China Easter tradition (five times in almost seven years!), we went to brunch at the Kempinski.
More after the jump
After spending the week focused on the Passion, Cross, and Resurrection at our very not-wealthy Chinese parish, the Kempinski always is a bit of a culture shock for me. I'm jarred by the heated dining rooms, the clean floors, and the abundance of food. But then I have to ask, what better motivation to stick to the Penance of Lent than the promise of an Easter Feast. Easter brunch at the Kempinski is pretty much the opposite of our daily lives, and we love it.
For Myles, it's the endless sampling of meat. In addition to some flesh and fish he devoured here, he had an enormous helping of spicy chicken curry.
Brigid just wanted what the Kempinski specializes in, in her mind that is. German food!
After their first two courses were devoured, as well as a first go-around with some Easter sweets, both kids happily retreated to the activity room run by the amazing German kindergarten House of Knowledge.
If only we lived in the right neighborhood (and, let's face it, had the money), HoK would be our top choice for early childhood education. HoK teachers staffed the kids' corner with all kinds of activities that occupied Myles and Brigid for hours. I was at first feeling guilty about sending them in without parental supervision. One of the teachers shooed me away, reminding me that the point was for the parents to have some times to enjoy themselves, too. I asked her what they did if the children were naughty. She pointed out everything going on in the room. "There's a lot of motivation for them to want to stay. They don't want to jeopardize the loss of this," she told me. Yes, I love this approach, too.
For these years that we don't get to share the Feast of Easter with our families, the Kempinski will do.
Late March nights in Beijing are usually at or below freezing. Easter Vigil is often so packed that not only do we not have seats, but we also don't have access to kneelers. Most years we've knelt on the hard floor or the pavement just outside the church doors. Each of us wore our heaviest-weight long underwear, thick wool socks, and a few layers of warm sweaters and fleece. I even wore dark blue jeans, something I would never do at home, at least not on Easter. We needed to stay warm, though, and not be worried about our knees looking dirty.
The next morning, though, we did have an occasion that called for a little fancier dress, or at least dressy without layers. In what has become our China Easter tradition (five times in almost seven years!), we went to brunch at the Kempinski.
More after the jump
After spending the week focused on the Passion, Cross, and Resurrection at our very not-wealthy Chinese parish, the Kempinski always is a bit of a culture shock for me. I'm jarred by the heated dining rooms, the clean floors, and the abundance of food. But then I have to ask, what better motivation to stick to the Penance of Lent than the promise of an Easter Feast. Easter brunch at the Kempinski is pretty much the opposite of our daily lives, and we love it.
For Myles, it's the endless sampling of meat. In addition to some flesh and fish he devoured here, he had an enormous helping of spicy chicken curry.
Brigid just wanted what the Kempinski specializes in, in her mind that is. German food!
After their first two courses were devoured, as well as a first go-around with some Easter sweets, both kids happily retreated to the activity room run by the amazing German kindergarten House of Knowledge.
If only we lived in the right neighborhood (and, let's face it, had the money), HoK would be our top choice for early childhood education. HoK teachers staffed the kids' corner with all kinds of activities that occupied Myles and Brigid for hours. I was at first feeling guilty about sending them in without parental supervision. One of the teachers shooed me away, reminding me that the point was for the parents to have some times to enjoy themselves, too. I asked her what they did if the children were naughty. She pointed out everything going on in the room. "There's a lot of motivation for them to want to stay. They don't want to jeopardize the loss of this," she told me. Yes, I love this approach, too.
For these years that we don't get to share the Feast of Easter with our families, the Kempinski will do.
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