Birthday Celebrations

Last week I turned the big 2-8. And like any good celebration, mine included cupcakes, presents, and acrobats. I had casually mentioned to (or rather incessantly annoyed) Matthew when we first arrived that I would like to go see the acrobats, but had honestly forgotten all about them in recent weeks.

After a fabulous dinner at Dashu Wujie (an amazing vegetarian restaurant overlooking the park near our apartment), Matthew surprised me with tickets to see the Shanghai Acrobats at Shanghai Circus World. I had a moment of panic when we first got off the metro and I saw the building though. You see, I have an irrational fear of clowns and hate to see wild animals in cages. As soon as I heard the word circus, my heart started to beat a little faster. Thankfully, there were no red noses or wigs in sight.

I wasn't able to take any photos during the actual show, but I lifted this one from the website to give you an idea of what it was like.

It was essentially a performance of balance, strength, gymnastics, and juggling with a little motorcycling riding thrown in. I would highly recommend the acrobats to anyone visiting Shanghai, even if all it does is make you feel pathetic in yoga class the next day.