We always wondered where the name of our neighborhood, "Original County" came from.  I think I found out today.  Maybe this is something that I didn't want to know.  I did a google image search with the two words "Original County."  The first image that popped up is below, with "Original County Jail" written underneath it.  I went to the website and learned that it was a jail in 1920's Wisconsin.  Creepy!  Do you see any similarities?

 

 

 

We leave tonight for Hua Hin, Thailand.  We won't be back until April 7th.  So for all of our loyal readers out there, please visit in about a week or so to see some photos and hear some new stories about Thailand.  This trip has come just in time.  It's now one in the afternoon and we still don't have any water.  I can't wait to get to the hotel tonight and shower (same for my family).

    

 

 

Yesterday at about 3 p.m., I went to brush my teeth in the master bathroom.  I turned on the faucet, and nothing came out.  I went downstairs and tried some other taps in the house.  Nothing.  I told Ayi about the water as I put on my coat to go and pick up the children at school.  This has happened before....we periodically lose water or electricity for long stretches of time (up to 12 hours).  So I've learned to tell the driver, "Jaio lei meiyou shui," which means, "My house has no water."  When I have no electricity, I tell him, "Jaio lei meiyou bzzzzzzt."  I have a lot of bottled water in the garage now, for whenever this meiyou shui thing happens with no warning.  The first time took us way off guard.  So I picked up the children from school, and came out to the car to realize that the driver had bought us even more bottled water.  When he brought us home, I showed him in the garage how I already had a lot of bottled water.  He made gestures with one bottle that I may be trying to shower with the stuff.  Did he know something that I didn't?  I tried to pay him for the water, but he refused to take any money.  Could be because we gave him a case of beer this week.  Different kinds of Chinese beer that we didn't like the taste of.  Part of me was worried that he'd drink it all at once and not show up on time for work.  I guess he's saving the beer for when we go on vacation (we leave tonight).  When we got home from school, there was a flurry of phone calls and text messages trying to sort out how long we'd have to go without water.  At one point, we were told that it would be a two day thing.  That was an interesting phone call.  For those of you who know me well, it takes a lot for my temper to flare up.  You should have heard me.  "Two days!  Why do we lose important resources for so long?  Like 12 hours or 2 days?  Most people can fix things in 3-4 hours tops.  This is ridiculous!"  The final answer was that we would be without water until noon today.  Doug went to work without a shower today.  He should be pretty ripe by noon.  I phoned Ayi last night and told her not to come in until noon today.  There's not a lot she can do without water.  Our house is suddenly a disaster area....no one wants to go into any of the bathrooms (we can't flush the toilets) and there are dirty dinner dishes all over our kitchen.  I sure hope that the water does get restored by noon today, or sometime today, for that matter.  Just so we can flush the toilets before we go away for a week.  We leave the house tonight at 7 p.m. to stay in a hotel close to the Beijing airport.  Our flight to Hua Hin, Thailand leaves early in the morning.  Beijing is only a 2 hour drive from us, but there are many fog days that the highway closes, or car accidents tangle it up.  We wanted to ensure that we make it on our flight.  Well, I should get going and pack.  I packed all of the boy's clothes yesterday and all of our medicines, suntan lotions, toiletries, etc.  Doug packed last night.  Didn't make it to my summer clothes yet.  We're all very excited.  Here's another picture of the resort's beach that I pinched off the internet:

 

 

The three stay at home western parents in our community (myself, Mike, and Claire) decided to check out the golf driving range this morning in our neighborhood, Original County (hereafter referred to as "The O.C." - I just came up with that this afternoon.  I have made it my mission to make that label stick with the "in crowd" of Tianjin, when I figure out who they are.  It's sure to be us, once the label gets stuck.  So, when someone asks me, "Where do you live?"  I'll just say, "The O.C.").  What a nice little area they have at the O.C.'s driving range.  I hadn't golfed in about ten years, so I was very rusty.  But I really enjoyed getting out of the house and swinging that club again.  I'll have to persuade my O.C. friends to make this a regular thing.  Afterwards, we took a peek at what appeared to be a "19th Hole" type restaurant.  It seems fairly clean, and there is a bar with many beverages for the thirsty golfer.  There's also a restaurant with a chef walking around.  We glanced at one of the menus, but it was all written in Chinese kangi (spelling?) characters.  I can read a bit of pinyin, but I haven't even touched kangi yet.  I could probably order a couple of things verbally, but all I'd end up with is chicken, cold water, and a bottle of beer (I know how to say all of those...these are the only foods I know how to say in Chinese).  Who knows what kind of chicken I'd end up with, because I can't tell anyone how I want it prepared or what part of the chicken I'd like to eat (fried, baked, chicken feet, chicken head, etc.).  I think Doug has a sheet somewhere of many Chinese foods written out and ways that you want them prepared.  Someone gave it to him in the U.S. before we left.  We'll have to bring that sheet with us when we go. 

 

 

I'm participating in a really cool global photography project this summer.  Participants are needed around the world.  An artist in Morocco started the project.  It is now starting to gain quite a bit of attention.  He's been busy writing a press release for the International Press Association.  He still needs participants, but he is limiting it to 200 people.  He doesn't have any representatives in South America yet, so if you know someone there, please forward this information to them.  If you're interested in participating, you can contact him (Ron) at littlebookofman@hotmail.com  Here is the information as it appears on his website:

 

A Global Photographic Project
sponsored by
The Little Book of Man
and
"MOROCCAN DREAMS"

 

 

We've had some wonderful weather in the past couple of weeks....usually in the mid-60's Fahrenheit, which would be about 17 Celsius.  Much outdoor work needs to be done now in Original County.  It appears that they have hired many migrant workers.  I saw them coming into the community, walking single file with all of their belongings rolled up into a sleeping bag.  Within hours, they set up a community on top of the dump that I can see out of my bedroom window.  I call it "Tent City."  My Kiwi neighbor refers to it as "the 4077."  It does look like MASH....khaki tents, complete with a mess hall where they line up for food, laundry lines, and electricity.  It can't be an easy way to live.  I'll be posting photos soon of "Tent City."  Please stay posted.

 

We had no electricity on Sunday, from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.  So we wanted to get out of the house for the day.  We decided to go to Tangshan.  Friends and Ayi had told us that you can get lovely porcelain there at a fraction of the cost that we would pay in the western world.  I did a brief search on the internet before we went, and sure enough, one site reported that when you look at the bottom of your plates and they say "Made in China," that chances are it is made in Tangshan.  It's about a two hour drive there.  So off we went Sunday morning for the day.  Doug took many photos on the way of trucks that were overloaded and leaning to one side.  Unfortunately, he also got a few photos of the overloaded sideways tilting trucks that never made it to their destination and ended up in the ditch.  We made it to Tangshan and found the porcelain shops we heard about.  We bought way too many tea sets and vases that we will enjoy for years to come, all at a reasonable price.  The children weren't that interested in porcelain shopping, but we found a fairly decent mall that had a lot of children's toy stores and sports stores.  I don't think the locals of Tangshan have seen many westerners.  People were openly staring, pointing, and practicing their limited English on us.  "Hello!" said one young, hip guy in his 20's who looked like he had watched many "American Hollywood movies."  Philip wore his prescription sunglasses all day, so he ended up being the real center of attention.  Probably looked to them like a mini Brad Pitt or something.  We were also on the lookout for the kite market that we heard about, but we never made it there.  Instead, our driver brought us back to Ancient Culture Street in Tianjin where we bought many beautiful kites.  Thomas also finally got the "golden Olympic pocket watch" that he has wanted so badly.  He even got into the bartering, clearing the asking price off of the vendor's calculator and entering his own price.  He was so cute, the vendor gave him an excellent deal. 

On the recommendation of some friends, we have found a hairdresser at the Sheraton Hotel.  He is a native of Tianjin and his name is Andy.  Other westerners will ask where we get our hair cut, and we tell them, "He's good, but be prepared to be there for awhile.  He's meticulous."  I swear that he cuts each hair on my head individually.  I think we've been getting some of the best haircuts ever.  Nick has decided that he is going to grow his hair long.  I'm okay with that, because it's probably the only time in his life that he can do that.  So he has not had a haircut since December.  Well, he had a bit of a trim at my friend's house in Beijing.  She's a hairdresser and he had some long, unruly pieces around the ears and at the nape of his neck that were causing Doug and I to call him "wolfie."  So I got my hair cut this week, and then came home for lunch.  Ayi told me a long story about some superstitions regarding haircuts.  Apparently the Chinese don't get their haircut at the first of the month because it might mean that your brother or your mother might die (I think that's what she told me).  She also told me that she had to make an egg pancake the night before for dinner to keep the spirits and the dragons away.  At least, I think that is what she told me.  Her English is limited and my Chinese is very limited.  But I'm glad that she can speak a little bit of English so that we can converse a little bit.  I find her stories very interesting.  Here are some of the stories that I think she told me:

 

It's the end of a long day.  I had my Chinese lessons today.  The first few lessons were kind of easy and fun....just learning polite exchanges and numbers.  Then a couple of lessons ago, I had to start stringing sentences together.  Then it wasn't much fun anymore.  It got very hard and I felt very stupid.  I struggled so badly last week with the lesson, that the tutor decided this week we should review the last few lessons.  Which I need to do before I can move on.  So....this is why I find it so hard.  I have to translate many words at once, rearrange the order of the sentence, be mindful of the few exceptions of pinyin (it's like an anglacized alphabet....but with exceptions, like "q" is pronounced as "ts", as an example).  So I get it all messed up.  I can write down the translation, but then I have problems saying it.  At least I can write it down in pinyin.  I guess that's a start.  I guess it will grow from there.  But my head sure hurts after a Chinese lesson.  I haven't stretched my noggin muscles this hard in years!  I usually do my lessons in the morning, for 2 hours.  I really should end the lesson at an hour and a half, because I hit a "wall" in that last half hour and have complete brain drain.  That's usually when I try to distract my tutor and chat about Canada.  She lived in Toronto for 3 years...she was a student at Sheridan College.  She's told me all of the best Chinese restaurants to go to in the Toronto area.  She can't be a day over 25...her boyfriend works with Doug.  Very nice young girl. 

 

After I say good bye to the tutor, it's lunch time.  That's when Ayi thinks I'm open to learning Chinese because I just had two hours of Chinese lessons.  We have lunch together and she tells me all sorts of Chinese words and their English translations, but none of them sink in after 2 hours of lessons.  So I eat my sandwich and nod politely.  I'm completely brain-drained at that point, feeling totally defeated by this difficult language by that time. 

 

Today I think some of it sunk in finally....this stringing together of words in a different way.  I walked the kids home from school and was trying out different sentences on them.  Of course, they've learned a lot more than me and love to let me know it.  Ahhhh.....to have a young brain again.

 

I have to get to bed now.  It's 10:30 at night and Doug still isn't home.  That usually happens about once a week.  But, we will be in Thailand in ten days....laying on a tropical beach.  We can't wait.  Here's a picture of the resort's beach that I pinched off of the internet:

 

So I will say good evening now, go to bed and dream of Hua Hin, Thailand........waoshang hao.

A couple of weeks ago, Thomas came home with a big story about how there was an upcoming chess tournament.  He explained that it was a tournament between all of the international schools in Tianjin, and that it was being held at another school.  He said that he really wanted to go.  I was a bit baffled by the big story, because I hadn't seen anything come home about it in his backpack.  I asked him if he needed to be on the school chess team in order to participate, and he told me that he didn't.  So I told him to bring any handouts he got about it home to me and we'll see what it's all about.  Sure enough, he brought the handout home, so I filled out the permission slip and sent it to school with him.  Again, I was baffled....I didn't know that Thomas was interested in chess.  I fretted a bit about him going by himself, because he was going to be one of the youngest in the tournament.  Also, it's not like him to want to participate in something unless one of his brothers or friends do.  I don't think Thomas has ever gone off on a day by himself like that.  Philip and Nick do, but never Thomas.  A couple of days before he went, I found out that our Kiwi neighbor, Alex, was going too.  So they went in together.  It was nice to know that he had a buddy with him.  I felt a bit more relieved about that.  I had worried that it would be Thomas alone at a tournament amongst a bunch of Korean chess champs. 

 

The tournament was today.  Doug brought Thomas and Alex in, made sure they were registered and settled, then left.  Doug reported that the boys walked in, and all sorts of Korean boys from their school ran up and said hi to them.  I guess Thomas is getting more outgoing these days.  Another worry of mine was that Thomas is so new to the game, that I feared he'd lose every match and be upset....maybe even discouraged from the game forever.  Doug just went to pick Thomas up, and phoned to say that Thomas had 6 matches.  He won 2, tied 1, and lost 3.  I thought that was really good for a beginner, especially one of the younger players.  Apparently his tie, or draw was with one of the strongest players in the whole tournament.  I should have known that my most meticulous, logical child (proof:  domino house picture to your right) would have a knack for chess.  I'm very proud of that little guy.  More importantly, he said that he had a very good time.  That's what it's all about.    He got a free pizza lunch, a certificate, and two pieces of candy.  He made sure that he told me about that on the phone.  I hope that this turns into a hobby for him...I would support him joining a chess team...he's not one for organized sports, so it's a very good option for a social activity for him.

As some of you know, I had a lot of computer problems in January.  In fact, most of Asia did because of an earthquake in Taiwan and some damage to some underground cables.  I lost touch with a lot of people during that time because I couldn't access a few of my different e-mail addresses.  Thanks to my friend, Ellen Wall, for not having cleared her inbox for awhile.  Ellen forwarded them all to me, and I was able to post them here on this space for those of you who never saw the entries before.  I think they were my most interesting entries, because I was in such shock of how different it was all here and felt a deep need to share it with everyone.  Unfortunately, I'm already starting to get a little jaded and tend not to notice things as alertly as I did in January.

 

 

Subject: Quick Update
Sent: Thursday, January 25, 2007 7:00 AM

Hi everyone,   A very quick update before the driver comes to get me & we pick up the kids at school.  It's actually snowing here today.  It's mixed in with a lot of fog (and maybe pollution).  We had no water yesterday.  They shut it off in our whole neighborhood to do some work.  So, I sent the maid home early.  There wasn't a lot she could do without water.  The kids are adjusting well.  Nick is on the student council, he's been to a few meetings and is now talking about how he's helping to plan for an upcoming school dance.  I asked him last night if he was going to attend the dance.  He wasn't sure if his friends were going or not.  I told him to get their phone numbers and phone them from home before the dance to make sure they're going.  I told him it's okay to be scared to go alone to a dance.....I would have made sure I'd walk into a school dance with a friend.  That maybe one of his friends' drivers can pick him up on the way to the dance (we live really close to the school....his friends live pretty far away).  He seems to have hit it off with about 3 boys quite easily.    Philip seems to be the most stressed out of all.  The twins are very far behind in math here.  They have a lot of Asian classmates that eat math for every meal.....really, after school they go to something called "Academy" and do more math.  Philip was always top of the class before in math.  He doesn't like being behind.  I just keep reassuring him that he'll probably never catch up to these kids, but maybe some day when he returns to North America that some of this Asian math stuff will have rubbed off on him and he'll be super tops in math in N.A.  He's also one of the youngest in the class.  He hasn't failed anything, he just doesn't know what they're talking about sometimes.  I'm sure the same is going on with Thomas, but he doesn't complain about it.  That's Thomas, rarely complains.   Doug finishes his January travelling stint on Saturday.  He comes home from Japan and stays put here for awhile.   We're currently trying to book a vacation during the Chinese New Year holiday in Sanya, China (Hainan Beach) for the third week of Feb. Very tropical, gorgeous western resorts....Hilton, Marriott, etc.  We have a travel agent working on it, but the flights are pretty booked up right now.  I hope she can pull it off.  We could sure use it.    Gotta go,   Sue

Subject: We got some of our stuff!
Sent: Thursday, January 18, 2007 12:39 AM

Hi everyone,   Great news!  We got our air shipment last night.  There was a Chinese girl dealing with it, it turned into a big paperwork mess (most things do here) and Doug called around at the moving company, found an Aussie to talk to, they got a V.P. involved, and we finally got it....this was the stuff we were supposed to get 7 to 10 days after arriving.  We're still awaiting our sea shipment, we've been told the end of January (our beds are on that).  At least we had some thick comforters on our air shipment, and it made sleeping on the hard mattresses a little easier.    Some interesting observations from the last week or so that make me giggle.....when I go grocery shopping, quite a few things happen that I consider odd.  First, the locals openly stare at me.  Second, they actually bend over and look into my cart (the other shoppers) and examine the contents carefully.  I'm not sure what they're thinking, something like, "What is it that she eats?  Why is there so much in there?  What makes her so big and look so different than us?"  Remember, the families are smaller, so no one else has to get a big haul like us.  What also happens is there are far too many people employed at the supermarket.  They think that the westerners sweat money.  I'll pick out an item, and then there's a saleslady taking it away from me and nodding "no."  Then she picks out the most expensive item and hands it to me.  The kids, of course, are learning Chinese faster than me.  They taught me to say no a few days ago, which is "boo."  So I've had to get forceful to get my shopping done.  Imagine me saying, "boo" in a strong voice.  I feel like I'm playing a Halloween game or something.    We're sort of in a double culture shock here.  The curriculum at the school is strong in Australian references.  Many questions make references to the game of cricket.  I've never seen the game of cricket, don't know how many men are on the team, what instruments are used to play the game, whether it's played on a field or a pitch, what shape the field is, etc.  But this is why we made this education choice, to expand the children's world.  Boy, have we expanded it big time.

Subject: Johnston Update
Sent: Sunday, January 14, 2007 9:10 AM

Hi everyone,   I have a few minutes before I go out, so I thought I'd type up a little update of our adventures.  For those of you new to my daily adventures, here's a quick summary......our regular foods are hard to find.  We've finally settled on a New Zealand milk, and a margarine from Denmark.  I'm still trying to cook on some bare essentials that we bought when we got here, thinking that our air shipment would arrive in 7-10 days, as we were told (how long ago was December 26th?).  I hate 5 plates, 5 sets of cutlery (that wasn't easy to find, they mainly sell chopsticks here), 1 deep pot, 1 frying pan, 1 wok, 1 plastic slotted spoon (Doug bought that), and 1 wooden wok spatula-type thing, plus 1 measuring cup.  I also bought a rice maker, 1 casserole dish, and a soup cooker (looks like a crock pot).  I have no recipe books on me, and I can barely pull any up on the internet because there have been internet problems in Asia due to an earthquake in Taiwan.  But I'm proud of what I have cooked.  I feel like I'm on a cooking reality show....."okay, you only get these cooking ingredients, and these bare utensils.....make it yummy!"  So far, from memory, and all from scratch, I have made chicken noodle soup (one of the best soups we ever had), many stir fries (beef with broccoli and cashews, kung pao chicken), spaghetti, cheesy chicken broccoli casserole, chocolate chip cookies (that was a feat in itself....I had the kids cutting up Hershey kisses to help me out with that).  Sometimes we don't have some ingredients, and we improvise.    The kids all seem happy at their new school.  The math is a bit tougher, and the Chinese homework can be really tough.  Nick was given about 20 Chinese words, in those Chinese characters (congi, I believe it's called).  He was given this huge English-Chinese dictionary and told to look them up, write down the English word for it, the stroke count and the pinyin (that's the English alphabet translation of a word....like "nie."  Of course, he was taught some tricks to looking it up, but it's like cracking the DaVinci code or something.  He was told by his teacher that if he got 4 of them, then he had done a lot of work.  Doug and I read through the instructions, then tried to help him.  Between the 3 of us, Nick got 1, I got 1, and Doug got 4 (his dictionary had bigger typefact.....Nick and I were cross-eyed by the end, our type-face was so tiny).  But we all had a giggle trying to do it.   We had the best day yesterday.  We rented "ice bikes" on a shallow lake in Tianjin.  I never laughed so hard in my life, watching my kids fly by on these unique bikes on the ice.  Nick really got the knack for it, and other Chinese kids were trying to race him.  Nobody could keep up with him.    Oooopps, just looked at the time.  We're off to a pizza party with the two other western families in our complex.  They're all from New Zealand.  Fun group.   I'll try to write again soon.   Sue & boys

Subject: Update from Johnston's in China
Sent: Thursday, January 11, 2007 6:59 AM

Hi everyone,   Thought I could give you all an update, so you can live vicariously through us.  I only have about ten minutes before the driver and I pick up the kids at school, so I'll try to type what I can.   Doug has been travelling all of this week.  He spent a couple of nights in Beijing, and a couple of nights in Inner Mongolia, and went somewhere else in China that I can't pronounce.   He gets home late tonight.  In the morning, he has to work, but our air shipment has been at the airport in Tianjin for a few days now, they just want to see his passport and then they'll deliver it tomorrow night to our house.  Yay!  These are the items we deemed that we could live without only for a week or two.  We were told that they would be delivered in 7 to 10 days.  Hmmm....how long ago was December 26th?  We're all very excited about getting our stuff.  I can't wait to be able to cook with my regular utensils and have my plates, etc.  I bought a set of five that we are constantly washing by hand so we can eat the next meal.   Speaking of housework, I hired a maid on Monday.  She's wonderful.  I couldn't live without her.  I get phone calls in Chinese that I don't understand, and bills pasted to my door that I can't read.  I hand them to her, and she'll tell me, "you have to go and pay the (telephone, heat, electricity, etc.) bill or they will turn that utility off."  So I send my driver with an estimate of money to pay the bill, and we keep that utility until it happens again.  He gives me receipts and I can't read them, so I have no idea when I have to send him again and how much I send with him.    I lucked out with the maid.  She worked for a European family for a few years (Germans) and understands a bit of English.  She works way too hard.  Her hours are 9 to 5, and she only takes a quick break to eat lunch.  I try to make her take breaks and have tea with me, but she refuses, there is more work to be done.  I tried to send her home early yesterday, again she refused.  She was in the middle of a job.  It's a bit ridiculous how hard she works.  She greets us at the door, and takes our coats for us.  We try to shake her off, but she believes that is her job and takes the coat anyways.    So, I feel like I am living the life of a 1940's black and white European movie.  Corporate father is away travelling, when he does come home, it's very late at night.  The children have been given a biscuit and put to bed by the time he gets home.  I'm surrounded by this hired help that I can barely speak to.  Now I'm trying to find something to do with my time, because I figure this will never happen ever again in my life.  Again, I'm thinking 1940's black and white movie.....I feel like I should be playing bridge with gloves on.  I'm looking into some Chinese art courses, maybe start writing a novel, and, of course, I need to take some Chinese language lessons so I can start communicating with the people around me.   Ten minutes is up.  How's that for some fast typing?  The kids were all ecstatically happy and love their new school.  They're all a bit behind in math (the Asian students have brought the math bar up here), but they'll probably soar in every other subject because it's an English school.  Nick is even a member of the student council here!   Hope you're all well.   Take care,   Sue Johnston & boys

Subject: Johnston's in China
Sent: Tuesday, January 2, 2007 3:52 PM

Hi,   We've been in China for about a week now.  We're in our new house.  There are a few "new house" problems to iron out, plus we're desperately awaiting our air and sea shipments (especially our beds.....the beds here are like rocks....I feel like I have internal organ damage when I wake up in the morning).  The relocation company is going to set me up with a maid later this week, which I need just to read all of the household appliances (every little button is in Chinese).  We're getting by, making guesses, and giggling a lot.  There are two other American families here (but they are on the other end of town) that have been very helpful.  The only other Western families in our complex (it's a new complex, so it will be interesting to see if fill up) are from New Zealand.  We met one of the families yesterday and they're fun, easy-going people.  They have a son who will be in the same class as Philip.    Our family driver doesn't speak much English.  But he's trying to learn English and we're trying to learn Chinese.  We meet in the middle and everyone cheers when we get ideas across to each other.  I just realized yesterday that you don't just hold up your fingers to indicate numbers.  Well, you can from one to five.  But when you get from six to ten, it turns into a sort of sign language.  I taught myself yesterday, with pictures I found in an expat magazine.  I realized I had to tell the driver what time to pick me up, and that was the only way.  He was so excited when I showed him the symbol for ten today with my fingers (put your index finger over your middle finger).  Eight looks like your playing imaginary guns with someone.   The best thing about China is the people.  If you have one little question, there are usually about 6 people that run up to help you.  They're all very fascinated and excited by Philip and Thomas.....they get a real bang out of twin boys.  Apparently Nick looks like some famous Chinese tv character, so he's got it going on, too.   We are still in the process of trying to set up vonage.....internet phone system.....when we do, we'll e-mail you the phone numbers.  We chose one phone number in Canada (Chatham) and one in the U.S. (Peoria).  It will cut down on long distance charges for everyone.  In the meantime, for those of you in Asia.....our Chinese phone number is 88829623.   Hope you all had a great Christmas.   Take care,   Sue & boys

J

After two weeks of haggling over flight times and hotel rooms, Doug booked a vacation for us today.  We are going to Hua Hin, Thailand for a week.  We leave on March 31st, which is only two weeks away! 

 

We are booked solid in this 4 star resort:

 

 

And we are on a waiting list for this 5 star resort:

 

 

We're so excited....after the Thanksgiving and Christmas vacations we had (or didn't really have), this seems like a great reward after all that we've been through to move here. 

We're trying to plan a vacation the first week of April.  The children have no school that week because it is their spring vacation.  So, we wondered.....where can we go on this side of the world?  After many hours of researching on the internet, we were able to narrow it down quite a bit.  We found it very interesting that we even considered countries that had many political problems when we were children.  Imagine thinking about planning a beautiful, tropical vacation to Vietnam, Cambodia, or the Philippines.  But believe it or not, these countries are now full of gorgeous resorts on their beaches.  Even Nick was incredulous when he would hear us talking about possible vacation destinations.  "But mom....Vietnam?  Wasn't there a war there?"  So, after much research and debate, we are very close to booking a vacation in Hua Hin, Thailand.  AOL.com just rated it amongst the world's top ten beaches.  I'm keeping my fingers crossed that it all works out as planned.  Hua Hin is in the gulf and is about a 2 1/2 hour drive from the airport in Bangkok.  I'll have to let you know if that all pans out. 

 

 

Once a month in Tianjin, a new issue of JIN Life; Expatriates Lifestyle & Entertainment Guide comes out.  All of us Westerners talk about the latest issue...where we can pick one up (they're free, but only available at a few select locations in town), the articles in it, and the new business ads that are in it.  It's a very exciting time when a new issue comes out, because it's about the only English language magazine in the area that we can find.  When we get the magazine, we really pour through the ads, in hopes that there is a new restaurant in the area that will suit our palates, or a new or unique business.  There are Classifieds that run in the back, often from locals seeking teaching/tutor jobs, language exchange, or just seeking friends.  In the February issue, someone ran the craziest, funniest ad in the "Seeking Friends" area of the Classifieds.  There was no contact # or e-mail, so it was obviously a joke.  But it just tickled my funny bone, so I had to put it in here.  Here it is:

 

 

Ugly old man seeking pretty young things.  Me:  fat, ugly, balding, lazy, exceedingly wealthy.  You:  young, stunningly beautiful, slim, short, and enjoy heavy housework.  Prefereably uneducated and mute.  Interests include fine french cuisine, backgammon, Chivas and coke.  You will preferably have no interests.  Call me anytime.  I'm waiting!

 

Thanks to our friend, Kurt Tisdale, for pointing out that ad to us.  He's Doug's old boss, and is in town on business.  We had our driver pick him up in Beijing on Friday, so I made up a care basket for the 2-3 hour drive.  I put drinks, snacks, and reading material in the basket.  Of course, I had to put in the last few issues of JIN magazine, so that Kurt could see what Tianjin has to offer. 

 

Kurt and Doug are off for a full day of fun today in the city.  I said I'd stay behind and watch the kids while they bartered in the markets.  They've been gone over six hours now, so I can't imagine what treasures they will come home with.  The markets are full of jewellery, electronics, leather goods, artwork, etc. 

 

Me and the boys had our Kiwi neighbor, Nicholas, over to play today.  He sure enjoys playing with my boys.  My boys really enjoy his company, too.  He's a grade younger than the twins, but not quite a year younger than them. 

 

I had my fun day earlier this week when the kids were in school.  I went with one of the Kiwi ladies and a British lady (me mates) to the Shi Family Mansion....wealthy family that resided in Tianjin in the 1800's.  Something like 280+ rooms.  It was like a smaller version of the Forbidden City.  It had a theater, an accounting office, and a school room.  I really enjoyed the company of the other women.  Claire and Liz had me giggling all day.  They both have sharp, quick-witted senses of humor.  Thanks Claire for the images.  I pinched them off her website.  I wonder if I'll have to pay royalties to her?  We all acquired some beautiful artwork.  Interesting pictures cut only from black paper.  Tiny, intricate images done in great detail.  My image had trees, kites, people, animals, and a laundry line on it.  But the best part of my picture was that whoever glued and mounted it to the background of white parchment bent and folded the paper in such a way that the picture appears to have a wind breezing through it.  So imagine trees, kites, and laundry with movement.  Very unique and beautiful.

 

Doug just phoned.....they've been shopping up a storm.  The Chinese love to put a red stamp on everything, they call it their official chop or seal.  He had official seals made for him and Nick (Nick's birthday is around the corner), he bought me a Prada purse (real, I'm sure), and a few other baubles. 

 

Nick's jeans from the U.S. were starting to wear out....he has 3 or 4 pairs that he favors.  I bought some jeans yesterday that said they were men's (there was some English on them), but it didn't say what size they were.  They fit him perfect.  I guess he's the size of a small Chinese man now.  I've saved the label, so that I can go back and buy him more.  It took me awhile to get across to the salesgirls that they weren't for me, but for a small man.  I finally found a picture of Nick in my wallet, showed it to them, and said shi er (12 - his age). 

 

I should get going.  The men are coming home soon with their treasures and pizza from Pizza Hill.