My Apartment!!

Well it has finally come to pass, I have an apartment of my own! My flat mates moved late last week and I couldn't be happier! As you can see from the photos it's quite spacious, the view from the balcony isn't half bad either. I have 2 bedrooms, a bathroom, living/dining area, kitchen, small laundry and a lovely big balcony. I had 3 friends over for dinner on Monday night and we christened the place properly. I am fairly tired at the moment, work is busy as ever and I am sorting out the apartment bit by bit. I hope to be on line to chat to you more often, as I finally have broadband internet. I pray things are going well for you and yours. Love and God bless! xo

HK Addict

After another trip across the water to Hong Kong it's official, I am addicted to the place! The shopping is superb (as a current acquisition above can attest), the drivers are more patient (and on the correct side of the road!) and the atmosphere is infinitely more energised than where I am currently living on the mainland. I toyed breifly with the idea of trying to find a job there, but I know if I did that, that I would go broke very quickly, way too many temptations there! This time last week I was returning from my little expeditition, can't quite believe how fast this year is ticking over. Work is busy with no signs of slowing down. I am learning a lot and even managed to conduct some placements tests, which is talking to potential students to find out what level they are. It's a quick and painless process that saw me earn around 150 RMB for doing 3 of them! I feel like my apprenticeship (it truly feels like that's what it is) is coming along well and am feeling more settled with all of my classes. The weather is warming up quickly and even though summer is weeks away, it feels as though it has arrived already. The ladies of Shenzhen can be seen hiding under a myriad of coloured umbrellas, shading themselves from the intense heat. I am on the brink of buying one myself! I'll leave off here, God bless you all, you're in my thoughts and prayers as always. xo

Shaoguan School Trip

I returned yesterday from a 3 day trip to Shaoguan, a town near the border of Guangdong Province and Hunan Province. It was a very tiring experience but fun none-the-less. The school I work for paid for just about everything and took around 27 staff away. I was one of only a handful of foreign teachers on the trip and the only female foreigner!! On day one we travelled five hours by bus to our first stop, Yue Bei Valley (known as Guangdong's Grand Canyon). The first photo you can see is of the afternoon's entertainment that we enjoyed, a troupe of highwire artists who were amazing! The second photo shows the funicular which we took down to the hydro-electric scheme that is being developed in this place. We stayed in a beautiful 5 star hotel this night, but were not able to fully enjoy it as we had a 6am start the following morning! We were booked to do a tour on the Pearl River on inflatable boats. I don't have any photos as it was raining and we also encountered some small rapids, so were advised to leave our cameras on the bus. The scenery was lovely, green mountains, small riverside settlements and a disused railway track that was is such bad repair in places that it looked like a Salvador Dali painting. The tracks had succumbed to landsides and were twisted into some incredible positions! In the afternoon we travelled to our hotel which offered an array of different hot springs to soak in. I indulged in a few and also had a sauna which was hotter than any other I've ever experienced! We set off again early on the final day to see Dan Xia mountain. The last two photos are of this place and show me standing in a beautifully crafted pagoda, and also a scenic spot we encountered. I arrived back in Shenzhen at 8pm a little worse for wear but very satisfied. I made some new friends and got to know others better. I now have week off for May Day celebrations, during which time I hope to rest, shop and possibly get away to Hong Kong. Till next time love and peace to you and yours!