the latest

The latest news with this site is that Blogger is still down - meaning we can post, but can't view our sites or other sites... It's really annoying. There is a way around it by going to one of the illegal sites that let's you search for anthing on the net (blocked or unblocked), but these are often slow and unfriendly and usually I can't be bothered with the whole process. So I don't think I'll post much until it's back and running again.

About 3 weeks ago Tracey and I bought bicyles, which has been a great investment. I've been riding to and from work everyday which is lots of fun and helps me stay fit.

I'm starting to become more aware of the grime and dirtyness of this place. I often go outside and within a few hours feel dirty - dirty hands and face and your clothes can look and feel a bit dirty. The pollution - hazy sky thing has been a bit more noticeable over the last month. There's not really bad smells in the air, but there must be a lot of pollution. Although I'm sure it's nothing like some of the industrial Chinese cities.

The Chinese language is improving ever so slightly. I get frustrated at times that I'm not already an expert!! But, have to reassure myself that it's a long process to learn a language and it won't happen over night. I feel that my listening is improving, but my speaking is very ordinary. I now have a tutor (a Chinese student) who comes to our place 3 mornings a week, so I'm sure this will help me to improve. I'm also seriously considering enrolling in the university course which is 5 mornings a week for 4 hours each day, but I don't think this starts until February.

Other than all of that, we're both looking forward to going to Hokaido, Japan to ski for the Christmas week, which isn't all that far away.