Lost and found

Weather: too cold to wear just two layers.
Temp: - 3 to 8
Exchange rate: RMB 1 = R1,44
Market day: we try and go to the fruit and veg market every Sunday.

NuNu is home. I found her in the service duct on the 33rd floor. She was a little traumatised, but otherwise ok. Needless to say, the door to the fire escape is staying firmly shut from now.

Also on the kitty front: Sam's on heat and driving us absolutely MAD with his night-time yowling. To add to our joy he's started spraying. And the vet refuses to neuter him until he's had all his shots. That means we have to put up with it for another six weeks. Sam may not live that long...

We also didn't have electricity for nearly two days. First I thought the electricity for the whole building was out, but when I left for my class I noticed that the hallway lights were on. The concierge phoned the management office and all they said was that I need to go and pay my account at the bank. Thing is I paid the water and electricity last week. Of course I'm not 100% sure that I paid for water and electricity - who knows, perhaps I just paid for water... We spent a romantic evening by candle light. Next day I phoned our estate agent who speaks brilliant English and went to the management office with her. As it turns out I had paid for water and electricity. The problem was with a burnt-out fuse in our tripbox. That took most of the day to fix. Wasn't loving China so much then.

We booked out tickets to SA last night! Can't wait to see you all.

NuNu is missing

Weather: chilly, but bearable
Temp: -2 to 3
Exchange rate: RMB1 - R1,47

NuNu went missing yesterday afternoon and I'm seriously worried. What was she doing outside our apartment in the first place you may ask. Well, there is a door from our floor to the fire escape stairwell. The fire escape is totally enclosed with doors to every floor leading off it, but no access to the basement or anywhere else. I figured since the kitties can only go up or down the stairs but can't get out it should be a safe place for them to get out of the flat for a little bit. Mostly I was hoping that Sam would scratch his gallavanting itch and that we would get some sleep at night. NuNu went out at about 2 and we haven't seen her since. I've looked everywhere, I've asked the cleaners and I've put signs up in the lift. I'm hoping that some good Samaritan found her, thought she was lost, took her in... and will return her.

Settling down

Weather: mildly cold
Temp: -3 to 0
Exchange rate: RMB1 = R1,48
Snow, snow, glorious snow: I took Sam for a walk this morning. Yes, in the snow. He loved it.

I finally feel like my life has settled into some rhythm that I'm comfortable with, I've made my peace with and I like. No, I'm not permanently employed in some high-flying marketing position. I'm still teaching part-time, but I have at least four classes a week plus one private student. I'm also seriously studying Mandarin 3 times a week. I'm learning how to read and write, which is very exciting for me. It's a struggle some days, but I'm getting there. It helps that I have a great teacher. On top of that I've enrolled in a part-time fashion design course. It keeps me busy, stimulated and happy. So, this is my life for now and I think it's pretty cool.

Frikkie's deadline has come and gone and hopefully things will return to normal now - whatever that is.

My mother once told me that male cats are more trouble than they're worth - they want to gallivant and roam - and that I should stick to girl kitties. She was definitely right about their gallivanting ways. Sam kept me up last night yowling and generally being a pain in the behind. Hence the walk this morning - I thought if he worked off some of that energy... Also, my friend Toby takes his cat for a walk every day. So I figure if I can train Sam then he can go for a walk every day. Let's hope my plan works. He certainly did seem to enjoy his romp in the snow.

It's SNOWING

Weather: snow
Temp: -6 to 0
Exchange rate: RMB1 = R1,47
Room with a view: it started early this morning and has been snowing ever since.

Hooray! Finally it's snowing. It's amazing watching the snowflakes drift past the window. Beijing is getting whiter by the minute.

I don't know what time Frikkie came home, but I think it was around 5 or 6 this morning. Surely this madness cannot continue.

There's nothing on my agenda today besides doing the laundry and crocheting. And drinking loads of hot chocolate. Hopefully Frikkie can sleep late. I've closed the bedroom door and if we're lucky Sam won't wake him up any time soon. Sam meows loudly and likes thudding down the passage at top speed chasing Monkey.

Just another manic Monday

Weather: chilly, with a capital C
Temp: -9 to 2
Exchange rate: RMB1 = R1,47
Stuff on my cat: Monkey in the year of the ox.

I was a busy little bee today. First I went to the Expat Learning Centre to pay my tuition for my fashion design course that starts in two weeks time. I'm super excited about the course and can't wait. Then I rushed back home to pick up Sam to take him to the vet. Thing is you can't really rush and take public transport so I was still half an hour late. Sam is healthy, but he has ear mites, which he's passed on to NuNu and Monkey, so he had his ear thoroughly clean (you can just imagine how much he liked that), plus had his Cat Aids test (negative) and his rabies shot.

The real fun and games started when I home and had to clean Monkey and NuNu's ears with some solution and ointment. NuNu was first up. It went so well that I decided to do Monkey tomorrow.

Demi came round at 2pm for my Mandarin class. I've started writing Chinese characters and let me tell you it ain't no joke. I feel like I'm in grade zero. Learning to read and write all over again is not easy, but I really want to be able to read and there's no other way.

Then I hopped back onto the subway to get to the class I had to teach. It was my last class with a great group of students, but we said we'd try to hook up in the spring to go hiking. Can't wait.

And finally I went to Frikkie's office to have dinner with my boyfriend. Pizza for two at the table in reception. The project he's working on right now is due at midnight, so I won't see him before then. But hopefully it won't get this crazy again for a while. He's utterly exhausted, but somehow he's very zen about it. Tomorrow apparently he gets to sleep late. Seeing is believing.

Beijing weekend

Weather: chilly
Temp: -8 to 2
Exchange rate: RMB1 = R1,46
Technicolour dream coat: These are real, fresh roses from the Laitai flower market. How the hell? I have no idea.

It's been a lovely weekend for me. On Friday we had dinner with Pete, who's here from Shanghai. On Saturday Frikkie went to work and I made dumplings. It's a bit of a job, but the end result is home-made dumplings which is a great quick, fast food at home. Then I joined Frikkie and his colleagues for lunch followed, for me, by an afternoon/evening of chilling on the couch. I did not sew. I need to print out the pattern somewhere and well, it was cold, I didn't fancy missioning to find a print shop and the couch was just so inviting.

I watched two movies. First up was the Curious case of Benjamin Button with Brad Pitt and Kate Blanchett. Before I say anything about the movie I have to admit that I'm a bit of a sucker for Mr Pitt. He sure is beautiful. And Ms Blanchett is brilliant. A bit of a chick flick, but a good one. Scoffing Cheetos I moved on a Changeling, Angelina Jolie's latest movie. Also good, not light and fluffy, but very good.

Frikkie came home at 4am. The poor man. I'm feeling very sorry for him. They have a deadline on Tuesday and right now they're working like crazy. He went back to the office today after breakfast with Stella and Bob at Grandma's Kitchen. Stella is from Taiwan and she just celebrated her first year in Beijing and Bob is from LA. We had fun. Breakfast started at 10:30. I got home at 4pm - need I say more.

The things I love about Beijing

Weather: mildish
Temp: 0 to 10
Exchange rate: RMB1 =R1,45
ROAR: a tiger on a wall somewhere.

Yesterday I went to the Mu Xi Yuan Shi Chang fabric market. It's in the south and quite a mission for me to get there, but worth it. I have never seen so much bedding fabric in my life. It wasn't the best day to be out and about - it was cold and miserable with rain and although I expected something else, the market was still interesting, with some nice fabrics, but you really had to work through a lot of unpretty fabric to get to the good stuff.

I found this site burdastyle.com which gives away free sewing patterns etc, so bought fabric for a dress, which I hope to make over the weekend. Frikkie is on a hectic deadline and I'm guess it will just be me and the cats at home this weekend so I'll have time to sew.

I also got to thinking yesterday about the things that I love about living in Beijing. So here goes: discovering new places all the time, super-fast internet, the different kinds of Chinese food, friendly taxi drivers who help me with my Mandarin pronunciation, going to the flower markets, going to the fruit and veg market, not having to drive anywhere, having a bike, playing badminton, my students who give me some insight into modern Chinese society, making new friends (albeit slowly)...

My birthday present finally arrived yesterday. Yes, a little late, but Chinese customs wouldn't release it for some reason. My friend Nolene introduced me to Charles and Marie and I love checking out all the beautiful things people create. Frikkie has obviously been paying attention and I LOVE my present. The rings are a little small though, so will have to send them back and get a bigger size. Sigh - more waiting :-(

The things I miss

Weather: it may snow today...
Temp: 1 to 10
Exchange rate: RMB1 = R1,44
Round and round: Sam's favour pastime is sitting in front of the washing machine watching the washing spinning round and round. He also loves chasing his own tail.

After an email to my friend Julia who lives in New Zealand I started thinking about all the things I look forward to when we get to SA next month. Here's what popped into my head: seeing my family, seeing my friends, hanging with my nieces and my godson, meeting Gayle's baby Frances for the first time.
I am also excited about the prospect of finding shoes that fit properly, waxing my legs (it costs an arm and a leg here), getting a good hair cut, speaking English and being understood immediately, seeing some South African faces, drinking water straight from the tap, driving a car, staying in a house, looking at stuff and being able to read the lables, knowing which products are good and which ones are rubbish, South African music, 5FM, aqueous cream, Woolies food, Woolies clothes, Woolies undies, Pick and Pay... and of course some sunshine and heat, Joburg sunsets, early morning walks on the beach with my mom, waking up to the quiet of the Bosveld in Bela Bela... I can't wait.

Oh brother

Weather: very mild for Feb in Beijing
Temp: 0 to 14
Exchange rate: RMB1 = R1,44
Colour galore: Perhaps not as vibrant as India, but China has lovely splashes of colour. These quilts livened up my room at winter school.

I went for another interview today. And it all seemed very promising until we started talking salary and then it seemed a lot less promising. But we'll wait and see. Perhaps they're prepared to pay slightly more than minimum wage. I doubt it though.

But it wasn't a completely futile outing. One of my fellow interviewees and I got chatting and will meet up again over the weekend AND on the way back I went in search of a sewing machine shop, actually found it, which was surprising cause my direction were a little sketchy and am now the proud owner of a Brother XL2500. It's the most complicated sewing machine I've ever owned, but I'm really excited about sewing again. Tomorrow I'm going fabric shopping. Maybe I'll sew something over the weekend. The excitement is too much.

Lantern Festival

Weather: mild
Temp: -4 - 15
Exchange rate: RMB1 = R1,42
Boom, boom: the view from our lounge last night. Beijing celebrated Lantern Festival in style with millions of fireworks.

Last night we headed to HouHai to enjoy the fireworks and to soak up some of the festive vibe. The Lantern Festival marks the end of the New Year celebrations and it's also the last day that you can legally shoot off fireworks in Beijing. And boy were there fireworks. And celebrations. It started at about 3 in the afternoon with crackers in the streets and just escalated from there. People were out in the streets, chilling, playing with their kids and watching the fireworks.We went to HouHai Lake for dinner and although we wanted to go check out Nuage, Vietnamese restaurant, we ended up at our old favourite, no name, where we had a great view of the fireworks from Tiananmen Square. Besides the really delicious food, no name's best feature is it's upstairs glass terrace. It's heated so you don't freeze to death and has a cocoon like feel to it.

I signed up for a fashion design course at the Expat Learning Centre and start in about 2 weeks. I'm super excited. Now I just need to get a sewing machine and I'll be all set. Set for what exactly I'm not sure, but set, nonetheless.

A new member of the family

Weather: fine and mild
Temp: -4 to 11
Exchange rate: RMB1 = R1,40
I am Sam: Sam ran into me at the winter school, so another rescued kitty joins the Els-Labuschagne household.

Last week was rather interesting. Teaching at winter school was quite an experience. From 7am to 9pm it was just me, 14 kiddies and 3 other teachers. Although it was called an English camp, there wasn't a lot of English speaking going on. The youngest children were 7 years old and the eldest 12. I taught for 2 hours in the mornings and we did fun things in the afternoons, like crab fishing (complete with fishing rods and pieces of fish for bait), skiing, swimming in hot springs (with lots of chlorine in the water and swimming cap police - you have to wear a swimming cap, no exceptions), picking vegetables, chair skating, clamber club... And of course as much as I was teaching them English the kids were trying to teach me Chinese. Lucy, who's 8, tried communicating all week by speaking Chinese really LOUDLY and s-l-o-w-l-y, and then when I didn't get what she was saying, would say it again and again, even more slowly with the volume going up, and up and UP.

And then of course there was Sam. He was begging for food all the time, but surprisingly wasn't too wild. I couldn't just leave him there, so I brought him home in my rucksack. Monkey turned into a spitting cobra when she saw him, but by last night they started playing with each other. NuNu has retreated and is still hissing at Sam, but I think in another day or two she should be ok. Sam, being a kitten, is completely oblivious to the aggression and just wants to play.

And very exciting news for me: we'll be in SA on 20 March for a week or two. Georg and Rhone are getting married and Frikkie really wants to be there, so watch out Joburg, here we come.

Vietnam: sun, sea, heat...

We got back from Vietnam yesterday. We had a great week. It was warm, beautiful, the people are really friendly and we were reluctant to leave. I'm too lazy to write about it, but I will once I get back from the Winter School where I'm teaching this week. So, after this, no more posts till next weekend - sorry about that. Entertain yourselves with the photos. If you're my friend on facebook you can check out some more there.