after two days of struggling to wake up before noon due to meds we finally figured to have me take it earlier in the evening so that i was really sleepy at night instead of in the morning, which meant i could get up sans grogginess like normal like the rest of the world hooray! double hooray cos it was a mild day, bit of sun, bit of cloud, a nice relaxing day.

started my day of domesticity by using up the three very ancient bananas to make nigella's banana bread/cake. i left it in the oven to stay warm while L was studying and i was outside in the garden so that when we had some later it was warm and the chocolate chunks were oozy and the crust was crunchy. yum! very pleased with that :)

then i felt very, very accomplished because for the first time i managed to make bread with potato water (ever since i got the domestic goddess book in what, 2005? and i read about it in there i have been thinking well one day i should try that shouldn't i?) but although it sounds simple enough (boil potatoes, save the water, use for making bread) it doesn't fit in with my life. either we don't boil potatoes often enough, or the one time i do boil potatoes i forget about the plan, or i remember but i might have just made bread, or i keep the water but forget to make the bread or something. but last night i boiled potatoes to make shepherd's pie topping and saved the water. today i took it out and bunged it in the breadmaker with everything else. lo and behold the stars must have been aligned! easy peasy! i am confident this sequence of events will not recur for another 100 years. (L says the bread is good, which makes me happy. personally, i'm over bread at the moment)

spent a lot of time in the garden leisurely doing this and that. i love pottering in the garden on a warm day with the doors wide open and the boy somewhere nearby :) and something yummy to eat when i get hungry and a LARGE bottle of water on standby.

i finally got out the two long pots i had in the sunroom over winter and revived the surviving parsley and swiss chard plants, added compost and sowed rocket/mesclun. sowed more rocket/mesclun/basil in pots. also sowed some beautiful borlotti beans direct in the garden (after MAJOR weeding - i know why people say "put your back into it!" now) which i haven't done before, both the species and the practice. i usually sow into punnets and transplant but i think these beans are big enough to make it in the garden plus the packet says not to transplant. ok lor. we got three colours, a dark purple, yellow and a speckled pink. i hope they take and produce cos they sure will make pretty minestrone soup! (already thinking ahead for cool weather food)

i divided the very old strawberry plants and replanted them, hopefully at least some will survive my rough handling in the wrong season for dividing. doesn't matter if they don't cos i was planning to replace them so any that do are a bonus! it was a last minute spontaneous decision. also planted out the broccoli, which will be interesting as they are called "midget". i wonder what that means? L thinks they will be too small to eat. Silly boy. I think I'm more interested in cooler weather crops or dwarf varieties to suit our shorter season and i've gotten over my tropical-climate envy. while it would be cool to have a banana tree, well, i couldn't have a lot of other desirable crops too like parsnips or apples or plums or tulips (not strictly crops but so pretty!)

more rain tomorrow. the kitchen/reno guys are coming round. wonder what'll happen in the meeting?

had a lovely and interesting weekend with my sweetheart :)

on friday after sleeping off the migraine and spending the day plant shopping/gardening he came home with a surprise video and we had a surprise movie date at home (i love B.O.B.! anyone else love B.O.B.? he's hilarious!) and on Sat afternoon we went along to the aquarium on the peninsula which is run by the uni which i've always meant to visit. they were running a session on seaweed! there was an educational bit where we watched a doco and we were introduced to various species (apparently nz has 1000 species and there are many, many undiscovered/unnamed species in the world) including the famous nori (jap name)/karengo (maori name)/pophyra (scientific name) and the more common bladder kelp. and the "gorse of the sea" the wakame... i liked how they were categorised: the reds, the browns, and the greens. simple! and even better that other than being good for you, free for the picking, available year round etc etc, they are all (apparently) not poisonous so you don't even have to identify them to eat them. best!

we went to the touch pool to touch some species which had been collected for us and one of the staff showed us all the wonderful things that can be made with bull kelp and a knife - jandals, a bouncy rubber ball, a handbag etc

then we traipsed down to the shore (didn't bring my gum boots but neither did most people) to harvest some seaweed before heading back in to taste an amazing spread made with the tasty stuff. i was quite impressed with the variety of stuff you can make with this ingredient, i tasted oatmeal cookies, chocolate brownies, asian flavoured relish, cheese sticks, kelp scones, "shark teeth", fried kelp chips, it was also tasty served fresh on crackers with cream cheese (different sorts having their own taste and texture) and dried, it can be flaked as a condiment or ground as a flour substitute. fresh it is used as a vegetable substitute. it's incredible!

i can't wait for my next seaside trip after lik's exams with a big plastic bag or two! we came away with several sheets of recipes too :)

have made more progress in the garden and while nowhere as prolific as last year (well year two was famous for being full on) i think we're coming on nicely.

and as a last minute sponsored holiday we're heading back from 1-15 jan. it was %@&^$@#$ hard to book with tickets disappearing from right under our noses!!! but anyway we've got them so yay. it's time i reckon to meet up with some old friends!

i'm so tired and sore i can't even be bothered to type an update! suffice to say we did major damage. how's this: i can actually see the garden path, edges and pavers in the courtyard again! whee!

Week 2 is over! So fast, as usual. Midway already yesterday, went okay but full steam ahead in the next three weeks to achieve all the objectives. One case study, one education session and one activity analysis. Hope the right clients pop up soon!

This week I did some MMSE on my own, some education sessions, some initial interviews, wrote some notes. Did more home visits, attended more equipment demonstrations. Didn't know they were using Tempur for pressure care now. Ha! 

Been cold, but fine and sunny in the daytime. No summery weather. Below zero temperatures at night.

Going out for drinks this evening with N. Tomorrow hopefully going for gentler walks in the hills if the weather is good. 

Progressing on my sweater.

Getting along well with flatmates and work mates. All going well. Pangs of missing the husband now and again, like everytime I walk through the old hospital (morning and evening) and smell patient dinners. 

Yesterday I decided to go for a long walk around the neighbourhood, round the cemetery and the long way to the shops. It was beautiful and inspiring, but I got bored 10 minutes into the walk and realised why. My sweetie wasn't beside me, that's why. So despite the sweet fragrance and lovely colours of spring, everything is just that wee bit duller when I'm not with him.
 

guess i should update.

this semester is structured exactly the same as last semester, so 4 weeks in class, then placement (with 1 week holiday/travel time before and after) for 5 weeks, then back to class and straight onto the home stretch, assignments and exams. i didn't like it last semester, and i struggled very much with getting back to the right mode (ie last lap instead of just beginning) maybe cos i had 10 days off in between. struggled horribly also with health and mood but in the end in my weakness God provided me with strength so that because of Him and his grace and blessings, i came back with better results than in year 1. Got 3 A+s and 3 As. Topped in a few subjects.

more and more i realise i am nothing without Him, and thank God, goodness and everything that i don't have to do anything on my own strength. i couldn't manage for sure!

i'm now at the end of my first week of placement and because God picked this one out for me specially, it's been nothing short of excellent. great OT team, i'm fitting in nicely, they're all interesting and talk about stuff i am actually interested in such as chickens and lambs (!!) and great MDT, the nurses and docs are approachable and lovely, i'm having a good time socialising and learning much about conditions and stuff as well! how's that for incredible! the charge nurse manager even brought me a model of a colon when i asked her what 'diverticulitis' was! i'm going to name him Charlie the Colon, he lives in the nurses' station now. There's also a ward cat called Norman and at home there's a black cat called "Blue". funny animals, they are. skulking around suspiciously looking suspicious of everyone/thing and at the same time acting suspiciously as well. 

this week has been full of patient contact, assessments of different types, OT issues and interventions of different sorts, i think in the first week i learned more than in my 4 weeks at WH! crazy. i'm also more confident now about my own knowledge and contribution and about asking things i don't know.

i'm living in a huge L shaped brick house and takes me no more than 5 minutes to get from home to the office. when we leave for the day (and i like how the OTs leave at 4.30 on the dot, because these people have lives and real things to do after work, like feeding the lambs, and there's no need to ALB) we part at the main entrance because they are walking to the car and me to the house. i reckon we take the same amount of time to get to our destinations. we take our keys out but mine are house keys and theirs car keys. it's really refreshing to get home in the time i would have taken to reach the car! 

been eating well, treating myself to lots of veggies and fruit and good proper meals. i usually take a sandwich in for lunch, consisting of non-white bread, pesto, cheese, salami, tomato and baby spinach. yum! and a pottle of yogurt. and at morning tea i have some dark chocolate thins to dip into my coffee/tea, and muesli bars/bananas for afternoon tea and right after work. i get home and go for a jog immediately. doesn't take long and i'm home before sunset.

think i might sleep earlier tonight though i'm only due in at 830. bit of a fieldtrip tomorrow, doing a cognitive assessment on a deaf woman through her daughter and then going on a home visit. done by lunchtime yay! Saturday hopefully go for a walk in the hills as the weather looks promising and sunny.  

pretty tired, and i think there are two reasons for that - having a bush walk today which was incredibly hot and sunny, and eating too much for dinner. I had cooked a big pot of mince, carrots, tomatoes, onions, garlic on Thursday and it had lasted me until today, which is 4 meals, and is on the verge of too long in the fridge (though i always heat it up thoroughly) so although it could have been two meals or perhaps a meal and a half, i finished it. had it on a bed of boiled potato and raw baby spinach. yum! i splurged at the bakery on friday for desserts for the weekend, partly because its the weekend before my most stressful week at work, though quite a big part of the reason was that i was waiting ages for the ATM and the bakery happened to be there! i wandered in and thought ok i'll treat myself and then i felt bad just buying one item so i bought another. oh well. bakeries are not cheap! i had a slice of bavarian apple cake last night and tonight (or tomorrow night if i remain this full) i have a custard tart. yum.

yesterday i stayed at home and relaxed and it was a hugely hot day so i did some washing, vacuumed my room, changed and washed the sheets, which is my Sat routine by now. i quite like having a routine for cleaning and washing, cos then i don't have to work out which is the best day to do it, and it's fixed. we don't even have fixed routines for cleaning or washing at home! but here i do. it gives a little structure to my week, since i'm missing my husband whose collaboration usually produces some kind of structure to the week normally. did some work too. and walked to j'ville to buy groceries and visit the bank (and was waylaid by the bakery).

today i went to church with S and it was really interesting. M gave a sermon involving themes picked from several books and Bible verses. it was about Christians being rich, and middle class, and no longer going out to reach towards the marginalised, that Jesus used to do. And the verses were somewhat "radical" ones, like giving a banquet for the poor and homeless, is that literal? (i think so) and the rich young man who asked how to gain eternal life and was told to sell up and give to the poor and follow Jesus and he went away sad cos he was too rich, and the sheep being separated from the goats, depending on whether they gave food to the hungry, a drink to the thirsty, clothes to the naked and visited those who were sick or in prison and Jesus said whenever they did that to "one of the least of these" they did it to Him.

then i went into town and who did I meet but "one of the least of these". i was sitting alone on a bench waiting for my friend. a drunk man was singing and carrying on and lay down to sleep on the street. then he got up after a while and came and sat next to me. remembering what we had discussed just this morning i spoke to him nicely, with respect and without negativity. we chatted awhile, about where we were from, introduced ourselves etc, and shook hands. (i remember the friendliness of drunkenness). after awhile he asked me for some money and i hesitated and finally said i didn't think i could help him. i was struggling because as he later said, he wanted some dollars to buy a beer, he said he needed a beer. i tried to steer the conversation to did he live around here, so i could suggest he went home to rest, cos he looked like he really needed some sleep and food perhaps. if he'd asked me for money for food i would have said yup let's go get you a sandwich. but he said he was going to get a beer. so i said i didn't think i could help him and eventually he said he would try asking someone else, and i said ok, and my friend arrived so we left for lunch.

is it my place to judge what he uses the money for, knowing he needs it? does this count as "needing" money? does he "need" a beer the way a hungry person needs food? i don't know. i came home and shared this with both P and S to see what they thought or what they would have done. P said he would also have bought the man food but not given him money for beer while S didn't have any concrete suggestions. P asked if a man in a burning house wanted some kerosene, should we give it to him cos he wanted it? is that analagous?

i might pose this question to my old BS group and current home group and see what they think, what they would have done. on my part, i felt i did right speaking to him like to any other person, not judging him, but then in my heart i was gradually afraid that if i steered the conversation too much or tried to make suggestions of what he did need, he might get upset and possibly aggressive. but i didn't treat him like he was going to be aggressive at all, didn't draw away, shook his hand when he offered it twice, looked him in the eye, didn't move away until my friend came. i wasn't afraid of him, only thought he *might* get upset, which was a possibility same as anyone. i could have offered a meal instead but i didn't. did i lack courage? i don't know. it's not the money, so maybe i just wasn't confident enough to do as Jesus would have, which i guess is to say "You don't need a beer, come let's go and get something to eat together". I don't think my friend would have been very thrilled at that though.

Any thoughts?

After that we went for a walk in the bush and it was beautiful, plus a proper uphill climb that left us both slightly puffed. I felt I got a proper workout, which is good. A good use of a beautiful Sunday.

Tomorrow, starts another week that will zoom by. The only difference is I can't let this one go by without achieving what I need to do. There's going to be a lot, a lot of prayer, and I know a lot of prayer will be answered too.

10 days to go!

The weekend was rather sociable and I got out and about. On Sat I took the bus to Porirua, then train to Paraparaumu, then bus to B's sister's house. Met the brother in law and niece and nephew and contrary to what I was led to believe (that I was there for coffee), we hit the road immediately! It was a beautiful day (and weekend, the heat's back oh yeah baby!) and we walked along the Waikanae river. The men took bicycles while us girls walked along and chatted very sociably. Walked past a Christian campsite called El Rancho and walked all the way up to where G does vaulting. For other people like me who didn't know what vaulting was, it's gymnastics/acrobatics on a horse! Like a circus! I was so impressed with tiny skinny girl doing that kind of thing. No one was vaulting at the club so too bad for me, I was keen to see what it looked like.

After our huge walk we got back to the house and sat down for a snack, then soon B and I had to leave to catch the bus to the train. She was heading into town for a family do while I was going home. The train was almost an hour late, or else two trains didn't show up (they're meant to be every half hour) but luckily we were together so we chatted about everything. She said the trains weren't the most reliable cos they had to make way for other trains, like the two we *did* see - one was a tourist steam train and another was the overlander from Auckland. Cheh!

Public transport I must say is pretty expensive here. It cost me $11 each way to/from Paraparaumu for bus/train/bus each way. B's train ticket to Wellington cost $10 one way! Incredible. And there are people who commute to the city to work everyday. I wonder if driving can be much cheaper than that? Probably better not to think about it.

Sunday morning woke up feeling confused because my phone decided to daylight save unilaterally. It's really not til 5 April but for some reason it took the liberty of going back one hour while I was asleep so I woke up confused. Went upstairs, found other people and confused them too. But we all made it to church with no problem. Met a Malaysian couple with two young girls who've been here 5 years. The man was telling me all about how to get citizenship and all the tips and tricks. Reminded me a bit of my dad, the mover-shaker type of man. Turns out they go to the same home group as the couple I'm staying with. I feel rather at home in this church despite being there only for the second time. Could be because the group is small and people very friendly and service very interactive and participative. Could be because I found people to talk to and engage in interesting conversation both last and this week, instead of the usual how-are-you-then-walk-away type of interaction with new people. Everyone showed lots of interest in my course and what I'm doing here and I feel very welcome indeed. Maybe it's just Wellingtonians. A friendly and welcoming lot.

Then bussed into town (distinctly felt the "wah big city" feeling welling up in me as the bus entered the CBD) and met up with S and K for coffee in Cuba St. Lovely sunny day and was nice to be out in town. Missed the husband a lot though cos of all the interesting places we had been to together last time we were in Welly and all the interesting places we have yet to explore!

Came home mid afternoon and did quite a lot of work. Prepared for supervision which went well today. My main supervisor was sick and didn't come in so had a lot of time to read articles and things, in the afternoon had supervision and then went home early. Thought I'd do something different since I'd spent the whole morning working hard so went and sat in the library and flipped through two magazines. The gardening one inspired and entertained me somewhat, but the house one made me depressed that I wasn't home with my sweetie! So I left and came back here to relax and enjoy some peace without little kids running and screaming. Libraries here are not like when I was growing up that's for sure.

Bit tired today, cos of brain overload, hopefully tomorrow I'll be out and about with J and doing some fun stuff. Got a visit to the acute ward planned on Wed, will spend a day there, which is perfect cos I'm meeting some (more) Malaysians for dinner in town. Sociable!

Day 3 in welly and day 1 on the job...

It was very positive. Work environment homely and comfortable, very well equipped kitchen, even got a freestanding stove and oven! Supervisors lovely and easy to get along with, no generation gap there. My main supervisor is a 24 year old surfer who reminds me of D, down to the sunny disposition and blond beard. He's quitting to go travelling with his girlfriend so placement will finish early. Problem is then that I can't find a cheap flight to go home earlier on! Even if I finish on Wed, my current flight is on Sunday! Argh. I don't want to sit around here and do nothing. It's homely but not my home!

Anyway got the bus ok, got lunch from supermarket, got a bit wet in morning rain, went round visiting services in morning (nice to be riding along in the car instead of sitting indoors), lunch, then went to Porirua to visit more services, then to a cafe with both supervisors for our initial meeting. Then got dropped to J'ville where i got groceries and trudged up the hill. Dinner was made for me (! Haven't had chance to talk to the mum about me making my own food, though I must say it's nice to come home to hot meal) and we all sat down together, chatted a bit with both P and S separately, was nice, a bit like being part of the family. First time eating with the daughter, typical teenager always out, plus this one is active in drama in school and church too. M rang and asked us out for a walk, the parents had home group but I went and met B and M and M's husband. Went for a lovely walk up the hill and along a ridge until it got too windy and we turned back. Didn't see any calves but spotted wild blackberries and true to expectations the intrepid sisters went in among the bushes and thorns in their shorts and picked them. They were lovely ripe and sweet! I must say sweet blackberries is a rarity. Absolutely scrumptious and I was really impressed how M knew what berries were what along the way.

A brisk walk back in the darkening and cooling evening and a nice end to the day. All that prayer certainly never goes to waste :)

(just occurred to me funny how both placements are/were in places beginning with "w")

Yesterday I watched a crazy snow/hail storm really giving its all. But it didn't settle. The night before it'd already snowed and the hilltops were white.

Last night it snowed all the way down to our level, so in the morning not only the hilltops were white, the rooftops across the valley were white as well, and I don't mean a light sprinkling. In fact it reminded me of Sweden! In our own garden the deck railings were still icy, as was the car. It wasn't the usual ice on the car (well, usual in winter not #$@(^#* summer!) but snow.

Hello?? Is this not spring/summer?

Having recently watched a video of snow in Sweden, I find it unbelievable it's also snowing here down under! Both hemispheres snowing in the same season? Crazy!!! Yesterday I wore my ski jacket and a cardigan. Today I had to dig out my wool beanie and merino/possum gloves. SIAO!!!

I also came straight home after school and built a lovely roaring fire. Napped on the couch by the fire and felt better about working on my assignments. The man is in Chch for the day but already it feels (well he left before I officially woke up) like days in a faraway land. We're having a reunion date tonight :) Then RSA on Friday, Bern's on Saturday, how to do any work? Anyway, 2 weeks and a bit and we're all done. I'm stressed but I'm also over this.

I'm so glad I didn't plant out the tomato seedlings during Labour weekend as per tradition. The poor little things would have frozen to death!

Next pottle of seed sown and awaiting germination: Borage. Yay!!

J came over to NZ and after working his way down the country met up with us last Saturday. On Monday the three of us embarked on our road trip to beautiful Fiordland. We stayed at a lovely place (Campbell Auto Lodge) in Te Anau right across from the lake. Spacious, cheap and comfy bed and pillows! Because I just got my full licence (hold the applause, it took 3 years) I drove the leg from Gore to Te Anau. Fiordland is really stunning. Unlike Wanaka which is pretty in a pleasant relaxed sort of way, the view of Lake Te Anau and the National Park beyond is quite awesome. Raw, unpredictable and breathtaking.

We did the requisite Milford cruise, my favourite part was when the boat came really close to a waterfall and I looked vertically upwards to see the water leaping over the edge. But I was somewhat sleepy due to anti-nausea medication. Sea-legs? Don't have any. Between pukey and sleepy I guess I did alright.

One of the highlights was doing a short day walk on the Kepler Track. My very first time on a Great Walk! And my first tramp of the season. :) Winter is rough in these parts so there were many fallen trees. 30 minutes into the walk we came across a massive tree fallen right across the path. Had to scramble/kinda clamber over it. Mini adventure :)
Looking forward to more tramps this summer, I'm slowly but surely collecting more and more correct gear for this country's seasons and unpredictable climate.

J left on Fri on a bus to Chch. Today, therefore, I spent getting ready to delve into work next week - cleared the house, put things in order, continued work on the garden taking advantage of the sunny weather. Winter came early and so did spring so perhaps this spate of hot weather is an early summer? I'm not complaining.

Today was really productive both inside the house and out. Relaxing fun day in domestic bliss - L was working at home but relatively relaxed so we entertained each other now and again, napped together a bit. Tomorrow I hope I'll have a chance to finish up the garden for now until the next round of work needs to be done. Got a headstart on that though this season, definitely more prepared.

In the veggie garden I have leeks, celery, cabbage, mesclun and swiss chard growing.
Still a few shallots and carrots from last season, also spinach (they didn't name it Perpetual Spinach for nothing!).
The rhubarb has come back this year, as have the chives. (And the comfrey yay!)
In the sunroom aka plant nursery chez An I have basil seedlings ready to be pricked/planted out, 9 NZ flax seedlings, a very tall dill plant, two pots of coriander, two punnets of rocket, some melon and tomato seedlings. Also one very skinny vulnerable looking stevia seedling. And a healthy looking apricot plant growing fast!
Outside I have several pear plants germinated over autumn and hardened over winter too. Though they're tiny, one put out wee flowers this spring. So cute! So precocious.
The herb/bulb garden is expanding, with various bulbs interspersed with rosemary, thyme of two sorts, two sage plants and mint currently. The oregano and two other rosemary plants are ready to go in and join the lot too.
As for the oldies, the bay tree put out flowers this year and the lemon tree is in utter confusion with baby lemons, buds and flowers all happening simultaneously! I think the move confused it very much.

There is more work to be done, more seeds to be sown, seedlings to be planted and general work such as mulching with compost, sweeping/gathering up fallen branches, leaves, wood chips etc. Not to mention lifting and separating old perennials and continuing to feed and weed!

J helped me dig out the biggest monster fennel plant and I worked on several smaller ones. Bronze fennel is unfortunately an introduced and now naturalised invasive weed! Spreads like crazy and doesn't die down in winter like it ought. Instead it produces masses of seed heads which of course is why it spreads like crazy. I'm planning to plant bulb fennel to replace bronze fennel cos we don't really use the leaves much, a pity. The roots smelled really lovely and fresh though, I haven't researched it but I'm sure it's edible. If you think dandelion roots are tenacious and fat, you ain't seen dock, but if you think dock is monstrous, you ain't seen bronze fennel! The roots were comparable in size to my forearm!

Baking a wholemeal honey cake at the man's request, better go check on it..

that's what the man feels like, and i'm like the accompanying monkey with the accordion! ha well no, not really, cos i'm not part of the money making business part.

we've been on the road a lot for L's work. had a nice relaxing (relatively, if you ignore all the housework/renovating/errands bits) january, then it was back to work for the man. well, someone's gotta earn the money right? :p i'm the dutiful supportive woman behind the hardworking man.

we spent 3 long days (long for him cos of long shift; long for me cos of boring town!) in Timaru (no offense, Timaru-ites!) and drove back very late last Sunday home. Spent the Sunday cleaning cos this weekend we've a dear friend visiting from sg. Then Sunday night drove 2.5 hours south to Invercargill, which is a lot bigger looking and modern feeling than I'd expected. L really likes the hospital here and can imagine us working together here, it's huge and very new. Well I told him wait at least 3 years for that, I haven't even started yet! Start in 2 weeks' time.

We drove down to the southern most town in NZ, Bluff. Here the State Highway 1 starts (or ends, but I think starts, since it's the oldest settlement in NZ, I think) quite undramatically. We did a nice long walk along the cliffs on a track. Got really desolate near the end, and very spectacular. Reminded me of both Italy near Cinque Terre cos of the winding path along the cliff and Greece in its raw desolate emptiness.

Where the track started was a signpost, I guess a rather famous one in tourist books. It stated we were only 300km off being equidistant from the South Pole and the equator. Strange to imagine, cos heading south from here would only take one through lots and lots of ocean. Some islands and some small S Am settlements, but that's it. Northwards from the same latitude north, would be lots and lots more land, cities, people.

Was strange to think about it, seeing as it felt we were at land's end, which technically is true, but we weren't that far from the equator at all.

No we didn't take a picture of the signpost. Heaps of pictures of it on the net though.

Looking forward to C coming to visit, we've to head off right after work today, I've got to get everything together packed and ready to zip off. He'll be at the airport waiting for us and contrary to what one would think, I really doubt it takes any time at all to get off the plane (probably walk down a flight of steps to the tarmac) and pick up luggage (might or might not be a "belt", I'm thinking they probably heap the bags in a pile and you pick!) so I hope we'll be on schedule today!

Oh and Gong Xi Fa Cai everyone!