It's life as usual, with unusual thrown in for good measure...

"What's up?"

"The usual. And you?"

"Yeah, not much."

This is the kind of mind-blowing conversational English that I get to pass on to mainland Chinese folk. I know you're thinking, "Wow, you must be some teacher!"

And yes, I am. I also suffer from high self-esteem.

The month of July is nearly over, and so will be my first stint as an English-as-a-2nd-language (ESL) teacher for adults. So convinced am I that this kind of teaching rocks my world, I pulled out of my future Kindergarten stint that I had lined up, and signed up at another ESL institute for August-September with the option of further work thereafter. And ok, there was the added benefit of a salary that came up trumps compared with the Kindy work. Richer, happier, food on the table, work that gets my creative juices flowing, and a chance to see full-grown Chinese do the Hokey Pokey...it's a win-win.

More on the teaching side of things later. By the way, the lotuses are blooming.

More news:

Yesterday our cousin Abby from Port Lincoln arrived in Beijing, and will be staying with us for two weeks. After all the talk of the crappy weather here in BJ, it seems she brought the clear skies with her all the way from SA. Now she thinks we're just having you all on. But really - it's true. I mean, these 2-days-in-a-row of clear blue skies are just a complete rarity. I keep looking up and thinking, '...wow - cool. Is this the same city?'

I know that sounds weird, but if you lived here you'd know what I meant.

So anyway, today Michelle took the day off work and with her new bike and my not-as-new bike, she and Abby have set off of a discovery of BJ, and what a day it turned out to be for them. But it won't last. Not that I'm a pessimist folks, but the million cars and counting won't rest until the skies are hazy.

Other than the usual, there's other stuff going on as well.

Yes, the lakes are getting all fished out.

Anyway...

Guess what? We've started a little business on the side here in big Beijing. Michelle saw an oportunity, and as it turns out, has grabbed it. By now you're just hanging out to hear what it is right? Well it's a secret.

These little tackers wanna keep it to themselves.

Though we reckon some more icecream will go a long way in getting them to spill the beans.

Kidding.

Ok, so you know the photos that I've been taking? Michelle reckoned that some would make really great greeting cards. And she did some show n' tell, and others reckoned the same. There is a bit of a 'greeting card' market gap here that is waiting to be filled, and Michelle being the entrepreneur that she is, wants to fill it. So production is under way. And well, we'll keep you updated. The first place we'll attempt to sell them will be the OZ Embassy. Here's a little poster we did up to advertise our new product! Feel free to make an order...or answer our little poll that's on the right of this page.

It's another win-win. I get to keep snapping away with my Olympus, and Michelle gets to stick photos onto cardboard. Like I said, a win-win.

There really are endless photo ops here. And oh, I just love the colours.

Plus it saves time painting. Snap...or brush? I'll go with the snap. But two thumbs up to anyone willing to take up the brush. (Hi Nanna and Grandpa!)

Well, like I said, Beijing is just a minefield for photographers. Here's a sample. I took these last Saturday.

Before I sign off, I'll let you know that we'll be heading off this weekend for a 2-day hike of the Great Wall, and staying overnight in a village somewhere up in the mountains. Can't wait. But you'll have to wait for the next blog for that.

Ok.

This is China.

Dig it.

Storms Clean the Air

This is a tribute to rain, clouds, thunder, lightning and views from the 15th floor. We haven't seen better skies and breathed cleaner air than a storm that just passed over us produced, and so we're raising our glasses to the raging elements that treated us to a taste of home away from home. Even the sun tore the sky apart, reaching out with a cup in its rays and clinked our chalises.

Mmmm...I just relish using the English language when the occassion happens upon me.

Bike riding. Oh yes, that reminds me. The last three days I've spent hours on my little red riding bike. But what big handlebars it has. I've been attempting to get lost in this big city, but doing a hopeless job of it...since I AM a male and all. I just can't help but be un-disorientated. It's frustrating, but some of us have this burden to bear and I'm not going to start complaining about it. Well, guess what I found on my journeys? The new olympic stadium that's what.

It's still got a long way to go, but the WOW factor is there. Plus the 'what-was-the-architect-on-when-he-designed-this?' factor. See it though in its future glory by clicking HERE.

Done? Impressed?

Well, that wasn't all I stumbled upon. Say hello to this little beauty...

...Look, but don't touch!!!

And along the way...an ancient alley adorns an avenue...

...and a red lantern ridden road really rocked my ride...

...while a topless gardener garnished green and gold geranthiums with good ol' H20...

...and delivery dudes dine on delicious dishes discussing daily duties*

(That's why there's no one in the picture)

That reminds me. Today Michelle and I ordered a second bike for us - the same one but blue - so that we can go riding together and really live it up! Can't wait to pick it up from the bike shop tomorrow and unfold it...(see my previous posting for the 'unfolding' video).

Michelle is also looking forward to her first haircut/colour in Beijing, although with some apprehension. But the hairdresser came recommended by others in the Embassy so there's nothing to lose...except prehaps years of great haircare...

English teaching. That reminds me. This week I've started English teaching and I'm loving it. I have 11 students in my class, all in their 20s and above. I work 9am-1pm Mon-Fri. So far the students are really advancing - they now know that although kangaroos make for great postcards, they also make for great steak.

Also, we're really looking forward to our cousin Abby (Hi Abby! Excited?!!) coming to visit us from the 18th of July for two weeks. We were hoping our spare room would pay off, and at $50AUS/night we'll be making sure it does. (Kidding Abby!!! hehe)

We took another trip to the flea markets today and got a bit itchy, but took some rather good shots...so check out my National Geographic for more photos and if you get the time, check out the rest of the site.