Week 47 - On the Ferry, Sydney

What a beautiful city!!  And we were here to check out our house to check out how the tenants are treating it... fortunately they are looking after it, so we were free to enjoy the rest of our time in Sydney footloose and fancy-free!!  We saw friends and family, caught a ferry to Manly for lunch and a frolic in the sea and were blessed with Sydney's famous blue sky - what a beautiful city!!

Week 46 - Bush Playground, Wagga Wagga

We have come home to Australia for Christmas, and were lucky enough to be invited to stay with a really, old friend of mine - in years of friendship of course - and her family, including a delicious newborn baby only 14 weeks old in Wagga Wagga.  I had so forgotten the dry hot heat of country NSW.

Our girls (and Didi) got along like a house on fire, and had a good play at this, and a couple of other playgrounds in Wagga.  I hope that it is not too long before we see you again!!  Thanks for having us guys!!!

Week 45 - 'Twas the night before...

our Christmas trip to Australia, when all through the house, packing cases were everywhere and we were watching a total lunar eclipse.

One child had succumbed to the late night moon show, and was tucked up all snug in his bed. 

The other had set up a viewing chamber (including midnight snack) from her room to watch the eclipse, although our best photos were taken from the balcony where it was about 1 degree, and the tiles felt like ice.  Luckily it was our last night in Shanghai for a while, and we could enjoy watching the moon turn red!

Week 44 - 4 degrees, Jinqiao

Brrrr, it's beginning to feel a lot like winter here in Shanghai... the wind chill is making it colder, the tiles on the kitchen floor are so cold it hurts to walk on them barefoot, we're using the heating and it is taking longer for the hot water to reach the shower.

This morning was the first morning we really needed to rug up to go to school - hats, scarves and gloves. Didi is even wearing lined jeans.

Lucky it's less than two weeks before we escape Shanghai's winter and go home to Australia for Christmas!!  Summer time for six weeks!!

Week 43 - 10pm, Jinqiao

Who knew? Every evening, and I checked this with the stall holder, these guys (there's 3 more just like this one all in a row) come here with this delicious assortment of meats and vegetables (although I have to say I would pass on a dish that looked very much like slug) set up and cook over a super hot wok, check out the flames... and then serve to passers by, even this smart looking girl!  There are some very portable tables and chairs set up behind them on the footpath.

This stand is right on the corner... you can see the two zebra crossings which meet behind the end of the stall.

For the locals, it's Biyun and Baihua Lu Corner, near Head to Toe!

Week 42 - Christmas Pageant Rehearsal, Jinqiao

I was a Year 2 supply teacher for a day, when they were doing a rehearsal for their upcoming Christmas show... This was my class performing their section... you can see the other classes sitting at the back of the stage. They sang so sweetly, but it seemed that Christmas was still so far off...

This is another experiment with the iPhone app Instamatic... love the flare around the lights, and the white faces!

Week 41 - Super excited, Jinqiao

This is the so excited, can't hide it face, exploding with happiness!  Jie Jie had just been asked to be a flower girl at my sister's upcoming wedding next April.

Incidentally, the photo was taken using my iPhone, and enhanced using the Instamatic app, putting the border around the edge, and the light contrasts. I'm just learning how to use Instamatic... it's a bit fun!

Week 40 - Yu Yuan Gardens

My cousin and her husband came to Shanghai for a weekend, and so we decided to venture to the tourist destination - Yu Yuan Gardens... not usually a sensible choice on weekends because of the crowds, but we had a lovely time.  This man, caught my attention making his own broom, I love the bundles of sticks, and how he is attaching them together with wire. This was in a tiny corner of the serene gardens, and just not quite the usual picture.  We went on to have a delicious lunch, and leave them to further explore the French Concession.

Week 39 - UN Day, Jinqiao

Having visited the Migrant School last week, where my eyes were opened to how many children you really can fit in a classroom, it was quite a shock to compare that to the bright colours, resources and space in my daughter's classroom.  On UN Day, the children came dressed in their national costumes... 15 kids, 10 distinct countries... pretty amazing - huh???

Week 38 - Migrant School, Gaohua

My gorgeous friend, Audrey, teaches English once a week at this migrant school, not really very far from where we live. By 'migrant' it means children who come from another province but at school in Shanghai for a variety of reasons, such as their parents have jobs in Shanghai. Chinese education is provided for the children in their home province, and as relocating permanently around China is not easy, so when many of these children reach high school age they will be sent back to the home province to attend high school, and will then most likely live with extended family. Migrant Schools like this one cater for a large number of children in not really very much space. There were THIRTY SIX children, ranging from 5 to 8 years old, in this SMALL classroom, with a blackboard and seemingly few resources, yet were amazingly enthusiastic, keen to participate and super well behaved! Thanks for taking me Audrey, I hope to come again and help out next time!!!

Week 37 - UN Teddy Bears, Jinqiao

Didi,2, was given homework to complete over the school holidays... the task was to dress a teddy bear in clothes from your home country. Academically this tied in with UN Week for the whole school and the Toddler Teddy Bear Picnic.  This is the display for his class - including representation of Canada, China, India, USA, Hong Kong and of course Australia!

Week 36 - Mr&Mrs Bund, The Bund

Last Saturday we went to a flash French restaurant right on the Bund with two other couples.  Each couple was celebrating a birthday. It was mine on the 10th.

For my entree I had a single tiger prawn, which was HUGE.  It was steamed in this glass jar with orange, vanilla and lemongrass, and smelled so sweet when they opened it up. The waiters served it, by taking the prawn out and putting it on a plate with a small dipping bowl of soy sauce.  Part of the enjoyment of this entree was the performance of serving it too.

You can just in the background see the prawn cocktail enjoyed by one of the birthday boys, which was so pretty too.

Mr&Mrs Bund was a flash restaurant, that I'd like to go back to, but will have to save up for another special occasion!

Week 35 - Playdate, Jinqiao

Jie Jie has been begging me for a playdate since school began for the new school year, and the friend of choice was a little girl new to DUCKS this year.  Jie Jie had planned the whole afternoon, including making brownies the day before.

1. I was to collect them both from school, and they would ride home in the buggy.  They chatted and giggled the whole way home.
2. When we got home, she would show her friend her room, and maybe also Didi's room.
3. We were to take afternoon tea down to have as a picnic in the summer house overlooking our lake.
4. Then a play in our playground.

All went exactly according to plan, except someone was in our summer house, so we had it in another one, and from there, they enjoyed collecting rocks and flinging them into the lake to see who could make the biggest splash!!

When can I have another friend over, Mum?

Week 34 - Water Town, Zhujiajiao

This week, I have been playing Shanghai tour guide to Milly (front left), an old school friend from Melbourne, and we went on a day trip out to Zhujiajiao on the Shanghai outskirts, with my friend Helen (back right), and Laura (back left) who is a three week newbie expat.

We enjoyed exploring the Water Town, climbing over a few of the 36 bridges, roaming through a garden complete with a little farmyard, temples,  summer houses and water features, admiring the trinkets and dongxi stores, looking at the various gourmet (or otherwise) snacks and having lunch in a tiny restaurant overlooking the river, and going on a canal cruise.  The driver of the boat kindly took this photo, with the most famous Zhujiajiao bridge in the distance.

Week 33 - Sound the Octoalert, Jinqiao

My kids are so technologically competent, it's scary.  Didi, our little one, can scroll through the list of shows downloaded on BBC iPlayer, look at each picture and find the one he wants.  Today, it was Octonauts... specifically with the Electric Sting Ray.  And Jie Jie, our big one, was happy to watch with him, but decided she needed a photo of Captain Barnacles, so using my camera took a photo of the laptop.  I love that you can see their reflection in the screen, and Didi's little hands folded in front of the computer.

Week 32 - Marriage Market, People's Park

Yes, Marriage Market - these people are parents trying to find partners, and more specifically spouses, for their children.  Every weekend Mums and Dads come to People's Park, in the centre of Shanghai, with advertisements about their kids, eg date of birth, height, education, job prospects, housing status, GSOH, etc, and arrange meetings and dates for their kids.  They usually have a photo at hand to show prospective in laws.

Week 31 - Farewelling Friends, The Bund

After three years in Shanghai, we have seen people come and go.  We had been in Shanghai for less than a month, when I had a chance meeting in an Irish Pub with Betty, sitting two along from me.  And if the truth be known, it was really Jie Jie's interest in playing with Betty's two boys, the younger of which is 6 weeks younger than Jie Jie... so an instant playmate.  Betty invited us to a playgroup the following week, and made it easy for me by offering to drive us there, and really that was the start of my Shanghai social life.  We subsequently both had another baby, so our Didi and her Mei Mei, now out of the baby stages are also good friends.  Tonight was a wonderful evening, again at Lost Heaven, for cocktails and dinner and sending Betty, Darren and the kids (except the kids weren't there) off to a new life in Minnesota.

Good luck guys, thank you for everything, and we will see you again, before the kids are off at college!!  Shanghai won't be the same without you!!

Week 30 - Sunset over Pudong, Jinqiao

This was such a lovely night, the clouds were high, and the smog was low, so we ended up with quite a nice sunset.  You can just see in the distance the hole in the top of the Shanghai World Financial Centre.  The end of summer is bringing some lovely weather now... gone are the humidity and high hot temperatures.  Lovely autumn is starting.

Week 29 - Our Pool, Jinqiao

Jie Jie is a really good swimmer now after many, many swimming lessons.  I decided it was finally time for Didi to start.  Because their Mandarin is now so good, I opted to get them to have swimming lessons in Chinese.  It is so convenient, because it is in our pool, in our compound, less than 200m from our front door.  And it is about half the price of having an expat English speaking teacher.  Didi is already making progress!!

Week 28 - Last day, Islington, London

Summer always seems to make the kids grow.  Compare this photo to Week 22 - we have NO PRAM!!!!  Big achievement of this holiday was to (largely) ditch the pram, and make the kids walk.  We are back to making sure we have a baby carrier with us for long distances for Didi, but on the whole we are pram free.  We had an interesting experience in the British Museum where both kids fell asleep and we sat on a bench for about 40 mins!  And another when we arrived at a restaurant for lunch, and Didi was out - the kind maitre d' gave us a booth to enable him to lay down.  When he woke up, he made short work of Jie Jie's leftover lunch.

If you look carefully behind the family you can see 2 bobbies, with very big sticks.  This was the day after the riots in London.  We didn't get a free TV.  We did have a fantastic holiday in the UK, and especially enjoyed catching up with all our friends and family.

Week 27 - The Knap, Barry, Wales

Look at that sky!  What a day for the beach... oh, this is the beach... where is the sand? No sand, smooth pebbles varying in size from a small perfume bottle, up to small boulders about a metre across, but most were about the size of a fist.  Difficult to walk on wearing thongs (jandals, flip flops, etc), and down a steep descent.  No place to build a sandcastle.  Where is the water?  It is an estuarine beach, part of the Severn, and right now it is low low tide.

In it's heyday, the Knap was a vibrant summer destination with a large seawater pool, a boating lake, a fancy ballroom and one of Wales' oldest sports clubs.  Now it is a calm and relaxing place to visit, but the town does not sell fish and chips.

Week 26 - Rowing Boats, Stratford-upon-Avon

Just pootling around in boats.  I love the idea, and it seems so positively English.  These ones were moored near the centre of town in Stratford, and we enjoyed playing near the lock (how boats move through canals), watching the swans and eating ice cream.  The day was stunning, and the town so picturesque!

NB: This blog has not been neglected, but due to some digital image storing issues, I have not been able to access my photos for upload here for about a month.  As such, I am on rapid catch up to get back up to date.  I can't even ramble now about being half way through the year!!

Week 25 - Eiffel Tower, Paris

Four days in Paris, how lucky can one family be?  Yes, we went right to the top, after 2 hours of queuing, and enjoyed a glass of champagne while admiring the view!  It really was stunning, and I am so glad I can say we have been up the top of the Eiffel Tower!

Week 24 - Brecon Railway, Wales

Look at that blue sky.  We're in Wales, and the weather is divine!!  We went on this scenic steam train railway, from Pant Station, Brecon up past a reservoir to the end of the line, and back again.  Got out for a walk around the edge of the reservoir, picking wild raspberries and enjoying an ice cream as we went.  Lovely day, and the kids enjoyed the steam train too!

Week 23 - Cycle Hire, London

Check this out Melbourne and Sydney... London now has the most organised cycle hire system where you can pick a bike up from a huge number of locations around London, and depending on how long you ride for you are charged accordingly.  If it is less than 30 mins, it is FREE (apart from your annual membership charge).

They are solid, uniform bikes which you pick up from a docking station just like this one in Knightsbridge, and ride away.  We were on foot, and it impressed me how many spaces there were. I think I saw serial numbers on the bikes up to about 18000, so assuming they started at 000001, that's a lot of bikes.  The docking stations hold between 20-30 bikes, and at the pay terminal it tells you how many spaces are available for docking your bike at nearby stations.  I believe if you are a member you can select to see specific destinations too.

The little grey bit on the handle bars is a perch for your stuff, and there is an occy strap attached to secure it. The seats and handle bars are adjustable and easy to set, and remember your settings. I was impressed at how many people we saw riding around, including people in suits!!  The ease of pick up and drop off fascinated me too.

Go Green, City of London!  Well done!!

Week 22 - We're in London, Islington

That's right folks, we're in London... the UK, for 6 weeks of summer.  This was our first day, and glorious sunshine helped us settle in!

We were staying in London with my Mei Mei and her fiance, for 4 days to recover from the jetlag from Shanghai.

Here we are on the high street in Islington.

Week 21 - Jinmao Tower, Lujiazui

The Jinmao Tower is a landmark building on the Pudong skyline, and is home to the Grand Hyatt Hotel and a number of commercial offices.  It was built in the 1990s and was the tallest building in Shanghai for an impressive 9 years.

On the 88th floor is a cocktail lounge called Cloud 9. We have been meaning to go there for approximately 3 years, ok 2 and a half years, as we weren't going to go there when I was pregnant when we arrived!

Last Saturday, we finally arranged to meet a friend there for a drink, with plans for dinner out afterwards. Unfortunately, there was no view on this night as we actually were in the clouds in Cloud 9.

When we came out afterwards the wind was whipping and the rain was light, but the building looked spectacular disappearing into the clouds!

Week 20 - Road Gang, Luoshan Lu

I saw these people in orange jumpsuits for what seemed like ages as we were driving towards them in the school bus heading home. I loved how bright they were and how clearly they stood out, and also how many there were, industriously working.

I also saw the cones indicating the lane was closed, but for some reason our bus driver decided to stay in that lane until the last possible moment, therefore contributing to Shanghai's crazy traffic.

Week 19 - Mad Mini, Jinqiao

I spotted this car after school one afternoon last week parked in our compound.  

Now being a fan of "The Italian Job" and having looked after my Dad's 1960-something Mini motor for a long time in Sydney (another story), I feel I am a bit of a Mini connoisseur. Initially, I was attracted by the little Union Jack buttons on the grille and the shiny red body with crisp white stripes.

But I fell in love with the eyelashes... 

and thought I had to bring Jie Jie down to have a look.  But she was asleep when I got home. So I was glad I'd snapped this with my iPhone on the way past!

Week 18 - Dinner and Drinks, The Bund

We went out for a grown up dinner last Friday with some friends to Lost Heaven on the Bund, specialising in Yunnan cuisine, and also one of my favourite restaurants in Shanghai.  We started with a cocktail on the rooftop garden, super elegant and beautiful, then moved downstairs for dinner - a delicious selection of dishes. Then afterwards, decided it would be a great idea to have a look at the new Waldorf Astoria Shanghai on the Bund - so had another cocktail, in the Long Bar. The Waldorf Astoria was originally built in 1911, and along with the Peace Hotel (on the corner of Nanjing Road) has been painstakingly restored to its former glory - and this is in the foyer - stunning and beautiful, oh and my friends were too!

Week 17 - Ballet Recital, Jinqiao

Since the beginning of the Year of the Rabbit, Jie Jie has been having ballet lessons once a week with some of the girls from her class at school.  She has enjoyed going, but really to play in the cool indoor playground with her friends before the lesson, and has often said that 'ballet hurts' or 'it's too hard', but we perservered, and the half year of lessons culminated in a recital today, ranging from 3 year olds to 17 year olds en pointe! Jie Jie and her group did a very cute little chain dance, where they all ran around on tiptoe with their hands on the shoulders of the girl in front. She loved this tutu, and she loved getting dressed each week, but the strictness of the dance class, not so much!

Week 16 - Reverse Planking, Lujiazui

Being aware of the recent 'planking' phenomenon currently sweeping the world, and causing the untimely death of a few silly 'plankers' (or should they be called 'plonkers'?), it kind of made us laugh today when Didi lay down on the welcome mat (filthy, I know, but quite safe) of a restaurant in the Shanghai World Financial Centre.  I was actually too slow to snap him lying face down, but thought maybe he could start a new craze of lying down on your back.

Week 15 - Bike Riding in Pyjamas, Maoming Lu

This is one of those moments when you have to look twice.  At first glance, everything looks normal, then suddenly you realise that the grown man you are looking at is wearing his pyjamas... At about 2pm. Riding a bike. On a main street in Shanghai. While eating a baozi (pork bun). When everyone else is properly dressed - look at the nice leather shoes on the other cyclist!

Admittedly, when we first arrived here almost three years ago we were surprised to see adults roaming in PJs at all times of the day, and we have since learned that it is a way to show your wealth - rich enough to buy clothes just to sleep in!  It's way less common now... maybe more people can afford PJs.

Week 14 - Digger visits School, Jinqiao

It was a very exciting day, tying in with Jie Jie's Nursery class theme at the moment of transport, a Digger came from a nearby construction site for the children to explore, they climbed all over it, they crawled under it, they stood under the shovel and they watched it move.

Some of the cute comments:

"It was so noisy"

"When it reached up it looked just like a dinosaur"

"The digger lives at an extruction site"

Week 13 - Royal Wedding, Jinqiao

To celebrate the wedding of HRH Prince William to Miss Catherine Middleton, Jie Jie's school here in Shanghai had a "street party" in the playground, and encouraged the children to dress up as Princes and Princesses for the day.  Jie Jie loves to wear her princess attire, so the build up was immense, and when the morning was here, she woke up, stretched out in bed and said "It's Prince and Princess Day today, I can wear my Princess Dress to school".

The class mums did an excellent job coordinating party food, setting up the tables and filling goody bags for the kids.  Jie Jie was so excited about it, she kept talking about the party all weekend - what fun and what a memory of the Royal Wedding!!!

Week 12 - Happy Easter, Jinqiao

Every Easter our friends host an Easter Egg Hunt and Pot-Luck Brunch at their house in Shanghai.  Each year the kids seem to get bigger and more capable at finding the hidden treasure.  It is fun to look back at all the photos and see how the kids have changed.  It is fun each year to catch up with all the mums and dads too and chat and share Easter cheer.

This year was happy Easter celebrations, but sad as well, because we knew it was the last one... our dear friends the Hollisters have moved back to the US, and so this Easter Party doubled as their final farewell!  Good luck guys settling in back 'home'... we can't wait to come and see you in San Francisco!!

Week 11 - Spy Camera, The Bund

It's no secret that my parents have been holidaying in China - as we all went to Xi'an together... but on this night we'd arranged to have Ayi look after Jie Jie and Didi for the evening, and after work Mike and I were meeting Mum and Dad for dinner at Lost Heaven.  It was only ever going to be an early night, being a school night and all, but we were meeting them at the restaurant, and our travel time was much quicker than anticipated and so we decided to have a sneaky cocktail at the Glamour Bar, and watch the world stroll by on the Bund Promenade.  We didn't expect to see Mum and Dad though, so through our fully zoomed out lens, managed to snap a couple of photos of them walking along.  Can you spot them in the above photo??

Week 10 - Bell Tower, Xi'an

On our second full day in Xi'an we did all the other 'tourist' things... visited the Bell and Drum Towers, went for a tour around the old city wall on a golf buggy, explored the Muslim Quarter and tasted lots of delicious street food.

This is taken at the Bell Tower, and guess what, this is the big bell!  These warriors come and ring the bell each hour until midday.  Then in the afternoon, a drum is banged (?) each hour until sunset.

Xi'an is a nice place to visit, but really it's the Terracotta Warrior Army that is the big attraction!

Week 9 - Terracotta Warriors, Xi'an

Mum and Dad are visiting, and after seeing a travelling exhibition of the Terracotta Warriors in Sydney last year, they have been desperate to see the real thing next time they came to see us in China!!  And of course the Warriors have been on our must-do Chinese checklist, so we were happy to accompany them.  This photo is the first view of Pit 1 - there are four known pits full of this lifesize Terracotta Army, and so far only three are open for inspection.  Pit 1 is about 280m long and 65m wide and is still being excavated.  There are supposedly more than 8000 individual warriors, and also horses and chariots.  As you can see lining the edge of the pit other visitors were there too, so we weren't the only tourists!!

Week 8 - Mingyue Road, Jinqiao

Mike didn't want me to take this photo... and the first one I took was right behind the pole... but I had realised before we went out today that I had no photos for this week's entry, and so just before this happened I had taken a rather ordinary photo of the sun starting to set.

This is outside our compound, you know, where we live.  That blue truck parked up just ahead is our fruit man.  While I was buying some bananas and apples today, we were suddenly surrounded by the police with lights flashing and a couple of short whoops of their siren, the policemen just kept piling out of the cars.  We weren't quite sure what happened, we know that it's technically 'illegal' in China to sell things on the side of the road like this, but it's so commonplace that it's hard to avoid, and really, the fruit is fresher (and cheaper) than that in the supermarket.  What I found interesting was that the policemen let us finish our transaction, before cracking down on our fruit man, who started packing up as soon as I paid him.

I wonder if he'll have some enforced 'holiday' for a while - periodically he does disappear, but eventually he comes back.  Our DVD man once told me that he'd been jailed for a while, but I put that down to the counterfeit DVDs he sells, not the side of the street peddling.  And you can't really have fake apples - can you?

Week 7 - Car to car sales, near Kangqiao

Every morning I catch a taxi to go to work (I am currently teaching Year 6 until the end of the school year at an International School), and every morning I see this lady, and one other, trying to sell the stuff she is carrying to the drivers stopped at the interchange to turn onto the Hunan Highway.

I often wonder how much trade she actually does, I understand impulse buys for the back supports, the phone chargers, the steering wheel covers and even the nodding cactus decorations for dashboards.   But who buys those enormous maps for use in a car?  If I was in the market for a wall map, I am sure I wouldn't buy it when stopped at traffic lights!

What would the impact on her health be, walking through the idling cars all day?  I hope the sales they make are worth it!!

Once, my taxi driver bought a phone charger, and I enjoyed witnessing the transaction, yes he bargained her down to 5 kuai!

Week 6 - Night night, Jinqiao

Wednesdays are long days for our kids. Jie Jie goes off to school in the morning as usual, and then is picked up by a friend's mum and taken to ballet, and then dropped home around 5.15.  It is long for Didi, too, as he has no activities of his own and is home alone all day.  When Jie Jie gets home Didi is SOOOO excited that he won't leave her side, and Jie Jie is exhausted that she just wants peace.

This Wednesday night I went out after dinner leaving Mike to put the whippersnappers to bed himself, and success, read sleep, was achieved, but not in separate beds.  It was so cute when I got home to see them sleeping together, it was almost sad to move Didi back to his own room.

Week 5 - Ginger for sale, Jinqiao

Have you ever seen such beautiful ginger?  Blemish and wrinkle free.  This was for sale at a street market just around the corner from our home with loads of other fresh, and equally beautiful vegetables.  I just love that it's all in tatty old bags, on the footpath, straight from the farm.

Week 4 - FTC Robotics, SAS Pudong, San Jia Gang

Guest blogger....

On Saturday we took our robot on its first outing to play on the competition field at SAS Pudong.
My School has entered the First Technology Challenge competition which is getting off the ground in China this year. There are about 8 teams in the Shanghai area and this is the first time a few of the teams got together to share ideas and pizza.
Competition is at the end of April.... so we have a lot to do..

Mike

Week 3 - Lantern Day, Jinqiao

This was our personal fireworks display looking out our dining room window on the 21st floor.  Lantern Day is the 15th and last day of the Chinese New Year festival, and traditionally children carried paper lanterns with puzzles to solve on the side, but now is yet another excuse for huge fireworks to celebrate.   Lantern Day in the Year of the Ox was the night that Didi was born.

Week 2 - Spent fireworks, Jinqiao

We arrived back in Shanghai on the fourth day of the new year of the Rabbit, and on this night the Chinese set off fireworks to welcome the Fortune God.  I find this an incredible oxymoron, because fireworks are not given away cheaply, and effectively in order to welcome the Fortune Gods for the new year, they burn their existing money.  These are the remnants of a firework display that would have probably gone for about 8 mins with a series of loud bangs, pretty fireworks and some fire balls.

Week 1 - Surfers Paradise

At midnight on the eve of the Year of the Rabbit, a bit more than a thousand kilometres north of our holiday spot in Surfers Paradise, Cyclone Yasi hit the Queensland coast with ferocity.  The following morning we woke to clear blue skies and the news of the devastation of many towns, the only sign for us was the rough seas and coastal warnings at the beach.  Surfers Paradise continues to grow and skyscrapers along the coast are in abundance.  It will be interesting to compare this photo of Soul and the Hilton in a year, and see what is next in line for development.  It is also a question about whether these buildings would be able to withstand the impact of a cyclone themselves.

I wish you all the best for a Happy New Chinese Year - The year of the rabbit.  Zhu ni xinnian kuaile!!