september heatwave ~

There are these machines (think giant zambonies) that have the spinny brushes to sweep the curbs and ditches in the roads. Everyday for the past few days i've seen one pass me by. Every time it is blasting a Christmas carol or Happy Birthday. Why?

I've also seen the same kind of machines that squirt water onto the curbs. I'm totally baffled as to why a city would need to water concrete. To me, it just looks like a complete waste of water.

Matt's parents arrive in two days exactly, how very exciting to be able to show them around Urumqi, to be their host in our city. They were such good hosts to me in Jersey, i can only hope to be as accommodating.

Last week i got together with Dave to make cheesecake, one with an Oreo crust too! His second cousin was visiting from the States and came bearing cream cheese - a very very hard find in this city. As a final farewell to him and Tiffany, we gorged on yummy, sweet, calorie-infused cheesecake. They are hitching their way with a local Uyghur friend, to Tibet. How envious i was to hear of their plans; visions of vast plains with snow-capped mountains in the background and yak meat and colourful prayer flags danced in my head. I wish them well and wish them safe.

This past weekend, Matt and I went away to do some camping and hiking about two hours south of Urumqi, a bit past MiaoErGou. It never ceases to amaze me how our jeep is one of the most sturdiest vehicles i've ever been in. So adaptable to every road condition, a simple car that bounces around. Sometimes it does feel like we're on a giant pogo stick. We made a quickee stop to the monument where claims to be the centre of the Asian continent. Not convinced it is definitely the centre of Asia (thers's a 'centre' in Russia too apparently), but nonetheless, we stood at the gate and could see the statue. We refused to pay the 4 RMB fee in order to get in. We drove through deep valleys, winding mountain sides, forested tracks, dry river beds, until we literally could not drive anymore, to go any further would require a chainsaw to chop down trees. We then hiked up a steep mountain, aiming to go above the tree line where we hoped to find a small level clearing to set up our tent.

The climb was, no exaggeration, a 45 degree angle climb, straight up, for about 3 hours. An excellent workout for the flabby thighs indeed! We gathered some firewood and pitched our first "home" we ever bought together: a sturdy 2-man MEC tent. Shortly afterwards it began to rain so for the rest of the night we stayed inside, eating instant curry and rice and nan and hummus. Following a peaceful sleep wrapped like mummies in our sleeping bags, fleeces, gloves and hats, we woke up to a stunning view of the mountains and valleys that seemed to stretch on forever. It was truly the perfect spot. We had breakfast, made a fire with the wood we gathered which was already dry by morning, read and bathed in the sunshine. The hike back down was faster but for me and my stubby legs, more strain on the muscles. It was a great getaway, to be among the quiet and peace of the forest and to feel small and yet very powerful on top of that mountain.

Back home now. Lots of little things to do in preparation for the wedding (Sept.24-25) and move to HK (Sept.30) and honeymoon (Oct.3-29). The piano will be returned next Monday, the car has been sold, we've booked our plane tickets, the wedding site has been reserved, the catering taken care of.

To do: book hotel rooms in Guangzhou and Sydney (2 night stopovers we'll be making), buy travel insurance, figure out how to get RMB out of China, buy a few more domestic flights for family coming, book and pay deposit for their tour, go through 'stuff' and throw/give away what i don't need.

Our bathtub is becoming a big nuisance also. It doesn't drain fast enough and water spurts out from the floor drain which then floods the floor, causing it to be an extremely likely place to slip and break something. One guy came to look at it yesterday and said in order to properly fix it, the entire bathtub will have to be removed. He said he would be back in the afternoon with a guy who could help take it out, being as he was only a plumber. They never showed up, not surprisingly. Frustrating as we have only 3 weeks left in this place. We've temporarily 'fixed' it by sealing the floor drain with blue-tack, thereby preventing water from coming up and out. Ai-ya, it's the Chinese quick fix-it method, where you just do what is necessary to stop the immediate problem, not really considering the fact that it will probably end up doing more damage in the end, costing more, and causing more headache.

Ah, well. Life is humming by, as it should, and i'm enjoying the ride.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY DAD!