June 20

.Charity and I had a small celebration yesterday for my birthday. We went to an Italian restaurant and after, back at the apartment, she gave me a vanilla cake with dragon frosting and a beautiful dragon necklace carved from a shell. Darren gave me a nice traditional Chinese short sleeve shirt.

.Hugh is now back in Hefei. He arrived last Friday evening to finish James's classes. James left to go back home Friday morning, we had been celebrating his returning to Canada all week with a disco the weekend before leaving, and a dinner at the Brazilian bar and restaurant the night before he left. I'm glad I had a chance to meet James, I'll miss him and I hope the best for him.

.It's getting even hotter here. You know it's hot when all the women use umbrellas to shade themselves from the sun. There are even attachments on the handlebars of their bicycles to attach an open umbrella. A lot of couples travel from place to place on one bicycle, the girl rides side saddle on the back.

June 24

.This is my last week at the kindergarten. Pregraduation was Saturday, and it was a big event. The mayor of Hefei and all the heads of the education were at the ceremony, including Hefei TV and the newspapers. My school was the first bilingual kindergarten in Hefei and was having its first graduation. During the introductions of all the VIPs, the biggest reception was for Darren and I, from all the kids. The graduation class put on a big production of plays, songs and a fashion show. In between the performances Darren And I were presented with a gift from the kids. Then we had to make a speech for the media. After the diplomas were handed out, I had individual photos with all the graduating kids.

July 3

.Last week Hugh took Charity and I out to a buffet dinner at a revolving restaurant at the Holiday Inn for my birthday, Where I met a couple of fellow Canadians touring China. It was nice to catch up on things back home.
.Monday there was a big dinner for all the teachers and staff from the kindergarten for a job well done. Afterwards, some of us went to a karaoke bar and disco.

.My tour of duty is over with my last class this afternoon. This evening Charity and I leave for a long train ride for the city of Xi'an in the province of Shaanxi.
.I'll have to say my goodbyes to Darren before leaving, Darren will have left to go back home to Canada by the time I get back.

July 9

.The scenery from the train to Xi'an was magnificent. Rolling hills and farmland as far as the eye can see and the land is all sandstone for miles, with caves carved into sides of embankments. Many of the villages have small homes and some villagers built front entrances to the caves they live in.
.Thursday afternoon Charity and I arrived at the train station in Xi'an, After booking into the hotel we explored some of the city's center. Xi'an is a big and old city (old as in not modern, uninteresting) without much of a skyline and an ancient wall that surrounds the inner city. We found an alley of shops with lots of souvenir shops and a street with local food.

.Friday morning we left for a day tour, first stop was a village with a small colourful palace. Next stop, one of the 26 tombs found in the region. Most of the tombs are large mounds of earth with a park built around the base and a staircase to the top of the tomb. Most tombs are unopened or inaccessible to enter. Usually the only thing that survives from the ancient times are the huge carved stone animals that once lined the road to the tomb.
.One of the museums we stopped at had an army of 10 inch soldiers unearthed from one of the tombs similar to the terracotta soldiers but from a different dynasty.
.Last stop the army of Terracotta Warriors & Horses. Three buildings of exuviated pits with the warriors and horses and a museum with artifacts and two, four horse chariots with riders that were found. The largest building the size of a stadium with rows of hundreds of soldiers each individual to themselves. Later, after we got back from our tour we bused it out to Da Ci'en Buddhist temple on the other side of town.

.Saturday morning Charity and I left on another tour, first stop a village of ancient Chinese who lived in caves and saw some homes the way they live today in the caves.

.After, another tomb with a park, pavilions, a pond with big goldfish and a water fountain and many large stone animals worn by the weather.
.One of the tombs we visited was open to enter, a long deep descending corridor, along the side of the walls, small rooms displaying the pottery horses that were found in the tomb. The walls still had some of the painted scenery depicting life two millennia ago. At the end of the corridor a big room with a large wooden box that layed to rest the emperor. Last stop, a Buddhist temple and a tall tower, where I had a monk bang a gong as I paid my respects to Buddha.

.Sunday morning we left for Hefei by a seventeen hour train ride in 38c heat on hard seats, overcrowded, no air conditioning and where some passengers had standing tickets only and smoking is aloud. Farmers would get on one stop, try to sell fruits and cold water and get of at the next stop. I had entered HELL.

.I'm back now and Hugh's girl friend, Lisa, is up from Guangdong. They'll be leaving to travel around China for a while. In a few days and I'll have the apartment to myself.

July 18

. Since I've been back from Xi'an the temperature has soared to 34,35c, all you can do in this heat is sweat and no one goes out unless they have to. Now thousands of dragonflies are flying in the air. It looks pretty cool.
. Reality is now setting in, in less than a week I'll be leaving China. It seems just like yesterday I was arriving in Du Pong airport, Shanghai, but it feels like a hundred years ago since I've been back in Vancouver. I feel like I'm leaving so much behind in China but it'll be nice to be reunited with the little man (my cat, Tigger).