Let The Blogging Begin….

Made it home safe and sound today and couldn’t wait to get some pics up…..was out of touch with the internet world for some time due to the fact that the friend I was staying with moved… Let’s see, what was I been up to… Jill and I had quite the routine established… we did the morning thing of breakfast, Lennox would have her nap and we would hang out, maybe play some cards or do one of jill’s craft projects, which always freaked me out but seemed to turn out fine… then we would head out for a coffee and a walk… we hit up the same coffee place everyday - Bagels and Beans - it has delicious coffee and muffins… we were such loyal customers that one day they gave us drinks on the house… nice touch.

The afternoon usually entails browsing in stores while Lennox falls asleep and then another walk.  Ensued by dinner, bathtime, bedtime for Lennox… then our dinner and a movie.  It is simple, yet satisfying.  

Jill and I took a little day trip down to Amsterdam last weekend.  It is a great city - easy to walk everywhere you need to go, or just take a tram… and beautiful.  We walked through the red light district… quite the sites… I felt like I was in a movie, it didn’t really feel real… until Jill and I saw a guy actually walk into one of the rooms… haha…  Speaking of men…that is all you see there… just large groups of men everywhere… there are even this toilet things set up for them all along the canals… that just mad me thing of where all of that is going… yuck.  This picture is a bit blurry, but you can still see them.

It was a gorgeous day and I managed to take quite a few pics… here is just a little taste of them: (click on them to see full size)

Although I didn’t venture outside the confines of this country, I am quite content with that. I know I will back over to Europe at some point in my life and I will take in the sites, sounds and tastes of other places then…. this trip was all about the people and keeping it simple - and I did just that.

Here are a few pics of the houses/buildings in the area I am staying.  The first few are from a little trip we took to Delft, about 15 min. drive away from where Jill lives… It is a very quaint little place, reminds me of Nelson in some ways.  The last couple are from Jill’s city (Den Haag).  I love how all of the buildings each have their own unique style.  All the different doors, windows, details… it is just fun to walk around and look at them.  Am going to helping Jill and Marius move to a new place this weekend and then I am going to pick up a last minute deal down to the Canary Islands for some beach and sun… then back here for one more week before I head back to Dalian.  I am having a very, very relaxing holiday… it is all in the simple things: delicious coffee, brisk walks, yummy food, a good friend. 

straight with no sleep…

 3 flights…

2 trains…

…but it was all worth it…only on day two but loving it here…Jill lives in a neighbourhood that is  very aesthetically pleasing to the eye…will take some pics soon, right now just enjoying walking around with the crispness in the air and taking in all the individual styles of every single building.

a side note……if you are going to be on a layover, the place to do it is at the new terminal in London’s Heathrow airport.  It is an amazing airport…such a good energy to it, calming, and comfortable.  They only do final calls so that there is not the incessant announcements over the intercom and there are so many places to lounge and areas for kids to play…   

Got a hair cut today…feels so much better…I will not get my hair cut in China…they don’t cut hair…they massacre it…so that feels good.  

In the process of planning a few day trips…not set plans, I like it that way on vacation.

One big perk of this job is that we basically get two “summer” vacations…and for the past three years I have used these five weeks off to head south for the winter and hit up the sunshine and beaches of Thailand, Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. However this year, as I have mentioned in a previous post, I am going to head north to Holland (Netherlands) for a continued winter. I have been a bit jealous at moments listening to all of my colleagues and friends discussing their plans to meet up in warmer climates….but then I remember that I get to go to the land of delicious cheese, perfect coffee, and of course, my best friend.

Doesn’t get much better than that.

Since I will have a home base I will continue with regular updates of my travels…so keep checking in :)

Looking forward to a much needed break from the day to day of China…

Relaxation and rejuvenation here I come.

We were very lucky this school year to have two four day weekends in a row…being here you forget how necessary long weekends are in order to rejuvenate your body, mind and spirit. This weekend was the scene of the annual Ice Festival. Many came out to participate and/or spectate on this beautiful, crisp, sunny Dalian winter day. Some of the festivities included speed skating, “barrel” (water bottle) jumping, and off course a good ole hockey game. Due to my knee situation I did not don the skates…but I did take quite a few pictures…which you will see a few of below. If you would like to see more there will plenty to view my facebook…or…go to this website.. http://picasaweb.google.com/kristinjenna/IceFestival#

The pond…

Wanru and Lily

Oh to be small again…

A rare “good” picture from Holly ;)

Ready…Set…Go!!

Blake in mid-air…

A pic of the fishing area down at the beach near my school…you can actually see the gymnasium part of my school on the left hand side of the horizon…

Here are a few pics of where I live…these pics are from the early fall when I took my camera out for a walk one day…

mmm…pineapple on a stick…

on a walk from my place to the downtown area…

businesses put these out as a way to advertise sales, or grand openings…I see them as an annoyance…

Only a 20 min. drive from my house lies what is known to us locals as Black Mountain. Now I say mountain but I mean big hill more or less…for where I am from this would not be a mountain…you could not climb up and over and across a mountain in 2 hours…which is what I did a couple weekends ago.

This was my first time on Black Mountain…many a friends have conquered this mere mole hill on more than one occasion, but my knee injury caused me to have to wait until now.

It was possibly one of the most beautiful days to go…the sky was blue and clear, the sun was shinning and there was a fall crispness in the air. Being on that mountain made me feel like I was hiking back home….or at least it did for about 10 minutes and then I turned the corner and saw my industrialized city below.

Anyway…here are some pictures of that day…

Heading up to the first temple…

Along the ridge…

It was a beautiful day…

There is a reason for all of these red ribbons on the trees…I just don’t know what it is…