July Weather

We made it home to experience the "soggiest month on record". It's official. The Citizen said so.

In China, we're often asked to describe Canadians. We tell the students that we Canadians like to talk about the weather. Now we find ourselves checking the Weather Network daily and we have many conversations about what the weather is like at the moment and what the weather will be like later today and then we finish with what the weather will be like tomorrow. Sure, it's been very wet here but that just makes the sunny days extra special!

Enjoying Ottawa's "Summer". J&D

Hanging Out in Ottawa

We are sitting here at the Starbucks in the neighbourhood. It's great here. We've just learned that we get 2 hours of free Internet every day. We're enjoying coffee and free samples right now. I've just discovered how much I love the chocolate and caramel covered pretzels. Yummy! Keep those samples coming.

We finally accomplished something on our to do list today. We had been taking it easy and sleeping a lot. Today, we took the bus downtown to renew our passports. The bus took a very scenic route downtown and we both realized how much we took the natural beauty of Ottawa for granted. We went along the river and everything is just so green. It seems that you appreciate things more only when you haven't seen it for awhile. Don and I have only seen Ottawa in the winter these past couple of years so it's really really nice to see it in the summer... even with the cooler temps and rain. Hope we get to see some warmer temps soon.

Summer in Ottawa

After a weight gaining last few weeks in Jinan, we've said our goodbyes to our friends and students. We are now back in Ottawa for the summer.

After packing up a few belongs and shipping them ahead to Shantou, our new home in China, we made the long journey home. Our plans were to enjoy the summer in Ottawa before returning to teach for another year in the south of China, in the province of Guangdong. Sadly, the summer weather hasn't quite made it to Ottawa yet. After the 39 C and 40 C we were used to in Jinan, the low 20 C we're experiencing here might as well be winter. Brrrr! Hopefully summer will find us soon.

Still trying to get beyond the jet lag so will update more soon. I am happy to say that I didn't need a 2 hour nap today, for a change :) J xo

Don's New Pics

Here's what Don has been up to lately:

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2026167&id=1013962974&l=cd3778f035

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2026166&id=1013962974&l=e86da9d763

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2024564&id=1013962974&l=cc42c7dee7

39°C

Every time we turned on the tap last night and still had water, I thanked the water Gods :) We still have water thanks to the government deciding that they would postpone the water cut off because of the extreme temperatures that we are enjoying. It is currently 39°C and the forecast for the next couple of days is 37°C and 35°C. The low tonight is going to be a cool 29°C :)

I'm sitting inside enjoying the a/c with the curtains drawn to keep out the hot sun. This will be our routine until we leave for Ottawa, hiding indoors until the sun goes down. Then we'll venture outside for provisions.

Did I mention we're heading home for most of the summer? We're looking forward to being home when it's not snowing and freezing cold. Warm up the bbq's everyone and let the drinking on the patios begin, here we come!

J & D xo

Agua Agua Everywhere

No, we didn't have a flood. I've just been filling up all of our containers with water. Why? Because starting from 9 p.m. tonight until the same time two days from now, we will have no water! Sam just informed us this morning and we've been trying to figure out how to maximize our water storage. Thanks to Yoshi's idea, we've even filled up the washing machine.

It's a little distressing, the thought of having no running water for 2 whole days, but it's a good reminder about how important water is. It really is a luxury to be able to drink the water from the tap. Ever since Mexico, I've had a bit of a problem with hoarding drinking water, must have lived in the desert in a previous life :) Because of this, we always have at least one full container (20 L) of drinking water in the house. Enough to last 2 days. Thankfully, we had an empty container so we've filled that with water too. We'll have enough for our washing and washroom needs, I hope. As for eating, we've basically given up on cooking these days so as long as there is still water in the nearby restaurants, we're good. Let the adventure begin!

7:15 pm Update
We went out to get our dinner and saw the rush to buy buckets on the street. The one guy who was selling washing tubs and buckets all semester is a happy camper right now. The run on them must have been profitable for him as the students rushed to buy containers to hold the water.

Ran into some of the students. One of the girls told us how she and her roommates had lugged water up the stairs of their dorm this afternoon. Many were buying big bottles of drinking water from the little store on campus. I feel sorry for the students. Many of them have 6 to 8 per room and while they have a washroom (with no shower facilities - but that's another story) in the room, they try not to use it to keep the odor down. They go to the shared washroom out in the hallway. I DO NOT want to be in that area in the next couple of days if the washrooms in the teaching buildings are any indication. Here is a case for never having smell-o-vision :(

OK, to change the topic. We got our dinner from the cafeteria tonight but will probably go elsewhere tomorrow night since they won't have water either. Not sure how sanitary things are now and will definitely have to wonder when there is no tap water.

I'm still filling up containers. Just filled 2 small water bottles that we just emptied from dinner. Is there a name for this psychological illness?? :)

Sunday Morning

Outside our window, there is a hive of activity. It must be cleaning day. Many of the neighbours across the way are hanging out their windows cleaning the outside of the glass. Don is sitting by the window describing the various precarious positions to me. One guy has climbed up a ladder on the outside of the building and is scraping through the caked on cooking residue from the vent. He's using the wires for support as he climbs. Some of the other neighbours are just standing around chatting. Maybe they're discussing the possibility of cleaning their own windows.

We also hear a stir-fry sizzling sound from a lady who is making breakfast. Yum. I'm getting hungry. The beauty of living here is that I'm going to put 4 yuan (70 cents Cdn) in my pocket, grab my keys and be back in 10 minutes with breakfast. We are constantly amazed at how we can leave the house with only $1!

Now, the exercise music has started up. EVERY morning, a group of senior citizens gather in the courtyard at the side of our building to do exercises. They play a recording that must have been made during the revolution. The voice of a lady is telling them what to do, I guess. They rub their knees, their face, their earlobes, nothing too strenuous but good for their health, I guess. The seniors here seem quite healthy. They are walking everywhere or also ride their bikes. They socialize all the time, sitting on small chairs or playing board games outside. They spend a lot of time outside, sometimes just sitting and watching the world go by. Many are raising their grandchildren. Every day, we see groups of them gathered with their toddler grandchildren. When we walk by, it's hilarious. We try to get the children to say Hi to us while the grandmothers encourage them to say Hi to us too. Oh, and to call me "Yee Yee" or auntie. Don, they just stare at :)

I'm off to buy breakfast now. More soon. J