a few of my favorite things about Chinese summers

--It seems like China collectively, as in all other things, recognizes the arrival of summer. They don't pre-season-sell here (which I prefer, it was weird seeing bathing suits in Target when I was home in January), and it's just like one day, everyone started putting out their summer gear. What's more, while in the winter stores will have the same clothes selection for months, in the summer they are constantly updating the offering.

--I thought winter clothes here were fun, but I like summer even better. Skirts, dresses, shorts, t-shirts, sandals...for once, I'm on the same page as the Chinese when it comes to what we like to wear. Living in toasty Costa Rica stripped me of my shyness in terms of wearing tank tops and shorts, so I enjoy summer clothes even more now. It's fun noticing all the locals showing more skin, even the chubby men who pull up/take off their shirts when they get too hot.

--Ice cream! Coolers outside of convenience stores have become ubiquitous sights in the last month and a half, and there's always a different flavor to try. Most run around 30 cents to $1 U.S., so I've always got enough change to run across the street after dinner or pick one up wherever I am, whenever I feel like it...which is increasingly often.

--On a related note, these convenience and even grocery stores finally turn on their drink fridges in the summer. Cold drinks haven't fully caught on yet in the land of hot tea, so even the stores that have a fridge or two will only put a sampling of beverages in the fridge, so if they don't have one you want in there, you have to buy it warm. Good thing I'm not a picky drinker.

--The smells seem to drift even more easily through the air. Not all Chinese smells are nice, but in this case I'm thinking of dinner smells, which are divine.

--It's a custom to walk after meals and especially dinner, so it's nice to stroll through the park and see, literally, everyone.

--Since it's not so freezing cold, it's not such a hassle to leave the house. For me, this leads to more walks downtown, and especially to our new mall, La Nova, where I can check out all the fantastic, cute clothes I can't afford.

--While I'm not a fan of more frequent showers and laundry days, I don't mind imagining that every time I leave the house, I lose at least half a kilo in sweat.

The last few weeks have been all over the place. We did officially get our contracts renewed, but they're still working on the actual papers, so I have no idea about the raise I requested. We also, not surprisingly, have no idea when we'll move to the beautiful new apartments. So much has happened since the last time I posted, I can't even remember it all, so I won't try. Anyway, I'm about to go downtown for an evening with my friends and a new friend I've never met. There's always something going in Changsha!

"Wherever I go, whatever I do, I wonder where I am in my relationship to you
Wherever you go, wherever you are, I watch your life play out in pictures from afar"