Hey Hey and a Big G'Day toya,
 
WOW, I can't believe how quickly the last year has passed but passed it has!
 
The end of term has arrived and it is now day two of my Winter Break. Give it another fifteen or so days and Spring Festival food will be placed upon millions of tables not only here in China but in many countries all around the world.   This time last year I was on a train heading to the coastal city of Xiamen where I spent several days with English Daniel and Alexa before they headed off to Thailand. I then visited many awesome villages and cities before grid lock completely stopped me back in Xiamen.
 
The problem last year is the same as this year.
 
My VISA expires around this time every year so it makes it very difficult to travel as I have to return half way through the holidays and send off my passport to Guangxi Province. It then takes many weeks for it to be returned. So obviously half my holidays are spent 'at home'
 
That's a real BUGGER!
 
At the end of last year I headed down to Nanping for my yearly Visa Medical and we sent my passport off straight away and several weeks later there still is no sign of my passport. BUT, the difference is Luo Wei has been here with me since the end of last year and there has been no need to travel.

We have been more then happy in each others company getting to know each other more and more each day.
 
The 'problem' will begin on the 26th January as Luo Wei after a battle secured the LAST ticket for a sleeper train back to Kaifeng City. Even if I had my passport there wouldn't have been a ticket for me. It really is insane travelling this time of the year. In the space of an hour or so the next ten days tickets were sold out pretty much all around China.
 
They release ten days at a time and WHAMO!
Bloody gone mate!
 
So the most important thing is she got a ticket back to the closest city to her city.
She will be home with her Mother and Grandmother for Spring Festival.
I'll probably still be waiting for my passport!
BUGGER!
 
Anyhow today I borrowed Canadian Jo's bike and I took Luo Wei (Amigo) on my Village/Temple and Loggers bike rides. She took a tumble even before we made it out of the school gate. I'm sure the young kids here are fed rice wine for breakfast. None of them can walk a straight line. One second left, then right, then straight, then left and then right again.

Poor Amigo had no idea where Rice Wine Baby was heading and soon she was off the bike and had landed on her knee.
 
I'm sure it bloody hurt but she kept her chin up and soon we were heading out of town.
It was grey, windy and bloody cold but we had a fantastic day. We even stopped into a small village and got some traditional medicine for her mother. It took some time but the guy finally gave in and gave her the ingredience.
 
That stuff is not cheap I can tell you!
Not here nor back home!
 
Beers N Noodles toya.....shane
_________________________
 
The soundtrack to this entry was The Propellerheads
The album was 'Decksanddrumsandrockandroll'
Awesome!