Recent Adventures

The fam in Tokyo! Can't believe we got a picture
with all of us smiling at the same time.

I refuse to beat myself up over not updating, but where did summer go again? Oh wait it's definitely still summer, evidenced by the strength of the sun and the heat of each day. And the length of my days! Summer means extra summer camp classes for me, which means longer hours. I'll blame my absence these past two months on that.

Since June started I've been to Danxia Mountain, Hong Kong, Macau, Tokyo, and Dongchong beach outside of Shenzhen. And they've all been some wildly different trips! So continue on for a picture-heavy recap of my summer so far.

Danxia Moutain's claim to fame

Danxia Mountain is really only famous for one thing: it has an extraordinarily large phallic landform. The reason I went has absolutely nothing to do with that: it was my 17th UNESCO World Heritage Site! China's Danxia landforms were added cause they're this special kind of layered red rock that erodes in cool ways, making things like the phallus that this particular geopark is so famous for. We stayed in a little hostel called On The Road, where the lovely, non-English speaking woman who ran it gave us quail eggs and corn for breakfast one morning and her husband drove us to the front of the park free of charge because they were wonderful people. Highly recommend it!

Three weeks after that, my family arrived! It was absolutely wonderful to see them and show them around my current hometown. It was hot and humid and rained a bunch while they were here, but I don't think they minded too much. It was cool to show them my school, and the little barbeque place near my school, and my go-to blind massage place, etc etc. Greg even got to work out at my gym, although it wasn't super busy so it was less of a lesson in Chinese culture. We tried to make it to the Temple of the Six Banyan Trees, but didn't quite make it inside; I've been back since, so look forward to a post walkthrough of it in the near future.

Checking out Victoria Harbor from the Promenade.

I loved showing them around Hong Kong and Macau as well. The Deck 'N Beer on the Promenade in Tsim Sha Tsui was probably our favorite spot in Hong Kong, for the outdoor on the water seating with its fantastic view of the harbor. We also did some successful shopping (thanks again for the phone!) and had some absolutely delicious meals. Macau was less exciting the second time, especially since it was so hot that day, but I thankfully got much less lost this time around.

Seriously legit sushi from a seriously legit itamae (sushi chef)

And then Tokyo! A short and sweet visit. Too short! I will definitely return at some point. Going up Tokyo Tower was a treat and a tribute to my inner twelve-year-old anime-loving self. And oh my lord the sushi. I have since proven that this experience didn't put me off lesser sushi forever, which was a big worry, but I know that unless I go back to that little tucked-away, dock-side restaurant I will never have such authentic and mind-blowing sushi ever again. Alas, I doubt I'd be able to find the place again without my dad's business partner to show us, even though I know I have the business card around here somewhere.

Our quick goodbyes in the Tokyo airport were sad, especially since I knew I then had to get back to reality and go directly into a work-filled summer schedule. But we had a mid-summer break from regular classes the past two weeks, which meant I had last weekend off! So 8 of us jetted off to a guesthouse in a tiny village outside of Shenzhen called Zen Guesthouse for a weekend of too much sun, a lot of frisbee, and a fair amount of drinking. It was a treat to unwind a bit, although I'm still feeling the affects of not sleeping for three days and the two full days at the beach. Ah well, sunburns fade.

And that's that! Three more weeks of summer course, and then I'll have lived in Guangzhou for six months. Crazy. It's been a fun summer and a fun year so far, and I'm sure the next six months will go by as quickly as the first six have. Guess it's time I started making some real plans for after this contract! Almost time – I'll let the summer finish first.

Look forward to a post about my favorite travel accessory next week, followed by my temple walkthrough, and then all of those other posts I keep promising. And let me know what you've been up to this summer! I've been a bit of a recluse recently, but I'm thirsty for life updates from friends and family members.