Officially a resident!

I got my official China Resident visa so I am officially a resident! Which means I can leave the country (since Hong Kong and Macao aren't technically China I'd have needed a passport to get back here, had I gone there. My other visa was a one-entry visa until you get your resident visa. Now you know more about Chinese visas! And about as much as me! Confusing things, they are.) Hong Kong is where Disneyland China is, so yay for getting to go there when we get our IDs and Silver Passes (like the golden ticket but for Disney instead of Willy Wonka). Macao is where gambling is legal. Woot for Chinese Vegas! Note to self: What is "hit me" in Mandarin?.. Do they say the same thing??? Do they even play blackjack at their casinos???

These are my view, day and night. The second picture is a zoomed out version of the first but I couldn't get it that clear that far away because of lights. 

Guangzhou's vast....mountain?

It's 82 today. In October. I miss fall. This is fall. This is "much cooler than it was this summer." I might die this summer.  But PALM TREES! Also, this pool has not been used once since I moved in. It is at the hotel next door. Boo.

Smoggy. But, at least it's better than Beijing!

FOOD!!!! More specifically...Dim Sum

BBQ Honey Pork Buns

I don't remember what these were called but they were my favorite of the day. It's wrapped in red bean. It had shrimp and other amazingness in it. 

Soup Dumplings. Literally, you bite into it over a spoon, because it has soup inside! 

Spring Rolls, but, like, the real ones!

I haven't done much exploring as of late, unfortunate for us all, I know. I am finally working full time, in my own classroom. It's exhausting and fun and so very, very different. In good and bad ways. I have seven classes and 2 demos. (Demos are basically just mock classes for students and parents to hopefully get them to sign contracts with us.) I haven't done a demo yet but I am supposed to start Saturday. I'm nervous. I'm a kid-person, not a people person. (Didn't know there was a difference? Ask a teacher or day care provider.) Parents make me nervous. I have the same classes (hour classes) Tuesdays and Fridays. One is a class of 3 year olds, the other is a class of 6-7 year olds. I have one class on Monday, 4 year olds. My Saturday is a 12 hour day between demos and 2 classes. One class is my babies, 3 year olds, so pretty on par with what I'm used to, and my older class. the 8-11 year olds. A reminder of why I like the babies. I'll leave it at that. Sunday is my "short day" 8-5. I have two classes 7 year olds and 4 year olds. Between the classes and the demos I'm learning lesson planning for the first time. They give you what to teach, and there are lots of great ideas and people to help. The challenge is finding age appropriate games and such for students you don't know very well. All of my classes (with the exception of Tuesday/Friday) are 2 hours. T/F is split so they are each an hour. Except my babies, they're classes are shorter because their attention span is also shorter, but only by about 15 minutes. My days off are Wednesday and Thursday. As with most of the people I know/hang out with. (Wednesday is everyone's day off. The center is closed.) I'm getting my bearings. Figuring out the new normalcy in my day to day life. It's different and exciting and challenging and fun. I still enjoy going to restaurants and pointing at different things that look good, I am learning new words, chicken, pork, beef, noodles, egg, rice. The basics for my survival! All hamburgers are overcooked (they don't ask you how you want it but that's probably because they don't have the same regulations here). They do have some health codes though, people will go into restaurants and give them ratings. If they are clean and follow all guidelines, they get a green happy face. If they follow most and are pretty clean, they'll get a yellow or orange face. If they are dirty, etc, they get a red sad face. They don't get closed down, they just get a sad face. My Starbucks is a yellow face. But, it's coffee and it makes me happy. I am homesick for my kitty, hot showers, and soft beds. And, of course, for all of you ;)

I updated on Facebook so I have forgotten on here. My mass on my liver, is, in fact, a mass. A tumor, actually. A benign tumor. After tests and scans and such that is what they have decided. I will have to have it monitored, to make sure it doesn't grow or change or anything but that is all I have to do for now. Turns out, it's not all that uncommon either. Most people that have it, don't ever even know. And now I have really neat MRI scans of my body! lol