Today was interesting ... I stepped outside the apt. for a minute with no coat on and just slippers on my feet and the door closed ... I was locked out.  My neighbors have a key but they are in America until February 20 so that would be a long wait.  I swept the steps just for something to do while I thought of options.  I could try going to a friend's apt. but I didn't know if she was home and I didn't have my phone and if I left the building, I would then also be locked out in the cold.  Bummer!  Well once again a kind Chinese neighbor saw that I was locked out and took me by the hand up to her apartment and put her husband's coat on me ... I wasn't cold but she insisted.  She then started making phone calls and sent her husband to the kitchen ... he shortly returned to the living room with a bowl full of sliced oranges and a cup of tea.  Neither of them spoke any English but in about 15 minutes someone arrived with a key.  My neighbor then took her keys off a string and she took my keys and tied them to the string and put the string around my neck ... a gentle reminder to not lock myself out again. :-)

A friend from America arrives tonight and we will travel together for the next month between semesters.  I finished all my grading, went to the store, cleaned, did laundry etc. etc. so I'm ready to relax and enjoy some traveling.  We'll spend a few days in Xi'an and then go to Beijing, Shanghai, several cities in Southwest China (Guilin, Yangshuo, Kunming, Lijang, Dali, Sanya, Shenzhen), Hong Kong, Vietnam and Cambodia.  Hainan Island is tropical so a few warm days on the beach sounds great.  My sister and her husband are also coming over and will join us for the Vietnam and Cambodia trips.  I'm excited to see familiar faces and to share some of my experiences with family and friends.

Yesterday while a friend was getting a massage, I took her son to the park by my house and we had fun riding the train and driving sports cars in the Amusement Park, and mostly running around and climbing on all the rocks.

Yes, buses are always full and I usually stand

Kids around town ...