South China R&R

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The family is together for the first time since last summer. It all feels so right. Longing for the relaxing days of Pensacola in the spring, we decide a beach retreat might be just the thing to satisfy our desire to rekindle some of our memories of family fun on the beach while exploring a new area. Sanya bay on the southern tip of Hainan island is the southern most point of China with coastlines adorned by the warm, lovely South China Sea. Our 4 days are spent mostly soaking up the sun on the nearly deserted beach. We walked for hours, played a bit of coconut "P-I-G", body surfed the waves, and explored a couple fun restaurants. Our 4 BR apartment was graced with tropical island breezes, the sound of waves crashing the beach at night, sights of island peaks in the distance, and since we ARE still in China, the raucous nightly fireworks celebrations right outside our windows. Amazing that only 2 1/2 hours of flying time can transport us to such a different locale.

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Photos

Trendsetters
Dressed in high style fashion, Ty and Jess model some of their new Christmas garb before we head off on our trip the next day.

Lovely view
Read, eat, relax and enjoy the view. The view and the breezes made this a favorite hang-out for Kirsten.

Lush vegetation
Palm trees are everywhere - any they really had coconuts on them too! At latitude 15 degrees, this is appropriately called the Chinese Hawaii. Interesting though, rather than being inundated with Japanese tourists, here it seems to be the Russians who are flocking to it's shores.

South China Sea
More views from our apartment balcony.

Digging for America
Ty never reaches America, but he does create a great hole to play our highly competitive game of "coconut P-I-G". We think Ty won, but of course Matt claims HIS coconut was the one in the hole at the end of the match.

Thai cuisine
It's hot, it's spicy, and a coconut filled with fresh coconut juice is just the thing to cool the tongue after a great Thai meal.

I've got a lovely bunch of coconuts!
For a mere $4, a satisfying tank full of fresh coconut milk!

The 3 stooges
Larry, Mo, and Curly they're not, but maybe Aphrodite, Hercules, and Confucious wanna-be's could be more accurately applied. Fun for us all to be together again - even if all we do is lay around, watch movies at night, and discuss the differences between Chinese and American relaxation. We briefly consider joining in on the craze of matching floral tropical shirt/shorts sets for the family.....

Beach gang
Sanya beach outside our apartment. Finally a family photo where Kirsten shaves off the Yak fur and joins us "in the flesh"!

3 Teens
This is officially the last photo of all 3 as teenagers. When they were toddlers, I dreaded this year of 3 teens at once. Now I count my lucky stars to enjoy their company together while looking back on those toddler years with amazement that I came through it all with my sanity in tact - most of the time.

Home again
Returning home, we enjoy a visit with our Chinese friends, Monica and Jason. Monica has tutored Sheri, Jessica, and Matt and now also works part-time at Patac with Matt as an assistant. Such a sweet and smart girl we are proud to claim as a friend. Her boyfriend Jason is equally humorous and gracious.