Moving day

Sorry we couldn’t write yesterday an sunday, but we did not get our internet fixed up until this evening. I wrote this offline though so I wouldn’t forget anything!

Sunday
So we are well and truly settled into our new pad and the kids are snug as little bugs in their new beds! We were all up nice and early and got here for about 10am. We had loads of checks to do in the flat as once you are in and have paid the money, it is more difficult to negotiate with the landlord. Luckily our Landlady is really nice and speaks great English. She studied in Cardiff for 2 years but doesn’t speak with a Welsh accent luckily or we really wouldn’t be able to understand her! It does make me laugh when she calls light bulbs, “bubble” though! She told us how to use all the appliances and we have done 2 loads of washing already! There is a groovy wind-up line on the balcony but we are currently thinking about rescuing the first load in a minute as there is a mega storm going on outside.

The landlady has agreed to sort a load of stuff out for us, just bits and pieces really, but she was back later in the afternoon with new light “bubbles” and will be back with her husband tomorrow evening to set the phone and internet up. She is heavily pregnant, due in a couple of weeks, and I really felt for her in the heat and with a toddler, who is pretty naughty(!), she was sweating away! She lives in shouting distance from my school which is nice and she is keen for us to ring with any problem at all which is really nice. We definitely chose the right flat, well that’s what we think so far, hope we continue to think so!

We did a mad trip straight to Ikea which was just as rammed as any Ikea I have ever been to on a Sunday lunchtime! However, it was all made worth it by the meatballs for lunch!! William chose a ham sandwich and chocolate cake and Sophie had spag bol, true to form! It was pretty stressful really, I don’t think either of us had realised quite how much stuff we needed. It is setting up home totally from scratch....crockery, cutlery, sheets, duvets, pillows, covers, towels, bath mats even scissors! We got a few extra bits but after all that, there wasn’t much space in the trolley! We had a fun experience on the way out, being mobbed by taxi drivers trying to get our business. What they do here is show you an amount on a calculator or mobile phone and then you are expected to barter. We have been told that you should be paying about 30% of the original price but we are not quite brave enough for this yet!

When we got back from Ikea, we did a spot of cleaning (although it was clean, sure all you ladies out there know what I mean when I say you just want to give everything a wipe over and make a clean start!) and started unpacking. The children have both got big bedrooms and lots of storage so have so far been able to unpack and put all their own stuff exactly where they want! Tomorrow, the boxes will be arriving and then we will see how much space they have! They both got new duvet covers and were very excited to climb into bed this evening. We did go out for dinner at a place right outside our complex and had quick venture over to the shopping centre directly across the road. It is just in spitting distance! We got Sophie some groovy trainers...we managed to barter down from 135RMB to only 60RMB! They are clearly fake but seem ok so far....we will see!!! I also got a groovy Olympics keyring with the little doll things on it. We really like them and they have been expensive where we have seen them so far. If anyone wants any Olympic souvenirs, please tell us and we can see what we can do with the bartering malarkey!

Well, we are snuggled up on our L-shaped sofa know...it is covered in rattan mats, we presume to protect them from children and also from the sweat at the moment! It is just so hot at the moment, I don’t think I have ever sweated so much in all my life! We are ending each day totally dripping and so we are really pleased we now have a washing machine! We do have Satellite TV, but it’s not exactly Sky as we know it. We have BBC World News and quite a few American channels, but also a couple of kids ones too. About 42 in all, and most are in English which is a bonus! Ian has found a channel which showed some of Premier League Highlights earlier and is hoping the big match is on later...not sure I will make it until KO at 11pm!

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