LoopyLupine

Well, it has been a little while since we had time and good internet access. So I will try to catch up to the present. We're back at home with the boys, all safe and sound. Our second day in Dali, we rented bikes and had a nice day riding through little villages along Erhai lake. They were Bai minority villages that were comprised of farming land surrounding clusters of buildings. The streets and alleys were very narrow and fun to ride through. Between each little village, we would ride through the farm fields on gravel paths, sometimes getting a little lost. In one village, some kids were playing basketball and invited me in. I played one on one with their tallest guy. It was fun, but I wore out fast in the sun and heat- ... read more

Ni Hao, Yesterday we went to a town called Anning, about an hour out of Kunming. They have a lot of hot springs there, most of which are pretty lame, inside polls, but we went to one that was done right. It was a bath house with massages, combined with an outside pool area that had several pools of varying temperatures, colors, scents, and even some minnows in one. We tried the minnow pool for a few minutes, but it was a little disturbing to have them biting the skin from our feet, so we moved on after a lot of screaming and giggling, since it sort of tickled. Alex and Sam went with us, which made it more fun. We got a late start out of Kunming, so didn't get to the springs until late ... read more

I am in Ruian now, which is south of Shanghai by about a one hour flight. Getting here was mostly painless. The international flight was great, decent food, smooth sailing. I arrived in Shanghai on time, and found the correct bus that took me over to HongQiao airport across town. After about a 45 minute ride, I got off, and eventually found my hotel after a couple of wrong turns, but it was right next to the airport, so that was very nice. Then I flew down to Wenzhou where I have been learning about the cup machines, helping to troubleshoot issues with the different paper that they are not used to, and learning how to adjust the machine for various characteristics of the cup. Well, I'm actually in the PVG Shanghai airport now, I never ... read more

Time to go home. It's midnight here, and in the morning i go to the Shanghai airport and begin the 30+ hour trip home. I've just taken 3 planes in 2 days to see machines and factories, now i have another 3 planes and a drive at the end to get home. I'm ready to get back to Homer, though, so it will be fine. I will make one more post from home with pics from the last few days, I need to sleep now so I can at least start the trip rested up.... read more

Well, the typhoon Morakot has hit mainland China and caused major flooding in the city I was supposed to be in right now. Good thing my travel plans were changed in the last week, or I would have been down there in Wenzhou in the floods. http://news.yahoo.com/nphotos/Typhoon-Morakot-slams-China/ss/events/wl/080909typhoonmorakot#photoViewer=/090809/481/414628254cbe4e26ad2f1393bb6f6e45 So I am here in Shanghai, where there is some light occasional rain, and some wind but not much. It mostly has so far been to the south. The last 2 days have been comprised of scheduling flight changes, moving hotels and reservations, and working with the factories to reschedule. Well, I guess I could be stuck in worse places. The food is great, people are friendly, and I'm safe. I have scheduled to go down to Wenzhou Wednesday, we'll see if that happens. Anyway, I've also toured around ... read more