Well, shall we get the rest of the Beaurocratic Inertia out of the way first? Sof’s company went bankrupt. Well, as bankrupt as a company can get in China. They told us this the day we arrived back from Australia (our last short stint - see the last blog if you haven’t already). The last 2 months have involved many a fight to try and get paid, arguing with stupid middle management and going on strike! The long and short of it; Sof quit. And just in time. 4 days after she quit they closed her school down because they hadn’t [View Full Entry]

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Our facebook friends will know exactly what this blog is about. So, you can skip this paragraph. To everyone else: In an attempt to make the Olympics a happy and foreigner-friendly affair, the Ch***se Gov******nt (from now on know as 'Norman' - to save any more deportation attempts) is trying to kick out most of the 250 000 happy expats living in Beijing. The scary thing is - it's kinda working. So, of course, getting a new visa at this time is difficult. More than difficult, it's as difficult as trying to meditate whilst having someone put a hot poker up [View Full Entry]

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Hey all. We couldn't resist another blog. Chinese new year in Beijing. Fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks and fireworks. And, did we mention fireworks? No, I don't think we did. Fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks, fireworks and fireworks. For a short time, Zac was completely hairless (not to mention his balls were blown off at least 3 times). Haidian hospital knows us well. Sof [View Full Entry]

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.... though, being a stick is a great advantage in China. Damn Georgie for fitting into all the clothes and shoes she tried on!!! It's been a while. A lot has happened... here be an overview!!! Firstly, a thought from Harry Potter. Everywhere in Beijing is like number 12 Grimmauld place. As soon as you walk in any door, picture frames start yelling at you. And the house elf is grumpy old sod. No seriously, no matter how hard you look for it, you just can't see it. Even if you have an address. You can only find any place when [View Full Entry]

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Once upon a time, Boris and Doris the rabbits/hares (whatever, there's only one chinese translation) were living in the Forest of Wu. Life was peaceful. The mornings slipped away with noses in books, intelligent discussions on the inverse perceptions of the past and future, and sweeping generalisations of anything outside the forest. A home-made meal greeted the pair daily; of unleavened tuna, and bread soaked in spring water. Previously the afternoons had been calm, however, recent events in regard to the lumberjacks, had involved Boris and Doris selling their underpriced souls to young children. "What be the news of Piglet?" asked [View Full Entry]

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Jeez. We were worried there for a while. They took away our barbeque! Not actually our barbeque, but the nightly outdoor barbeque that we regularly go to (called chuanr). Anyway, they took it away. Who? The people who may be censoring this blog, that's who. Won't mention any names. Get this:In an attempt to prove that Beijing is a suitable city for the olympics, 'some people' took some 'random' samples of beijing air. These samples took place during what was almost a shutting down of the entirety of Beijing. For four days, only half the cars were allowed on the roads [View Full Entry]

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For those of you who know us well, you probably won't believe us when we tell you that during this last week we bought a couch. Yes, BOUGHT. We paid for a couch. We didn't just wander the streets with a troupie and a trailer looking for a free bit of cushioning for which to plant our arses on. We actually went to a "shop", chose a couch, chose a colour and size and paid for it (after bargaining of course!). You may all be wondering why we decided to purchase a couch, considering that we moved into a fully furnished [View Full Entry]

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Hey all. Imagine a world where Gordon's Gin is only A$11 a bottle. Nice. Then imagine a world where tonic water costs much the same. Bugger. Oh well. It's Zac to start off first on this entry. So, are you all going in the City to Bay run on Sunday September 16? I am. Well, replace 'City' with 'a treadmill in our local gym in Beijing' and 'Bay' with 'that same treadmill in our local gym', and just omit the word 'to' and you get the picture. I will be running 12 km on the spot on that Sunday morning [View Full Entry]

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A computer at last (with emphasis on AT LAST). It has been many a phonecall in chinese regarding various unknown computer terms, landlords and computer technicians visiting our house and general anger in the vicinity of the laptop, but we're here. We don't have heaps to say ("that's a change" we hear you all say) but we do want to show off our apartment! We have learnt our lesson about english-teaching companies in China. If you get offered a job with a chinese company - dont sign a contract. Keep your employment as flexible as possible! Whereas a western-run company [View Full Entry]

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Mrs C: It sums up the life here. Night time. During the day the weather is hot hot hot, but when the sun goes down, the place buzzes! Street vendors appear selling books, jewellery, clothing and food.... all of which must be resisted until the first paycheck arrives! Bugger! The quirkiness of this city never ends. Everyday there is something else that surprises us and makes us laugh. We went to IKEA last week to boost our kitchen shelving from nothing to something. Just outside the gigantic blue building was what we have fondly named "FAKE IKEA". Why we didnt see [View Full Entry]

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