June 2011, China Visa Office declared that Tourist Visas are only valid for 3-5 months in China. August 2011, this is my 7 month tourist visa.."Why do you have 7 visas in your passport?" My legs turn to jelly as I explain that I am travelling around China, staying with friends. "Go to desk 4!" Trying to keep myself upright, I make my way down to desk 4, walking towards what I presumed was the deportation desk! Luckily, my wild thoughts were wr...

11th August Winter and Spring passed, Summer arrived and Autumn is already around the corner. 7 months of fried rice, rumbustious children and Chinese folk spitting and farting directly in front of me. All of a sudden I've grown quite fond of Songjiang, China! "What the…" I muttered to myself with a huge smile on my face. I made my way along a small concrete walkway, which led directly into a mass of lily pads and flowers. Where was I? This was nature at its ...

Pink, white and purple blossom scattered across the floor. High temperatures, thick humidity, causing immense thunder storms and therefore a wonderful cycle for the nature around us. Everything seems to be looking up at the moment. I'm enjoying myself once again, the tedious times seemed to of passed.I have applied for a voluntary position working with migrant children downtown. They excepted my CV and have invited me a training and orientation day. It'll be in ...

15th of July, my 6 month point here in Songjiang, China and where do I start?Firstly, it's been pretty up and down for me here, not with my emotions but keeping myself focused to stay put in one place, as my travel bug has been trying very hard to be let loose! Unlike in Uganda where I had numerous holidays, many months to travel around East Africa, here I only two weeks in a whole year.I really like this quote and it was especially true back in March when I was ...

Weather: Between 34 - 38 degrees Celsius.Working: 6 days a weekFood: Mainly fruit and yoghurtMusic: Paul Simon 4th July Summer Camp has started. The days still aren't long compared to the average working day, but adding on 2-3 extra teaching hours each day, it's surprising how tiring it can be, along with having only one day off in the week and I suppose also because I'm out of routine. Hey ho, it's all classed as overtime, so it'll defiantly be worth it come t...