Ola amigo's,

I have been back in Chi-Chi for 10 days now. I have had a lovely rest, but now am back at school again for a 21 week term without half terms or Easter... I guess I should just count my blessings that I was just able to have 5 weeks off. Ha. I have already been asked to do a huge demonstration lesson in front of all the senior executives and principals.. should be interesting! :S

Fish Experience: On my second day back in Beijing I decided to venture outside, and brave the cold to do a little shopping.

Sheriic likes fresh fish, so I decided to purchase my food in the supermarket, where you pick your own live fish from a fish tank. I thought I was being very daring, and boldly caught the2 fish I wanted with a net and handed it to the man over the counter.

He was dealing with other customers, so I waited.. and he put the fish net down on the side. I thought I would walk away, as I didn't really want to see him kill the fish.. but he toke his time, so when I walked back I was just in time to see 1 fish wriggling out the net and making a break for it by moving along the counter. This made me feel sorry for the fish, and in that instance I named them Tilly and Tony. I actually wanted them to make a break for it. Lol

Except.. the man noticed after about 10 seconds, and picked the fish up and put them back into the net. He then scaled the fish for me, and handed them back. Meaning that he had not taken care of it properly, and the fish was still alive, although they was bleeding heavily. He doubled bagged them for me, and handed them back to me.

I looked on in horror as the fish bag was struggling profusely. I put it down in my trolley and eyed it in horror as it flapped around for a while.

It then quietened down, but scared the daylight out of me when it jumped clean off the trolley as I put a lemon down next to them. I squeaked loudly with panic and a local Chinese man laughed his head off at me! :S

I then deliberately walked around the shop for 20 minutes, perusing the aisles as I was terrified of the bag jumping around whilst I walk home. At this point, I un-named them, as they were causing me such grief that I just wanted them dead. Lol. I then made sure that Sheriic sorted them out when I got home. Lol. They tasted good haha

Sheriic has been and done everything there is to do in Beijing.. but I am still so excited to explore that I have given myself several Emma's Exploring days recently. Where I take my trusty Beijing Lonely Planet and be a tourist for the entire day by myself. My first day I walked through the old French district of Beijing and ate at a famous Peking duck restaurant. I then toke a different route back, and stumbled upon a newly restored "typically authentic" Chinese street which had just been made. It was made to look like it had been there forever, but clearly hadn't! I really didn't like it.. it was a fake China town. where there needn't be one!! The whole country is China town, for christs sake. I then took a side road which opened up onto a big expansive area, which I recognized instantly as Tiannamen Square. I have been there once as a tourist and driven past it many times.. but its grandeur really hit me, as it was so unexpected.

The second day, I went to the Art strict of Beijing named the 798 district. Its an area the size of Gunnislake, filled with Art galleries, exhibitions, shows, shops.. all largely focused on Modern art. It used to be an old factory with a large complex of warehouses, so the space is incredible. It became instantly, one of my favourite areas of Beijing!!

That's it really. Keep drinking too much I vow to stop… but its difficult when our new favourite bar Juicy Club is 30 kwei (3 pounds) to enter on a Thursday night… and then unlimited free drinks all night!!! I just really don't understand how they make money!! Anywho, love you and leave you!!!

XXXX