Return of the shutterbug

Aaah, now I can start posting photos again!! I haven't actually had the camera out much because it's been pretty much cloudy and rainy, but we're hoping things will clear up in a few days for some photo-expeditions. In the meantime... This is where my parents-in-law live (and where I'm living for the foreseeable future). They are on the 8th floor (a very auspicious number in China). It also has nice views of the nearby mountains. Ella and I went for a hike a few days ago. It was cloudy, but the forecast said no rain, so I didn't bring any rain gear. In fact, I deserve scolding by any hiker, as I'd brought exactly zero of the 10 essentials, thinking I'd be on a nice trail for an hour or two at most... Anyway, it turned out to be >6km (about 4 miles) with >600m elevation gain (almost 2000 feet), and 30 pounds of Ella/baby carrier on my back. Normally not a huge deal, but I had been rather sedentary in Lesotho. A strenuous outing there typically consisted of a 1.5 hour drive to Bloemfontein to buy real dairy ice cream. Anyway, once we got to the top, of course it started raining. Fortunately, the entire ridgeline is crowned by an old wall built long ago to defend the city Seoul, and every few thousand yards is a gate where we could rest out of the rain. It's not quite the great wall of China, but still pretty dramatic (next time I'll have a camera). There were lots of hikers, and all were super-nice. One made me take his disposable rain jacket for Ella, and many offered food and water. Anyway, it was enjoyable, despite the rain and the persistently sore calves and thighs today. Ella has also been hanging out with her cousin Min-Seo, and her aunt and uncle, who live in the same building, but on the 4th floor--very inauspicious per the Chinese as the word for "4" sounds the same as the word for death... They are actually doing quite well despite their numerological misfortune. and, of course, Ella has enjoyed the playground. There's not a ladder she won't try to climb nor a slide she won't hurl herself down. Her mom is looking rather pregnant now, eh? p.s. Mom, we found the missing rhino and hippo toys... more soon