So Far, So Good

We dropped them off 10 minutes late this morning. We got a phone call because Lilly was still in her classroom 25 minutes after school ended this afternoon (but we were right on time for school ending at 3:30!). But otherwise, the first day of school seems to have gone quite well. Nobody made any new friends, but both kids like their teachers very much and are eager to return to school tomorrow.

the walk to school

Myself, on the other hand, I'm beginning to feel the stress of moving. Choosing a place to live has been surprisingly stressful. We are comfortable in the hotel, a 3-bedroom serviced apartment. But we will not be allowed to hang anything on the walls or personalize the place in any way. It will feel like a hotel the entire time we live here. The other option is a villa up the street from the school. Its a bit dated and has a tiny little yard, but it has an amazing terrace looking directly out over the sea to Hong Kong. After much debating, we've settled on staying put because we have a short-term lease here, and can drop everything when the foreign service calls. The choice between convenience (the perfect place NOW) and personalization (the better place in 3 months) was difficult, and still feels a bit icky.

Life here is beginning to feel overwhelming.

Without an ayi, I need to do my own laundry and take my kids everywhere with me. I know, parents in America will have no sympathy for me. But this includes walking to the grocery store and carrying all of the groceries back with me; parent-teacher conferences next week; running small loads of laundry and then hanging them to air dry - all with an infant strapped to my chest, and often at least one child walking slowly at my side. In a serviced apartment, I hardly feel I can justify hiring an ayi. But with my husband planning to travel 50% of the time, I may well need the help.

Without any friends, next week may be difficult. Dave will leave Monday morning and return Friday afternoon, just as I hope to leave for Shanghai. I have no doubt that friends will come, but the first few weeks will inevitably feel rather isolated. And with one or more children always in tow, jumping right in becomes much more challenging.

Shenzhen is lovely. We live on the very edge of town, on a peninsula peeking out into the South China Sea. Traffic is slow and rather quiet, people smile on the street, and flowers and plants grow everywhere. This is the sub-tropics, where sudden downfalls are common and the thick humidity will not leave the air until late fall. My impression is that we have two seasons here - a long, wet summer and a long, dry fall. The temperature will not drop below 50 degrees, and the rain will stop almost entirely. It should be truly lovely here in a few months. Flowers and plants grow likely crazy, and on a walk this morning we came across the largest snail I have ever seen. Check this guy out!