A Welcome Weekend

Just finished my last class of the week, and I'm looking forward to spending the afternoon holed up with Dickens. My relaxation is somewhat enforced because we're finally getting some rain for the first time since I arrived over a week ago (I'd been wondering, if this is the tropics, where's the rain been?). I'm anticipating a pleasant day sitting on the balcony, reading high and dry while the rain falls. Reminds me just a bit of relaxing on the lanai in Hawaii, waiting out a shower. While I much prefer our uncovered deck at home, there are some times when a covered patio is just the ticket.

I hadn't made any plans for the weekend, although I was toying with the idea of taking the bus to Zhuhai city on Sunday just for a change in scenery and to get out of the comfort zone I've developed around the campus. But now I'm not sure if the weather will be accommodating for a day trip; and besides, C***o and R****i (Ling's sister and her husband) will be arriving next week, and I expect they'll want to travel to Zhuhai too. So maybe I should wait till they get here and go there with them.

By the way, I've been discovering interesting tidbits about life here that probably won't fit into the topics of my blog entries, so I'll be inserting them willy-nilly. For example, walking back from the dining hall last night, I noticed a steady stream of students heading to the classroom buildings. Delia told me that the students are not allowed to return to their dorms after dinner because they'd just socialize there rather than studying, so the dorms are closed and the classrooms open, where teachers take turns monitoring to make sure everyone's working hard. I've been making it a point to mention in my classes and in the lecture yesterday that college students in the States are considered adults and are therefore given a high degree of independence; the students seem to find it an interesting contrast to the way they're treated.