1st Grader Orientaion Day 新生訓練

Sunday is an orientation day for Winston, the 1 grader in the primary school in China.  All of us were so excited about the day. Richy and I took Winston to school and took pictures all the way until we left him to the teacher.  The orientation took 2 days with 2 hours each morning.  They also had a 2-hour "Orientation Lesson" for parents last Friday, and I was there. They taught parents how to be good parents and to cooperate with schools. The school is new at its second year and is eager to outperform its peers.  I can see their efforts in doing so. Only hope that they won't sacrifice kids' precious childhood for competing with other schools.
In the afternoon, we went biking around the lotus park.  Most lotus flowers faded already, but it is still very pleasant to bike around the park. I took some pictures of the scenes which I missed last week.  Richy was practicing his new single-len camera. Winston and I became moving models for Richy's practice. It seemed that he needs more patience than practice with his new camera because he kept complaining about the our biking speed. However, out of the hundreds, some pictures did look good and professional.

   

The Main Entrance

Words on the top say: Come here with smiles, leave with confidence

 

Under teacher's command, some are relaxed while some look serious.

 

Pavilion and wooden walkway in the park

Statues in the Park

 

The two biking models are parting.

Richy, the photographer's complaining about focusing.

 

 So, the 2 models stop and discuss about biking speed.

 

 

Now it looks like we are a bit speedy.

 

The photographer and the model (one tooth lost)

 

~Next Time~

 

 

 

Summer 2009

Weather changes gradually.  We still have high temperature in the daytime but cool in the night. 
Fall is coming.  I like to record our summer life here to end this season.

 

Winston will be a 1st grader in the primary school this September. He had made some significant progress this summer.

1. Swimming: Free Style and Back Stroke

2. Sharing the chores: putting things back to designated places

3. Losing one front teeth: No crying while being pulled out

4. Sleeping on his own bed

5. Taking shower and washing hair on his own without help from me

 

For me, I did not make as much progress as Winston did, but still have some to write:

1. Swimming: Learn to breathe during swimming, Frog style and free style.  Too timid to learn back stroke

2. Recovering from Skin Rashes

3. Reading two books: The road less Traveled, Feeling Good- the new mood therapy

4. Starting to hand-make soap: Get everything ready and will start experimenting after Winston goes to school in Sept.

 

Richy and his colleagues are looking for ways to promote themselves, since they were not promoted by the company.  I was suggesting him to join a Health Club in a Gym. That way he might feel better mentally and physically through workout and look at things differently.  He teased me that I was trying to promote myself not him, because I ask him to buy a family membership in the club so Winston and I can go there anytime. 

 

The places we had visited this summer are: Ping Jiang Old Streed, Shang-Tang Street, Two Lotus Ponds, Chun-Yuan Temple, and Home in Taiwan

  

That is what we had for the summer, and I feel grateful for whatever I experienced and learned. 

 

We are enjoying the Autumn breeze now!

 

 

A New Lotus Park 發現新荷塘

Sunday Morning Richy went biking to Chun-Yuan Temple and found a lovely park.  That park was in a suburb, 30 minutes from our house. We brought one foldable bike in the car and drove there right after we finished breakfast.  The weather was hot for outing today.  However, we knew very well that the lotus season would end soon, so even only for a short visit, we would not miss the chance.  This park was new and not many visitors were seen even on Sundays.The landscape was beautiful and peaceful with lotus ponds, rocks and pavillions in sight.  Walking along the wood-paved ways was quite enjoyable even in this hot day. Since we had a 7-year old kid with us and he did not yet learn how to appreciate such a lovely scene, we did not stay long. I consider it as one of my worth visiting places and will surely plan for more visits. 

 

 

Dragon Fly 蜻蜓戲水荷塘間

 

 

 

~Come Next Time~

 

 

回台小聚

飛机，每次坐上它，就不免要赞歎人類穿越空间的伟大發明，有时候一上飛机就有压力，有时候卻一身轻，要视所到達的目的地而定。
空气和压力一樣無形，對有些人來說，身体和心理都需要时间才能慢慢適應。 回台期间，日日失眠，吃了不少镇定剂， 回到苏州换了空氣，自然就好睡了。

这次回台，时间较长，巧逢父亲节，我们参加了两个家庭的父親節聚餐，与餐会中的许多父亲们渡过Happy Father's Day。此外，这次很高兴能有自己的时间得以和朋友小聚，大学同学很热情地配合我回台期间小聚。也感恩能有几日待在自家享受寧静。

 

 

Richy's Family

      

Father's Day Dining with Richy's Family

            

Father's Day Cake, June's Family

  

June's Family, Father's Day

 

台中同学聚餐8/09

 

Class Reunion,Taichung

 

 

Class Reunion, Taipei

台北同学聚餐 8/11

Lily's family took us to the airport for

the flight back to Shanghai

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lotus Pond 荷塘月色

The weekend before we went back to Taiwan, we visited a famous Lotus Pond in Xiangcheng District, Suzhou.

A great variety of lotus were blossoming during our visit.  After we came back to Suzhou, most lotus flowers in our neighborhood were gone. We were lucky to see the last view of Summer Lotus this year. The whole parts of lotus are eatable. Seeds and roots were popular for soups. The leaves can be dried as Chinese medicine or cooked as food wrapper for its tasty flavor.

 

荷花又名蓮花，種類繁多，全株可食。

蓮花盛開正值炎炎夏日，幾次想造访都因天氣酷熱而作罷。自日蚀之後，温度下降，回台前的八月二日我们去了蘇州相城區的荷塘月色，一睹夏荷風采。
後來在臺灣的電視上得知台南的白河鎮也有類似的風光，真好！以後有机会可以去看看台版的蓮花池。

短短二週，回到蘇州後，周圍的荷塘裏，已經看不到一朵荷花了，很慶幸我們抓住那今夏最後一週的美景。

赏荷过程中，不少游客随手摘拿着一、二株蓮花， 狹近生褻玩，是此行唯一美中不足之處。

古代文人周敦頤曾歎“蓮之愛，同予者何人？” Me.me.me...我對於蓮花，可不只是欣赏它的美，也爱食蓮子、蓮藕，以及荷葉饭呢。

《愛蓮說》宋.周敦頤
水陸草木之花，可愛者甚繁。晉陶淵明獨愛菊；自李唐來，世人盛愛牡丹；予獨愛蓮之出淤泥而不染，濯清漣而不妖，中通外直，不蔓不枝，香遠益清，亭亭靜植，可遠觀而不可褻玩焉。
予謂菊，花之隱逸者也；牡丹，花之富貴者也；蓮，花之君子者也。噫！菊之愛，陶後鮮有聞；蓮之愛，同予者何人；牡丹之愛，宜乎眾矣。

 

 

Main Entrance

 

 

King Lotus 帝王蓮：葉子雖大，花少也较不好看，没拍下

 

饱满的莲花

 

 绵延的蓮花池

 

Canoe Pass-way 小河道，專供游船通过

 

 

乘坐小舟游湖 

 

荷塘月色景区腹地廣大，沿途茶房及坐椅可供小憩