Sometimes, words just don't come together in the way that I want them to. After trying to force them to cooperate many times, I gave up and decided to instead use pictures and the captions to show you January and February.
This was just the beginning of 14 straight days of snow here. The snowfall didn't amount to too much, but certainly made things interesting, especially when they sent out the street-washing trucks to spray the snow off the streets after the first day of snow. The temperature dropped that night, and the next day, the streets were a solid sheet of ice. I couldn't turn down the chance to ride my bike in it, since I saw other bikers out, but after fishtailing (I didn't even know it was possible to fishtail on a bike), I decided there might be better options of transportation!
My parents came for a visit right after I finished my first semester of classes. I met them in Beijing, and we played the tourist role (here on the Great Wall, which was beautiful - and cold, as you can tell!), visiting the Temple of Heaven, Great Wall, and Forbidden City. We came back to my home after a couple days, and spent the rest of the time here. It was so fun to see them in my world and show them my life here!
An hour after I sent my parents off on their plane back home, I boarded a plane as well, headed first to Kunming, a southern city of China, and then down to Thailand for a vacation! Kunming, pictured above, had a completely different feel than any of the other Chinese cities I've been to.
From there, I headed further south to the beaches of Thailand! It was so nice to be on the beach in February and take a break from normal "going to school and studying" life here.
We stayed in bungalows right on the beach, dividing our days between relaxing and doing nothing on the beach, and action-filled days of snorkeling, riding motorbikes, and other activities.
The beaches were beautiful, and the water so clear and bright. The scenery everywhere was incredible! This pictures was taken during a boat ride one morning.
the sunset on the beach
...and more scenery
I had never snorkeled before this, but I think this would be hard to beat - there was a huge variety of fish, bright, colorful, and numerous, in perfectly clear water. I got to snorkel during two days.
The day that we went snorkeling, we had lunch on a little island, where some Thai people were playing this game. It's kind of like volleyball, only you can use everything except your hands. A combination of soccer and volleyball...doesn't get much better! They let me join in for a game - here's me serving as the other guy tosses the ball to my foot.
This is the bike that I rented and drove around the island (Koh Lanta) for a day. I haven't driven since July, and it felt so good to be in control of a motor-powered vehicle! I miss driving here, but I'll have to settle for riding my bike here in China.
A couple days in Bangkok wrapped up the vacation before coming back home to China. Notice the center solid yellow line doesn't mean too much, since cars and buses are on the right side, reserving only one lane for oncoming traffic!
This was just the beginning of 14 straight days of snow here. The snowfall didn't amount to too much, but certainly made things interesting, especially when they sent out the street-washing trucks to spray the snow off the streets after the first day of snow. The temperature dropped that night, and the next day, the streets were a solid sheet of ice. I couldn't turn down the chance to ride my bike in it, since I saw other bikers out, but after fishtailing (I didn't even know it was possible to fishtail on a bike), I decided there might be better options of transportation!
My parents came for a visit right after I finished my first semester of classes. I met them in Beijing, and we played the tourist role (here on the Great Wall, which was beautiful - and cold, as you can tell!), visiting the Temple of Heaven, Great Wall, and Forbidden City. We came back to my home after a couple days, and spent the rest of the time here. It was so fun to see them in my world and show them my life here!
An hour after I sent my parents off on their plane back home, I boarded a plane as well, headed first to Kunming, a southern city of China, and then down to Thailand for a vacation! Kunming, pictured above, had a completely different feel than any of the other Chinese cities I've been to.
From there, I headed further south to the beaches of Thailand! It was so nice to be on the beach in February and take a break from normal "going to school and studying" life here. 
We stayed in bungalows right on the beach, dividing our days between relaxing and doing nothing on the beach, and action-filled days of snorkeling, riding motorbikes, and other activities.
The beaches were beautiful, and the water so clear and bright. The scenery everywhere was incredible! This pictures was taken during a boat ride one morning.
the sunset on the beach
...and more scenery
I had never snorkeled before this, but I think this would be hard to beat - there was a huge variety of fish, bright, colorful, and numerous, in perfectly clear water. I got to snorkel during two days.
The day that we went snorkeling, we had lunch on a little island, where some Thai people were playing this game. It's kind of like volleyball, only you can use everything except your hands. A combination of soccer and volleyball...doesn't get much better! They let me join in for a game - here's me serving as the other guy tosses the ball to my foot.
This is the bike that I rented and drove around the island (Koh Lanta) for a day. I haven't driven since July, and it felt so good to be in control of a motor-powered vehicle! I miss driving here, but I'll have to settle for riding my bike here in China.
A couple days in Bangkok wrapped up the vacation before coming back home to China. Notice the center solid yellow line doesn't mean too much, since cars and buses are on the right side, reserving only one lane for oncoming traffic!
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