We have been in Asia going on 4 years, and at LAST I'm starting to feel like we are a living, breathing part of our community. Language and culture and food are no longer such big barrier, and now fewer and fewer people are surprised to see us.
We live in an AMAZING neighborhood with kids playing on playgrounds, old ladies knitting on park benches and men smoking pipes while they take strolls. Lately, the kiddos love coming into our house and playing with Joelle, even though she's so much younger than them. Below they had all just finished chasing eachother around the house and they stopped to look at some photo albums of America.
Our neighborhood organized a picnic one day, and we all trekked out to the river.
It was a long way and looooots of people came, so the people up front carried flags so people way in the back would know where to go!
Joelle is so quick to warm up to other kids. This boy came up beside her to say "Hello, yang wa wa!" (foreign baby doll) and she reached up and held his hand- his mom was a riot of laughing and jumping and made us stop several times to take their picture.
Finally at the lake, we waded into the freezing river (this is a branch of the Yangtze river, by the way!)
*splash!*
The ever-present crowd around Joelle....
Sunbrellas, kites and people lighting their camp-fires everywhere:
Eva came along with us, and here she's helping Scott wipe up a boo-boo on Joelle's leg. The part of the river we were playing on was rocky and uneven. We are excited about this secluded part of the river- it will be the perfect place to go camping one day!
Got the campfire going.....
My neighbors:
More neighbors:
Washing vegetables in the river:
...Later that day we went to a birthday party and Joelle kept making friends! This picture was taken right before she tried to hug him and knocked him to the ground! haha. Feisty!
Oh how happy it is to be surrounded by friends and neighbors!!
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