"our" new apartment

We took posession of our new apartment   ( sounds so much better than  "flat" ) last night   , and moved in today. we were so lucky to get this one , having spoken to Teresa  ( Lu min) from teresa`s cafe earlier this year she sucessfully negotiated with the landlord and found someone was moving out on saturday morning. we quickly accepted and signed a lease that day.  A quick walk to Walmart for shopping saw us come out with one overloaded trolley  and many 100`s of RMB  less in our pockets.

This photo shows the outside of our apartment block  , were on the fifth floor, front corner unit.  ONLY  50 metres from Zhejiang uni gate !!!!

The view from the front balcony shows how close we are to  Zhejiang University >>

You can really only have one colour bed covers in China   ... China Red !!!

It follows the colour scheme in the kitchen  and looks so bright !!

Apartment and employment

Only been here since Wednesday and today apartment and job. Not bad going for oldies struggling with Chinese. So many obliging chinese people make life easier.

settling in at Zhejiang University

Arrived safely in Hanghzou on Tuesday night , after staying 1 night at a hotel close to airport ( no english speakers ) we made our way to Yuquan campus the next morning . We have booked into campus here while we search for an apartment close by. Things look good so far and hope  to post pictures soon.
 The weather has been kind to us not too hot, drizzly and warm could be worse. The food here is great sooooo much to choose from and very, very cheap $4 for main and drink for both.

 . We are negotiating for an apartment right now with an interpeter from the local cafe (teresa)..Chris has not even seen the apartment yet. we  have just paid the deposit. I hope waynes taste is good. ,. Of course it is he is married to  me. haha. Should move in on the weekend. the timing could'nt be more perfect., It is across the road from the Uni, very lucky which starts on 1st Sept.. Walmart here we come.. This afternoon I am  meeting a lady from an englich school for part time work. Looking forward to that interview going my way. We are doing heaps of walking we should be able to get fttter and thinner on exercise and rice..  We will keep you posted

Hangzhou

Hangzhou, the capital city of East China's Zhejiang Province, and one of the seven capitals (the others being Van, Luoyang, Kaifeng, Anyang, Beijing, and Nanjing) in ancient China, is endowed with irritable charm and vigour as an ideal destination for tourists from home and overseas. Located at the southern end of the Beijing-Hangzhou Canal 180 kilometres south of Shanghai. The city is the political, economic, cultural, and scientific research centre of this coastal province in East China. With a long history and a wealth of cultural relics, the city is a communications hub in East China. Besides railways, expressways and international airports, the Grand Canal and Qiantang River can connect the city with other parts of the world.

With a history of more than 2, 200 years, Hangzhou is one of the cradles of China's civilization. Hangzhou used to be the capital of Wu and Yue kingdoms in the 10th century during the Five Dynasties period. It developed rapidly in the Tang Dynasty (618-907) to become the nation's cultural, economic and political centre in the Southern Song Dynasty ( 1127-1279 ). In the Yuan Dynasty ( 1279-1368), Marco Polo ( 1254-1324, Venetian traveller to the court of Kublai Khan) described it as the most graceful city in the world.

The City of Hangzhou is divided into six districts, five cities and two counties. It encompasses 16,847 square kilometres with a population of 6.16 million. Its major industries include textiles, machinery, metallurgy, chemicals, electronics, and food.

Hangzhou is one of the top 10 tourist attractions in China. It is famous for its surrounding hills and numerous beautiful scenic spots, especially the West Lake. Other tourist attractions include Pagoda of Six Harmonies, Soul's Retreat Temple, The Peak That Flew Here, Hangzhou Oriental Culture Park, the Newly-Built Leifeng Pagoda, Fuchun River, Xin'an River, the "Thousand-Island Lake," the rarely seen tide of the Qiantang River,
and Tianmu Mountain.

Exchange Study Grant

Such a good day today , last exam and last day for this semester , no more uni until September 1st !!!! Checking my uni emails late at night I find one from UWA Student Mobility I have been granted a $5000 study grant from Endeavour Cheung Kong Student ExchangeProgram Subsidy and is administered by the Australian Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations.
Thank you so much !!!

Thanks also to the team at Student Mobility Services :)

Pre departure meeting

Wednesday at UWA we had our pre departure meeting. Preparing us for what to expect as a international student at Zhejiang University. There were 236 student going to 18 countries and 80 universities. Enrollment day at Zhejiang university is August 29th with semester starting on 1st September.

We have contacted a real estate person in Hangzhou and they are keeping us informed. Hopefully they will have a few apartments for us to view when we arrive. Will be staying at the campus until that happens.

INTERNAL TRAVEL.

Wayne is busy researching travel plans for the October (Chinese National Day) holiday. Hoping to go to Wudang Shan . Home to many famous Daoist temples. An estimated 200 million Chinese will also be travelling at this time as they return to their home cities for the holidays. Travel on trains and buses will be interesting ( christine said it will be chaotic!!!!)

Acceptance letter

A casual visit to the student exchange office resulted in good news this week,  Just a few minutes earlier Zhejiang University had sent my acceptance letter !! So now its official.  With that letter in hand Christine and I bought tickets to hangzhou today !!! We only purchases one way tickets so will need to spend more money on the return tickets later on, but at least we will be in Hangzhou, Worry about getting back home another day !!
Now we start crossing things off our to do list in preperation .  :)