The month of June was HOT here in Guangzhou. We are getting used to the heat when we go outside, and cranking up that a/c when we are inside. We worked a lot during this month, trying to get some new things up and running on the website, so again…another month flew by.
Unfortunately, both of us got sick during the beginning of the month, but after getting over that we treated ourselves to our favorite spa-resort destination in downtown Guangzhou for a weekend! We had a blast (as always) being pampered and hanging out in our pjs, watching movies, and eating yummy food.
While in downtown, we also explored some areas of town where we found lots of Turkish restaurants! After a while, Chinese food can get a bit old — so it’s nice to change it up with something more exotic. It’s refreshing to taste different spices and flavors after a while, so we were loving the Turkish food.
Then, it was Dragon Boat festival time! We were super lucky to have some festivities and races taking place only 1 block behind our apartment complex! So we got together with friends here in town and spent the morning guarding our front row seats to the festivities! We loved seeing all the boats (so many of them) parade around with the drums and decorations. Then it was time for the races, and wow do they go fast!
After a long (and hot) day at the races, we headed back to our apartment to take a dip in our lovely (and huge) swimming pool!!! A great end to a great day!
The end of June was mostly devoted to getting me (Liz) ready to travel to Hong Kong for some new work visa paperwork processing. All went well, and I’m back in Guangzhou – just finishing the Z visa process to become an official resident of China.
** However, only days after my return I suffered a broken foot! Yes, I managed to break my foot in China. Technically it happened on July 2nd, but I’ll include it in this recap because many people have heard and are asking about it. I’ve written a post to explain the story, as well as photos of our experience at a Chinese hospital…always fun!
Check it out: “Remember the Time I Broke My Foot in China.”
Here is a quick rundown from June, 2015 during our Around the World Journey!
Ending Balance June 2015 = Surplus of $1,600
Income = $3300
Expenses: $1700
Accommodations: $450
- Rent – $330
- Misc. utilities & property management dues $120
Transportation, Food, Fun, Misc. Cash (all lumped together): = $1250
** This included an weekend resort-spa visit, as well as 1 week in Hong Kong (personal expenses, accommodations paid by Liz’s work)
Highlights from May 2015
- Seeing the Dragon Boat Festival & races just behind our apartment!
- Another visit to Hong Kong
- Liz getting a raise at her job
Favorite Moments
Liz: I was super excited to return to Hong Kong for more than 1 week! While I was there to do visa paperwork (and wait around for it to be processed), I was able to explore the city on my own — just like I did so many years ago during my first solo trip to Hong Kong. I was able to take my time and see many things that I hadn’t gotten to see yet, and be able to reminisce about my first visit and how things have changed so much in my life. It’s pretty cool that I live so close to Hong Kong, one of my favorite places in the world, and I really hated to leave — even after I had been there for 9 days! 🙁
Josh: My favorite moment was the Dragon Boat Festival. It was awesome that they were having festivities so close to our apartment, so we walked down to the river early in the morning to check it out. We got to see the boats up close, then had front row seats to the event. It was crazy how many boats were on the water at the same time during the parades, and how many people fit in just one Dragon Boat — we’re talking 60+ people! And I’ll never forget the excitement and the sound of the announcer yelling “ready, set, go!!!!!” — but in Chinese, of course — and people cheering on their friends and family! What a great memory.
