Out and about

Dieter had an appointment with the doctor this morning, so we decided to spend about an hour and a half at the library. It took me about that long to find books for us to continue our research on China, including a book on calligraphy and a really thick autobiography of Marco Polo. You can't imagine our excitement! The calligraphy looks fun and do-able ...... and the DK and Usbourne books on China look really interesting. Ethan had me reading a book on Marco Polo to him this afternoon - its not a story book or anything written to be entertaining, its the real thing in brief detail and he didn't want us to put it down!

Ryan's persistence in stalking the computers lead us to discover that we can have 30 minutes free use of the internet - you can't imagine what that did for the boys! Jed wrote an email to a friend and Ryan was looking at prices on Amazon. Both doing something they really miss. Our internet access is severely hampered by cost.

We also decided that while we were out and about we'd head to the George Mall ..... a new, and impressive setup! We must have spent about an hour there, and mostly walked past shops but did have a snack and get a mobile sim-card, so now we're more reachable. Exhausted, we headed home for lunch and a quiet afternoon of math, reading, and a short walk in the neighbourhood. Ryan and Jed have been tasked with mapping the neighbourhood we live in. They began yesterday, heading in a westerly direction and walked a couple of blocks. Today we walked in an easterly direction and again mapped a few blocks, this time in a light, but persistent drizzle. The houses in our neighbourhood are all really interesting to look at as we pass. Today we saw a mix of modern homes, an old farmhouse, a traditional Cape Dutch home and some really alien looking structures. But its the variety and sounds of the dogs at almost every house we pass that provide the most entertainment! Our children really love other people's pets!