Well, that special vibe has come... Tombo feels like a xanga update... it's been a while...

Well I'm currently sat in the internet room of the city central Youth Hostel in Beijing... a trendy new joint, far more swish (if a little Ikea) than it's good old British counterparts. My brother left this morning after our two weeks travelling together in Xin jiang and Beijing- we had an awesome time... My Mum, Dad, and sisters arrive tomorrow for a two week 'package' tour of xian, guilin (limestone peaks), chongqing (v big city), shanghai (whoohoo! Where plan is to meet Dom n Tom n George...) finishing at Hong Kong...

Yeh, so it's all (vaguely) coming to a close... though i leave on the 18th August... I've left my project at hutubi, which I'm pretty gutted about, it was really feeling like home, and i'm leaving alot of really good friends behind there... goodbyes were nice, if a little difficult. Mr. Zhao, a complete legend who i wish you could all meet sent me and me bro off at the airport... he gave me a big hug and kept turning round to wave - about 6 times- as he walked away... gonna really miss him...

We went to kashgar (me et bro), which was awesome, saw the old toen (like a huge area of the city that's still intact from like the 1400's and even earlier, where alot of the population lives- all uighur, the native minorities... saw lake karakul, which was a little like parts of mongloia, a lake surrounded by grass plain and snow peaks... also saw alpine lake Tian shi (heavenly lake) stayed in yurts/gers, and camped... did some walks and met some cool people from all over, was awesome.

Sooo, been shoping in Beijing... amazing like GAP type clothes for about a fiver... ha ha, and then there's the DVD's!

Aaaanyway, all for now, i guess, though i could prob think of some more interesting things to write (not to say that what i have written is interesting)... over and out,

Tommy M x

Well, It's all coming to an end, been teaching goodbye lessons all week, sad, but good to be finishing... I can't really be assed to update properly, i've been overcome with lethargy in the heat (35 odd) and it's gonna get much hotter... My brother is flying in in under a week, in fact five days, which will be v weird, but awesome fun... we're going to kashgar for 6 days, and then doing some other stuff, and flying to Beijing a few days before he leaves, will be cool... I'm going to Tibet at the end of the summer with Stew, which should be cool... anyways, hope alls coolio,

Tom x

Currently Watching An American Werewolf in London By David Naughton, Jenny Agutter see related

Alright Fuckers,

It's all coolio here, this week we did a tour of the countryside schools canvassing for hutubi #1 middle school (where we work). Had to stand up in front of 400 odd chinese kids we'd never seen before... it's become scarily easy to do now...

After we'd finished, we were mobbed by these kids who wanted us to write our names on their books/scrap of paper/arm... mayhem... I had about ten books hitting me in the face such that I couldn't actually see my hand to write. Their really nice kids, it's a bit weird, you get the idea of what celebrity could be like... not all that nice, i guess there's something nice about it though. We had to make a literal getaway in the car when the heaving throng became too much, we still had kids pressing their books against the window, and chasing us saying bye... why can't they queue like the British?

Later today were going to Qitai to have a surprise birthday party for Rachael, which should be cool, we'll all get off our faces, and monday I'll be knackered. C'est la Chien. Peace out brovers,

Tommy M x