A Reprieve

When we arrived in China three weeks ago, stifling heat surrounded us and the humidity was out of control. It reached up to 99°F during the day (though it would feel like 105°-115°, depending on the humidity) and dropped to 80° at night—not much relief.  They sold out of air conditioners in our city, since this was the hottest summer on record for the past 50 years! To top it all off, smog blanketed the entire city, so much so that we couldn't even see the mountains that are less than a mile away. 

[Good thing we're practicing gratefulness in all situations. We're so very thankful that our sweat glands are working properly, along with our olfactory systems!]

Believe it or not, there are supposed to be mountains in the backdrop.

This past week has been so beautiful, such a drastic change from the first two weeks. It's been in the 80s during the day, without too much humidity, and then low 70s at night.  And it's been clear! I had forgotten how beautiful the mountains are.

And this is just the view from our bus stop!

So yes, we've had a break from the heat, and we've had a break this weekend to relax before we start teacher days this next week. We had new teacher orientation last week, which was very helpful; we learned more about the school, Chinese culture, and our new coworkers. Now we just have five work days left before the madness begins September 2.