The Mask

I thought this was an interesting find, at the bottom of the hotel wardrobe. I am actually very impressed, considering my location on the 19th floor and well beyond the scope of the local fire brigade. With the lifts not recommended, the only escape will be the stairs, which would basically act as a funnel for fumes. Maybe I should get a lower room!

Just down the main drive from my office, there are a row of well-manicured bushes. Not ideal, as wild growing vegetation is always the best producer of bugs, but better than nothing, so I decided to take a look and see what is available.

Unfortunately, I left the camera switched on last night and so the battery was flat, so no bug shots today, just a ten minute rekky.

I spotted three species of butterfly; a small blue, a medium white and what looked like a monarch relation that I have seen in Singapore. So already enough to make it worth the struggle with security guards, who will not be happy about me wielding the big eye. It is not like there is anything worth protecting, it is all copied from other companies anyway!

I also spotted a small ladybird, a small bumble bee, a small honey bee and a fairly large hoverfly type bug. A pity about the battery, but they will all be here tomorrow. The butterflies are going to be the biggest problem as I have not seen one settle long enough for a shot, but I should come away with something.

Now I need to start looking for a China bug site with English commentary, that is not going to be easy.

I met an interesting woman this evening, a Chinese teacher. I have been desperate to tell you all that in the final weeks in Indonesia, I had actually started teaching and was having a great time with it too. Unfortunately, my VISA did not allow me to do any kind of work, paid or unpaid and so I could not risk putting it on the internet.

Christine has taken my number and has invited me for tea on Saturday morning, after which I will be meeting her class and talking to them in English for their experience. This promises to be fun and very rewarding. I will write about my Indonesian teaching experiences soon.

Dave