Our life line to Melbourne...Helsinki...Tirilä...Dalian

I opened the net  today and there were two of my darlings chatting on gmail together, one in Melbourne and one in Helsinki, when I joined them I remembered, the sauna ladies of Myllymäki talked about 4-5 women talking at the same time on skype. I sharpened my ears; that I did not know yet! About twenty women sitting there red and naked from head to toe, that was a new line of sauna discussions among gardening, children, husbands, excessive job demands, cures for arthritis, and other joys of life.

Yes, I thought, should work for us. Saku quickly found out how to proceed. Somehow we all had thought that conference calls might not be free and might need additional equipment. Two seconds and the three of us were online, my babies and me, first time ever! We have been using skype for more than a year and talking in turns, now this! Like Aisha said, this is an adorable (hellyyttävä) new invention, perfect for us. And Elvira in Melbourne, half  Finn who visited the sauna and had a dip in the lake 2,5 times, says that the sauna ladies know the answer to about everything. Yes!

Our news this time were happy as anything; yesterday Saku got acceptance by email form a medical faculty of a university in Dalian, China. If - and hope it will - all paperwork goes fine, he will leave for China by September. And Aisha has completed the term with a possibility to get straight A`s. Now she has the short winter break at the LaTrobe University...about 3 weeks. Meksu is still finishing his EU essay before his break starts. All in all, happy news. Then, someone might ask; daughter in Australia and son in China, how do you like it? I keep in mind that I left for Australia in times when we did not a telephone at home. Communication is easy compared to that, the word has become small - a true little cliche. Why, I love the global touch my children have inherited!

Where is Dalian? It is a modern Chinese seaside city not far from North Korea, where a peninsula juts into the Ylellow sea. We had a swim on the opposite shore last year in September in Quang...dao...these Chinese names sound like one another....just now I notice I write in English...wonder how that happened. Well, I let it be and I leave this post in English. Perhaps I am still in Aussie mood after the family telephone call to Melbourne, although we spoke in Finnish, of course.

Aisha already googled the map of Dalian and opened the route instructions there. Okay, it was a long and detailed drive through Australia and then; kayak across to China  the Pacific Ocean! Only 5000 odd kilometres. Aisha is already planning her trip to see the twin brother. Perhaps she will take the airplane instead of the land and sea route.

Definitely, I will visit Dalian, too. But he has not gone there yet.... We are all excited! For him to get into medical college, for us a chance to visit him there.

Here, the shores of the Yellow Sea, opposite to Dalian.