Planning a trip to Xiamen

I have friends in Xiamen and I will need to see about planning a trip to visit them next week.  I will probably leave on Wednesday and return on Monday.  I need to check on air fare and all that stuff. I have never done much of this because JoAnne does this type of stuff.  I will see how well I do.  There are a lot of people I would like to see while I am here but just like in the USA when you have to work and places are far away it is not easy to visit people.  I hope to post pictures of  Xiamen in the near future.  I did call the bank and tell them I have plans to travel.  I would rather call them ahead of time than have them flag my card and stop payment on things.  I am going to travel lite to Xiamen and I hope to buy a couple of extra short sleeve shirts if I can find something that will fit me.  I found shirts in Malaysia so I think I can find something to wear in Xiamen.  The time is passing by faster and faster.  Soon it will be May and then June and then we will get on a plane and return to the USA.  I will have to adjust to a different time zone, a different type of work day, different people, less people.  It is going to be strange to walk down a street and not see 100's of Chinese people, actually not see anyone. I will not hear fireworks three or four times a day or car horns honking at all hours.  It will also be strange to not have people clean my room every day.  But I do have somethings to work on once I get back.  I am looking forward to the solar coffee drier project.  I think that will be very interesting and fun to be a part of.  I am so looking forward to the hot and humid days of summer in Illinois.  It will also be strange to sit down and eat a steak and enjoy a glass of red wine.  This has been one of the most interesting times of my life.  I have loved every minute of my trip so far.  I like going to see the big items as much as I enjoy the little things of every day life here. It will be nice to be able to cross the street and not have to worry about people running the red light and hitting you. I would never drive here.  It is hard to believe what you can see when you take the bus some where.  I need to do things to get ready for class tomorrow.  I do enjoy walking around the campus and having students stop and talk to you or just smile and wave.  That I will miss and miss a lot.