Jed's observation and shopping

We were on the way to school when Jed looked at the sky and said, "I think it's going to rain today." Then he paused for a moment and said, "or maybe it's the pollution." Which it was. Many days look overcast but it's really the air quality, not the weather.

It will be nice to get back to clean air for the summer. The boys and I head back on Sunday. (Yes, I am flying with them by myself.) I made one last trip to the market yesterday and stocked up on gifts and a few more clothing items for the boys. The prices are going up in preparation for the influx of visitors for the Olympics. It takes longer to get down to the real price and it gets tedious. I enjoy the game of the bargaining when I first start out shopping but by the end I always wish they'd just give me the real price without the struggle. For a coat my friend's mom bought, the price started at 980 rmb ($142 USD) and after much haggling, we walked away with the coat for 200 rmb ($29 USD). It's come to the point where the women will talk quietly to bargain with people they know live here so that the tourists don't hear the real prices.