We have been living in Yunnan, China, for 7 months. We have adapted well to the climate in Yunnan – experiencing the warmth of the South and the cold of the North. We love the local food and our diet consists of home-cooked and restaurant/café meals. We have and abundance of fresh fruit, vegetables and a more limited choice of meat – any reticence due to questions of freshness and preparation.

Apart from on a Monday morning, when we are awoken by VERY loud music for morning exercise and raising the National flag, we are all sleeping very well. Back in the UK life consisted of struggling from one cold or virus to another. This was particularly true when Freda attended nursery and playgroup, exposing us all to the village bug pool. So far we have had only a couple of sniffles and no serious coughs. Lesley is experiencing fewer headaches than she used to and so we can, on the whole, report that we have never felt better.

Having said that, this report would not be complete without noting a few of the low points. These began in the first week. Lesley seemed to develop a corneal abrasion in Xi’an. She’d had slight eye dryness in Scotland but nothing serious. The conditions of Xi’an (heat, air conditioning), however, brought with them an alarming amount of pain and sleepless nights. Fortunately the first aid kit contained various lubricants and drops, choices informed by a previous abrasion experience! These have been in use since. She has experienced relapses in Kunming (another dry city) and always sleeps with a big bowl of water by the bed to increase humidity. The ointments are running out (and unavailable in China) so we have the added stress of having them sent over to us. Otherwise, we think the abrasion is on the mend.

On leaving Xi’an, after In-Country Training, the children developed what seemed to be some kind of virus. Freda and Edie were particularly badly affected, with temperatures over 39 degrees C for almost a week. Having been here for less than a fortnight we could immediately rule out malaria. We have been reassured that there is no malaria in Simao or the neighbouring vicinity, but it will always lurk in the back of our minds as something to look out for. This was a difficult period. When Freda became ill there were no symptoms indicating something more ‘ordinary’ like flu, for example, just a high temperature and very uncharacteristic lethargy. This was not a good start to our life here. Looking back, it doesn’t seem that serious but at the time I felt guilt (at bringing them here – let’s leave rationale out of the discussion for now), fear, stress, confusion and isolation. After 4 or 5 days and no improvement, we contacted a friend in the UK for advice, as well as a VSO-recommended GP in Beijing. We followed their recommendations and after 7 days their temperatures came down. To our relief they subsequently developed coughs and sore throats. We are slightly embarrassed to admit that during an electric storm, cockroach invasion (they don’t like the rain), 4 am fever recurrence of Edie’s at 4 am on day 6 of her illness we did panic and start a course of antibiotics (in the medical supplies). We acted as we thought best at the time. It’s likely that she was on the mend anyway, but at that stage we didn’t feel happy taking the risk and we had no immediate medical backup to help make a decision.

The second ailment of Freda’s occurred in week 2. She developed sore and itchy blisters on her legs and arms. At first we thought she had scratched some mosquito bites in her sleep but they rapidly deteriorated and spread. We consulted our Bradt guide (Your Child Abroad) and narrowed this down to a few, not too alarming, conditions. A visit to Simao People’s Hospital confirmed hives. We treated them with diluted Calamine Lotion (well, that’s what I recognised it as) and within a few weeks they had gone. She had what may have been a very mild reoccurrence last month, while travelling, perhaps brought on by tiredness. Although otherwise well, Freda (5 years old) is more prone to stress and has mood peaks and troughs. She’s feeling homesick at the moment although says she loves China and would like to live here and in Scotland at the same time. We are working hard to find and develop friendships for/with her. She has a friend on the campus and also plays with the daughter of a colleague. On Sunday Freda (and Lesley) will start dance classes and today we headed out into the countryside to spot animals because she is missing sheep, horses and the hills.

Edie is bumbling along. As well as the virus in the early days and the odd cold Edie recently had a possible UTI: spontaneous (and uncharacteristic) wetting, sore bottom, "sore tummy" (difficult to pin-point). We gathered as much information as possible and followed the recommendation to have her urine tested. The dip test results appeared to be normal (4 days after symptoms first appeared) but we’re keeping a close eye on things. Any trip to the hospital, when already anxious about the children’s health and well-being, is usually a source of stress. We managed to keep Edie at home and persuaded the doctors and auxiliaries that we merely wanted confirmation. Readiness to provide the sample and pay the required amount sped this along a little. So did meeting an auxiliary who was eager to practise a little English and join Lesley’s lessons at the College. A useful contact to have.

We are currently taking vitamin C supplements as we’ve all had sore throats and sniffles over the last week. Lesley’s last sore throat lasted over a month and seemed to be exacerbated by teaching – an occupational hazard that we need to find a preventative measure for – other than whispering and miming in class. This does, of course, offer an even greater incentive to prepare student-centred lessons.

Thus, given the balance of the above report, our greatest concern is the children. Our emotional/psychological states seem to be fairly stable. Our role changes (Lesley to full-time work and Alastair to full-time parent) bring with them a considerable amount of negotiation over who’s doing what, for instance, but we are adjusting considerably well. Stress and ‘low’ days generally coincide with busy periods at work (beginning and end of term) and the children being ill. The latter, in particular, challenges our decision to be here. Of course we would get ill in Scotland (including sickness bugs, which we haven’t experienced here yet) BUT we would have much easier, quicker and informed access to health care, advice and, if need be, medication. When things ‘go wrong’ here, especially for the children, there is an extra weight of responsibility on our shoulders – that of having brought them to China. This is especially true for Lesley. Freda’s tears and announcement that she wanted to go back to Scotland came at 7.50 this morning – 10 minutes before Lesley’s class. It’s hard not to become harassed. It’s easy to question the sense in what we have done - exchanging a comfortable, relatively safe and familiar environment for …. Well, that’s the thing. We’re safe, comfortable and our environment is becoming familiar. Freda and Edie are best of friends, they speak Chinese and have a great time indoors and outdoors. They love the food, have lots of ‘aunties’ in the students and are learning maths by counting ants and spiders in the forest. We merely have to learn new ways of doing things (like asking for a urine culture in Chinese) in times of stress. If it wasn’t homesickness to deal with before work, it would be school friends and playground angst! We need to adapt, develop new strategies for new situations and stand on our own two feet. If we can manage the stress, worry and practicalities of being here then we will be absolutely fine. So far, so good. Should I be saying, ‘touch wood’?