Summer Holiday (1/3) Larchmont and NYC

Our holiday started in New York State, where we visited with Caren's cousin Julie and her husband Tucker for a few of nights. Unfortunately, our fight was late and we took the wrong train from Grand Central, so we arrived very late. The next day, we spent with Julie and little Lucy at the beach and then had a fantastic dinner with the whole family. Here are some pics:

Julie and Lucy

Freddy the Dog Enjoy's Baby Lucy's Play Matt

Swimming in the Long Island Sound

We spent one day in New York City shopping and walking. As we have both visited many times before, we didn't take many photos. Here are a couple of shots from Katz's Deli, a famous delicatessen in the East Village:

 A Packed Lunch-Time at Katz's Deli

Caren Enjoys Pastrami on Rye beneath a Photo of 

Anthony Bourdaine

Goodbye China

I write this from my new flat in the Groot Begijnhof, Leuven where I will be staying for the next month until we find more perminant accommodation. Tomorrow, I start my new job as an Assistant Professor of Computer Science at K.U. Leuven. It will be a big change of course, but I'm looking forward to it.

Here are some things I will miss from China: my friends, Family Mart veggie buns, speaking bad Chinese, great cheap restaurants, tofu, my students, 1000 year eggs, glorious autumns, cheap rent and my electric scooter (the hogcycle). The only thing that I won't miss about China is the blocking of Internet sites.

Our stuff is travelling to Belgium via the slow boat, here's a shot of it all packed up:

Our Posessions Ready for Shipping to Belgium

I hope that I will be able to return to China soon. Perhaps for IPSN 2012 in Beijing... I will have to start working on that paper.