Over the last couple of months I've reread the Farseer and Tawny Man trilogies, plus Fool's Assassin and Fool's Quest. I started because I wanted to experience Nighteyes again now I'm a dog owner, but quickly got wrapped up in Fitz and kept going past Nighteyes' death. ( More )

My favourite vid to a David Bowie song: Under Pressure (SPN) by way2busymom

(Can't find a current streaming version)

( A few comments )

Cesar's Rules by Cesar Millan

In this book Cesar Millan (the TV "Dog Whisperer") interviews a variety of accomplished dog trainers and behaviourists, many of whom don't agree with some of his methods, to provide an overview of the various options.

( Notes )

From reading reviews, I expected to like this book much more than I did. ( A few comments )

After the Great Wall hiking trip finished, I joined a long weekend trip run by Beijing Hikers to the grasslands near the Mongolian border. It took 5 1/2 hours on a bus to get there, and 8 1/2 hours to get back to Beijing thanks to the longest traffic jam I've ever been in ( Read more... )

I was conscious of China being Temeraire's country of origin and I'm sure that added some extra enjoyment to my trip.

I wish I'd started taking dragon pictures earlier, but ( here are two from my last day )

( English translations on signs )

The Great Wall is one of those places that pictures don't adequately convey. We spent seven days hiking up to and on various parts of it, and I could happily have done much more ( Read more... )

I've just returned from three weeks in China, my present to myself to mark the end of my most recent job ( Read more... )