Rome-Beijing...

How did the kids take the announcement that we would move to China?

Well, as it could be expected, they went through ups and downs.

To be honest, when we first announced it, they did almost not have a reaction - to the extent that we had to ask twice: "Did you understand? Are you happy?", only to receive a quick and almost annoyed "Yes, yes…"

But things changed in the following weeks. Leo in particular had a few moments of real crisis when he finally visualized what 'moving to China' concretely meant - particularly the image of someone else living in our apartment.

"Either me or China", or: "You go, I stay. Don't worry: I will take care of myself…" were some of the sentences that Leo, in his moments of deepest crisis, said in tears (making me wonder: what I am doing…)

Tommy is by nature more introverted and difficult to decipher. We thought (or hoped) that you was still too little to realize what moving actually entailed - although we were at one point told that since he was made aware of the decision to move to China, he isolated himself from the group at the childcare - perhaps a mechanism of self-defense…

However, one thing that really got them excited about the move to China was the prospect of the flight to go to Beijing.

"Can you imagine -- I once heard Leo telling one of his friends -- we take the plane one day, and we arrive in China the following day! We fly the ENTIRE night: we can watch SIX movies!!!"

And so, the day of the departure arrived. Kids were excited, as we couldn't wish more.

Tommy, to be honest, did not resist much, and after 20 minutes of the first movie he was rolled up on his seat soundly sleeping. Leo resisted two movies, but after that he also fell in a deep and sound sleep.

And the following morning, as if by magic, we were in another city, in another continent, ready to start a new life - with smiling Sun waiting for us…

(PS: Les M&M's travel light…)