大風 (Typhoon) Chris!

Well, Chris came and brought a typhoon with him.  Really!


Before going to bed last night, my roommates and I heard that a level 1 typhoon warning had been "hoisted."  As there are 10 warning levels, we were not worried.  However, this morning, just before leaving for work at 8 am, we got a phone call saying that school had been cancelled because we were now at a level 8 warning.  I guess that's what happens when you work on an island.

So what is a typhoon like?  Well, it did not actually make landfall in Macau, but we did experience rainy, windy, and overcast weather all day.  Debris floated through the air, most stores were closed, all three bridges leading to Taipa (the island where UMAC is located) were closed, traffic was non-existent, the buses stopped running, and we enjoyed a day at home.  Jess made cookies, Chris and I visited and played cards, Angie ate cookies and took a nap.


At one point in the day, the rain was pouring down, and we all crowded around the balcony doors to watch it fall.  Then I noticed something silver floating in the air.  It looked like confetti and sparkled and shimmered.  Then I realized what it was.  It was raindrops, caught in the wind, flying upward in the sky.  Amazing!  Maybe you can see them below in the photo.

More than likely, we will have school tomorrow.  We are now at a level 3, and as you can see, the security guard in my building doesn't seem at all worried.  But if you would like to follow the typhoon, you can check it on this website: http://www.smg.gov.mo/www/cvm/typhoon/fe_typhoonmain.htm  (Don't freak yourself out, Mom!), or you can just check Jess' blog (see the sidebar).  She took some amazing video coverage today and does great commentary.  I am happy to let the "best blog award go to her, ha, ha.


Being Beth, I had to share some interesting information on the etymology of the word "typhoon" from Wikipedia.  Happy reading and stay dry!    


Typhoons 
The English term typhoon appears to be related to Chinese southern dialects such as Hakka and Cantonese, where the pronunciation for 大風 (Dai-fung, Great Wind) sounds exactly like the English word. (The more modern term for Typhoon in Chinese (simplified Chinese: 台风; traditional Chinese: 颱風; pinyin: Táifēng), or in Japanese 台風 (tai-fū), having the literal meaning of "Wind from Taiwan", and may have been re-imported from English.