On January 31st the year 4651 since the introduction of the lunar calendar begins in Vietnam. So the European era is far ahead . The new year is under the sign of the Horse . After last year with the snake prudence and good planning were asked, the energy of the horse favors, self-confidence and initiative in the next twelve months. The horse is considered as restless , full of desire to move and always looking for new adventures . The year 2014 therefore promises to be a year full of excitement and adventure . At least for my oldest foster daughter Lan it will be a year full of adventures this year. She will go along with my cousin Misaki in the summer for several months , maybe even for a whole year to Japan. At the first visit of Misaki the two girls became best friends. Now Misaki’s father, who lives in Sapporo, who was willing to discuss , is taking over half of the cost of Lans stay in Japan. He will also care for the invitation for a visa . Misaki will spend one year at the high school in Tokyo, while we will organize private art lessons for Lan .   Of course, it is not easy for me to let go Lan for such a long time. After all, I have experienced at first hand how she has evolved from the totally intimidated twelve-year-old girl, who i got to know in fall 2008, to a young woman who comes to terms with everything in her life, despite the bad traumatic experiences during her time as a street child. Since I am staying with the younger girls in Lương Sơn than in Hanoi, she took care of basically everything alone at our apartment in the city. For the very gifted artistic Lan, a longer stay in Japan is of course also an opportunity to develop in this area through getting to know a different culture. That is why I support Lans plan in every respect, even though I know exactly that i will miss the small orchid. But till summer there are still a few months left. Many greetings Cathrin