My wonderful daughter Miranda Grace tossed my pencil away – the one I’d bought expressly to use on this trip to China – and so I was forced to use my ball point pen for all sketches. But once we arrived in Guangzhou I found this silky little number and it’s giving me some nicer nuance to the quick sketches I’m doing in my journal.

Here are two quick drawings I’ve done since obtaining this Chinese pencil… one of a three-wheeled car we saw back in Zhengzhou and one of Vivian (one of our guides). Click for a larger view. Perhaps more will come soon. I’ve done a few drawings of CaiQun and I’m also adding in a few details of hotel rooms, architecture, vehicles (as you’ve seen), and other interesting bits.