Oh, China

As I lay in my bed (and by bed, I mean the couch in the living room, since bugs have overtaken the ceiling of my room and won’t seem to go away), overcome by an overwhelming lack of sleep, I can't help but think that my iPod has a mind of its own. After selecting a few favorite songs to try to lull me to sleep, I put it on shuffle so I don’t have to think about it anymore. One by one, I am transported back to the past, each song reminding me of a different time in my life. Feeding the gibbons in California…walking through the crowded streets of Barcelona…hopping on a plane to Paris with Fife…long, lonely plane rides, a wonderful year in Portland with Karl…family time with my parents…singing along with my sister…

The list goes on. The memories go on.

I know that a year from now, a lot of these songs will remind me of my time in China. I love that a song can do that.

It has been a while since I last updated, and there’s no reason as to why, really. The internet in our apartment is shaky again, but I guess that’s a bad excuse. It’s almost the middle of March already, and I know I’ve said it before, but I can’t believe how quickly time is flying by.

Things have been good here.

We had a pancake breakfast for all the teachers at our school, which turned out quite well. The Chinese teachers weren’t as thrilled about the maple syrup as all the Americans were, but it was nice for us to get a taste of home without having to spend a lot of money (imported American food is very expensive here).

My Chinese classes are continuing to propel me forward in my goal to become as fluent as possible in the next two years (a goal which I have recently set for myself). My teachers are awesome, and I couldn’t ask for a better learning experience. A couple of days ago my classmates and I talked our teacher into taking us on a mini field trip to a bookstore that we had never been to before. Turned out to be a good time and a nice break from the classroom that we are becoming so accustomed to.

I have recently found out what trying to plan an international trip in China is like. My friend Alex and I went to a couple travel agencies’ yesterday to see what kind of help we could get in planning a trip to Mongolia – and got responses like, “Mongolia? What? Why?”

Turns out, nobody goes to Mongolia. According to the travel agency, it’s too cold in Mongolia (uhh, haven’t they ever heard of spring/summer?), and it’s best for me just to stay in China. So, although I am still pursuing this plan, I have now started to think about other choices for my week and a half long trip in May. This is China – I have to keep my options open and be flexible.

So, the new idea is Japan. Supposedly, there is a ferry that runs from a city in China called Qingdao to a port city in Japan…it takes around 29 hours, and costs less than $350. Alex has friends there, so this might be a good option. There is still a lot of planning and figuring out to do, as we would need to arrange transportation down to Qingdao (right now the idea is to fly from Shenyang on the way, and take a train on the way back). Either way, I hope to get some kind of rough itinerary planned in the next couple of weeks…planning a trip is so exciting!

I have been thinking a lot about how I will spend the months between the end of June (when my contract here is up) and the middle of November (when I promised my family I’d be home). I have a rough idea in my head, but things can change so quickly, I don’t want to limit myself too much.

I have finally managed to get my pictures off of my memory card and onto a CD, and am hoping to post them this week (I know I’ve said that before, but now it actually seems possible). I’ll send the link when it’s ready. (For now, enjoy a few pictures below!)

In other news, I have realized in the last week just how tough a long distance relationship is to maintain. I have also realized that I am not very good at it. It’s been a roller coaster week of emotions, but in the end, I know it’ll all work out as it should. For now, I hope everyone is doing well back home, and I miss you all. I know sometimes it’s hard to keep in touch and I may not always answer emails in a timely manner, but my thoughts are always there.

Meg – I can’t wait till you are safely home…and when you are, I’ll call you and we can catch up. Miss you.

Chris – You’re crazy, and I miss our daily talks.


Love you all.




Because it's fun to buy fireworks in China.



The puppy -- my true love.



I miss her.



The pancake breakfast.





Some students at Langston




Mollie, Veronica (our Chinese teacher), and me.

Our little field trip -- I'm eating, as usual.