Coloring Outside the Lines

Today was the big day- my first day of school!  We have started teaching at the Tongxiang Modern Experiment School and my first class was so much fun! I have a feeling that by the end of the day I will be EXHAUSTED but I am having so much fun. The kids are so excited to learn English and all about the American culture- it is so much fun to see them so excited!  I even got to give a few of them English names because they didn’t have one yet.  

Today we talked about colors, numbers and families.  Though the colors, numbers and immediate family topics seemed easy for them to understand, we all thought they struggled a little more with the concept of extended family, especially cousins.  Overall though, I am so impressed with their English abilities- I couldn’t have asked for a better first class!

After class was over we took pictures, and students even asked for my autograph- I feel like such a movie star here.  It has been so nice to be welcome with open arms into the school and it is so good to see the students enjoying themselves!

We’ve finally made it to our final city in China- Tongxiang! In just a few days, we’ll begin teaching at The Modern Experiment School where we’ll teach for 10 days (5 days on, 1 day off, 5 days on, and then prep for our final performance!)

Since the last time I blogged we toured Shanghai, the shopping (and clubbing!) hot spot in China.  We spent tons of time wandering through small shops where we got to barter to get the best prices, and some of the bigger places even gave us discounts just for being students!  I bought tons of souvenirs, and bought real pearls for myself! While in Shanghai we also went out to experience the nightlife- which is something Shanghai is well known for.  We met up with a friend from the States who has been interning here and he took us to some of Shanghai’s most awesome night clubs!  In one area of town, there was a park with 4 nightclubs surrounding it- we had a blast!

After dancing the night away and shopping in Shanghai, we headed to Tongxiang this morning.  Tomorrow we’ll meet up with the rest of our group, meet our teaching assistants, and work on our lesson plans, gearing up for the start of the summer camp on Sunday- can’t wait!

WE MADE IT!

We are in CHINA!  I can hardly believe it’s real!  We landed in Shanghai and then headed to Beijing for the first leg of our tours.  While there we visited tons of cool places and got our pictures taken…a lot.  Everyone has been grabbing us to take photos with them, espeically Dee (blond) and Erik (tall).  We’re back in Shanghai now and begin touring again tomorrow. 

Meanwhile, in Beijing we visited a ton of historic/really awesome places:

1- The Forbidden City
This was so much fun to wander through, even though it was super hot!  We got our first real taste of Chinese architecture here!

2- Tiannamen Square
This is kinda like China’s Washington DC.  We saw the buildings used for the People’s Congress and had a lot of pictures taken of us!

3- The Summer Palace
This has been by far my favorite place so far.  It was the Palace that the Emperor would visit during the summer season. I got a lot of really pretty pictures here, that I will upload as soon as the internet lets me.  We also saw some guys playing music in one of the pagodas- super fun.

4- The Great Wall of China
Naturally- this is a must see; one of the 7 wonders of the World.  We climbed the wall and got some awesome pictures there as well.  It’s so much bigger than I ever expected it to be- definitely worth a visit!

In addition to checking out these places, we’ve done a little shopping, and will do more tomorrow since we’ll be in Shanghai.  More posts and pictures coming soon!

Sun, surf and sand- Welcome to LA!  We touched down on Monday night on the beautiful California coast and spent the next few days exploring as “pre-trip”.  Check out our top picks for places to visit and things to do in Cali!

 The Getty Center
I think it’s safe to say that we all enjoyed our time at The Getty Center.  The museum fascinated us in every way, right down to the architecture of the building.  We had the chance to explore it inside and out, and as college students, we enjoyed the fact that it was free (there was a parking fee…totally worth it)!

Pacific Coast Highway
After our time on the beach we went for a drive on Pacific Coast Highway (read: breathtaking California coastline).  We took tons of pictures, and even stopped off for a bit to take some more of us hanging out near another beach.  Another fun, free activity!

Venice Beach/Boardwalk
We all had a great time on the beach on our first day of the trip.  After lying in the sun, playing in the ocean and watching some serious surfer skills we went for a walk down the boardwalk- which proved to be an adventure all its own.  We people watched (fantastic!), browsed the shops (fantastic!) and encountered some interesting characters (someone sang to us about our belly buttons…).  Overall- a great time on a beautiful beach!

The best thing about all of this is that everything was either free or super cheap.  The most we paid (outside of our meals) was $15 for parking at the Getty, but admission was free!  It was great because even as college kids we had the chance to see some really cool places and experience awesome things during our trip!

Next Stop: China!  Stay tuned for updates and pictures from our first few days here!

Well, it’s finally here.  Yano when you’re really excited for something but you think it will never actually happen…and then it does?

That’s EXACTLY how I feel.  Tomorrow I will jump on a plane, cross the pacific ocean (and a ton of time zones) and land in China!  For the first week we will tour Beijing and Shanghai and get our tourist on, and then head to Tongxiang to start teaching!

Since I won’t be able to access Facebook our Twitter, be on the lookout for my blog posts that will include pictures, videos and fun stories.

On our way to China, we stopped in LA, and let me tell you, it has been a fabulous 2 day trip.  We hung out on the beach, did the Hollywood walk of fame, visited The Getty Center, Rodeo Dr. and the Walt Disney Concert Hall…it’s been epic.  I’ll be uploading some of those photos soon too, so be on the lookout!

China, Here we come!