Day 13 in China -- our last official day here!

Hi everyone ... well our trip here in China has officially come to a close.  It's close to 8pm on Friday, April 17 here and we had a wonderfully relaxing day in Beijing.  We left Jinan around 7am this morning, arriving in Beijing around 10:15am.  We were so excited to see our friend, Bing, waiting for us!  He quickly wisked us away to our hotel, where we spent an hour resting, before we were off to lunch and the Silk Market.  Today was the day all of the shoppers in our group was waiting for -- there were a ton of great deals at the Silk Market (if you were savvy enough to bargain, which all of our students were!)  So expect some nice gifts upon their return! :)

We went to dinner and are now back in the hotel, resting up for our day of traveling tomorrow.  The kids are sleeping in a bit later tomorrow morning (their wake-up call is at 8:45am), and we'll leave the hotel around 10am, before heading out to the Antique Market for an hour.  Then it's lunch and the airport.  Our flight is leaving around 6:30pm tomorrow and with the flight and quick layover in Washington, D.C., we are expected home after 11pm tomorrow night.

Before I close tonight, I want to mention what a pleasure it has been for me to share this experience with the students.  This has been an amazing journey and I'm excited to share all of the things I have learned with my students when I get back home.  Thank you for following along and I look forward to seeing you tomorrow!  The kids are ready to come home ... so be prepared for a group of students who will be grateful for their families and friends, not to mention their beds and kitchens too! :)

Take care and wan an :)

Day 12 in China!

Hi everyone ... well, this will be my second to last blog for our China trip, as tomorrow is our last day in China.  It has been an incredible trip -- one that I believe, in many ways, has probably changed my life!

We started today by bidding our families in Jining a farewell at the school gate in the morning, before meeting up with our fellow travelers from Housatonic in Tai'an.  In Tai'an, we climbed Taishan, or Tai Mountain, the most sacred of all mountains in China.  The Chinese people believe that the closer you are to the heavens, the closer you are to having the heavens hear your thoughts, concerns and wishes.  Therefore, all along the climb, there makeshift Buddhist temples -- Mrs. Carter, Adrianne and I participated in a Buddhist practice by purchasing a lock and incense.  We lit the incense and bowed to Buddha three times, before taking our lock (on which our name and the date had been carved) and "locking away" all of our past mistakes, therefore opening ourselves up to new experiences!  (A little spiritual, I know, but it was a very cool experience!)  

Here's my lock! (my hand normally doesn't look that big!)

I don't think our group was prepared, however, for the strenuous climb Taishan would be -- it took us 4 hours!!  Most of the group stopped half-way (2 hours into the climb, mind you) and took a cable car up to the top, where lunch was waiting.  But Brian, Jan, Lauren, Kendra, Adrianne and myself toughed the rest of the climb up!  Here are some pics from the way up!

 

This picture is from the very top of Taishan -- we climbed over 6,000 stairs!! 

This shot is from about 2/3 of the way there -- Adrianne and I came to a point and then looked up and couldn't believe how much farther we had to go up!! You can't really tell from the picture but right in the center of where the mountains meet the sky was the top!
This sign appeared more than half-way up ... it reads "Climbing Begins Here."  Begins???? :)
A few from far down the mountain!

Tomorrow, we're taking the morning express train to Beijing, where our fearless leader, Bing, will be waiting for us.  From there, we're going to spend the day shopping in the Silk Market, before heading back to the hotel and prepping ourselves for the return home.  Some of us might splurge on a foot massage, as we hear they are very good -- I know a few girls are interested, but I'd like to see if one of the guys would be too -- it'd be a nice pic to add to the blog :)

Until tomorrow ... :)

Wan an

Day 11 in China!

Hi everyone ... well, our stay in Jining has come to a close and although we'll leave tomorrow morning for Tai'an, the friendships we have made here will last a lifetime! Here are some pictures of today's activities! 

A group shot of all of the Canton Students with their host students from the Affiliated Middle School of Jining Institute at the farewell dinner -- they were very patient ... it seemed like 30 different people all wanted to take their picture!
All of the Canton students before heading back home for their last night with their families.


All of the students posing outside the library at Jining Institute!

The following pictures are of each of the Canton students touching the dragon on the stone pillar at Confucius' temple.  It's believed that if you rub the dragon, you will experience good fortune ... so each had a turn!





An inside shot of Confucius' temple!

Today, we went to Qufu (pronounced "choo foo"), the hometown of Confucius.  There we toured through the temple dedicated to him, his mansion (or, his family's mansion) and his "woods" (the cemetery where all descendants of Confucius are buried).  Confucius thought is evident in many places in Chinese culture -- and as a teacher, I am extremely interested in the philosophies and lessons from him!

After Qufu, we went to Jining Institute, the university affiliated with our sister school.  There, we posed for pictures outside the library!  We were also treated to lunch there by Mr. Li, who used to be the principal of our sister school, but has since been promoted to a position at Jining Institute!

In the evening, we had a wonderful farewell dinner with the host families and Mr. Meng and Mr. Li!  The school presented each student with a gift -- a plaque of Confucius!

Tomorrow, we're leaving early in the morning for Tai'an, where we'll climb Tai Shan (Mt. Tai).  From there, we'll drive to Jinan and spend the evening there, before heading out on the express train early Friday morning for Beijing!  We'll be home before you know it!

Wan an :)

Day 10 in China!

Hi everyone!  As promised, I have LOTS of pictures today!!!  I have a picture of each of the students from Canton High School with their host student and their families!  I'm writing the blog a little different tonight, so follow along! :)

Today has to be one of my favorite days in China so far!!  I got to be a teacher again (!!) -- I missed being in front of a classroom :)  The students treated all of us like movie stars, and I for one have never being treated so well and admired so much in one place by so many people.  All of the students I met with today wanted to take a picture with me!!

This is a picture of the students doing their "eye exercises" -- these are students in Grade 2 (which is really Grade 7 in the states) relaxing their eyes.  The average class in Jining is nearly 80 students (!) so this was ONE English class! 

As you can see, Mr. Gula is highly regarded in Jining!  This is a picture hanging in the stairwell of the administrative building!

Here I am answering questions and talking to a group of students in Grade 7!

This is Nick and his host, Su Xianlin and his father -- his father took time off from work in Beijing to spend these past few days with Nick!

This is Shawn and Zhang Tianyuan and his little sister and father -- Shawn has joked that he has a new sister this week! 

This is Brian and his host Xue Rui and his father! (as you can see there's a height difference!)

This is Jan and his host Zou Yuheng and his mother -- Jan, I must say, has been extremely attentive and has interacted really well with his host -- they played Jiangzi today in the school yeard (think "hacky-sack" but with feathers!) 

This is Shelby and her hostess Chen Xi and her father!

This is Jessica and her hostess Zhang Bowen and her parents -- Jessica received a rabbit from Zhang as a gift!!!  We'll see if we can bring it home!

This is Adrianne and her hostess Qin Wenjing and her friend!

This is Danielle and her hostess Li Xinyuan and her father!
This is Lauren and her hostess Tan Tianyao and her father!

This is Kendra and her hostess Su Ziyi and her mother!

This is a picture of Ms. Gembala shaking hands and meeting with Mr. Li, the principal of our sister school!  I had just arrived off the bus in Jining and was welcomed with open arms!

A picture of the flowers Holly gave me as a welcome gift!

Today was an amazing day in China!  I can't say enough how welcomed we have felt while here in Jining -- the students asked so many wonderful questions (and spoke very good english for only having studied it for 2 years or less!) and were wonderfully polite, shaking hands and wanting to take pictures and know more about us.  It has truly been a wonderful way to share cultures and to develop friendships!

Today the students spent the morning with their host students in the school, before heading home for lunch.  Students in Jining get almost 3 hours break in the afternoon, so they go home and eat lunch and take a nap, before heading back to school for the day.  In the afternoon, the students participated in a Chinese paper cutting activity, as well as some PE activities.  Then they went home for dinner with their families.

I went to dinner with a number of my new friends, mainly English teachers as well as Mike, who came to Canton in the fall.  Mike treated us to a hot pot dinner -- I tried cow lungs and cow stomach!!  Not too bad :)

Tomorrow we are going to Qufu, the home of Confucius, as well as a visit to Jining Institute! Then we are going to a farewell dinner party with the host families and teachers from the school.  

Before I close, I want to tell all of my new friends here how wonderful they have been and how much I appreciate and value their friendship!  Cheers to more time together! :)

Wanan :)

Day 9 in China ... we meet our host families!

Ni hao ma!

Hi everyone ... today we began the next leg of our adventures -- we finally met our host families in Jining!! We left our hotel in Qingdao around 7am this morning, and started our long journey across Shandong province.  We dropped off Lisa Carter and the 5 students from Housatonic Valley High School at their sister school at 1pm, and left for Jining, thinking it was only supposed to take an hour.  2 1/4 hours later, we finally arrived in Jining -- with a number of Canton students who couldn't wait to see their host families (as well as use the bathroom ... 4+ hours was a bit too much!)  I will say that a number of students were a bit nervous about meeting their host families, but the students and families waiting were so warm and welcoming, I'm sure that everyone had a fantastic time.  We were treated like movie stars when we got off the bus -- cameras flashing and some clapping too!  And Holly presented me with the most beautiful flowers!  In the bustle, I didn't have a chance to take any pictures of the students with their host families, but I will tomorrow for sure.

Holly, the English Department Supervisor, has graciously opened up her home to me for the next few days and I feel like she and I are already great friends!  She took me to her apartment, so I could freshen up a bit, and then brought me to the school to meet with her principal, Mr. Li.  Then she took me to her mother-in-law's apartment, where 9 other people (family and friends) ate an AMAZING dinner!  The dinner had 18 different dishes!!  I took a few pictures :)

Tomorrow, the students and I will spend the day in school with the students, and on Wednesday, we are going to Confucius's home and touring the city of Jining, before we bid our new friends farewell on Thursday morning.  

Already, I know that this trip has taught me a lot (and I hope the students too) about not only the history and culture of the Chinese people, but of humanity in general.  To be welcomed into a home, to share stories and laughs, even with a language barrier, is an amazing experience. 

Wanan :)  More tomorrow :)

Day 8 in China!

Ni hao ma!

Hi everyone ... well, today we had another wonderful day in China.  The weather started out a little cool and cloudy, but the sun ended up burning all of the fog off and we had another terrific day.  Today we climbed Laoshan, the famous mountain in Qingdao.  The mountain range was incredibly beautiful, as I'm sure you'll see by all of the pics.  We spent a few hours hiking up (there were a ton of tourists walking as well, but we were the only Americans, so again many of our students posed with locals and tourists alike -- the blondes, brunettes and red heads certainly do stand out in a crowd!)

While on Laoshan, William (our guide in Qingdao) treated Mrs. Carter and myself to a traditional green tea ceremony.  William is a tea expert, so he made sure that we both were given tea that fit our satisfaction (and, yes, Mom, I do like tea now! :) )

After Laoshan, we visited a pagoda right on the shore of Qingdao.  I can honestly say that the view was reminiscent of a European coastline ... one would never guess that we were in China. The students, of course, had fun climbing the rocks along the water -- I suppose climbing a mountain wasn't enough for them in one day.

After our sightseeing, we went back to the hotel and William -- the expert guide that he is -- (having recognized that we truly enjoyed our lunch yesterday at the posh restaurant, "Top Restaurant") booked our dinner there again!  So we changed and put on some cleaner and dressier clothes, and enjoyed a dinner of steamed rolls, fish, fresh mushrooms, squid, rice, and clams.  And the mushrooms were picked by William on our way up Laoshan (there were vendors all along the road).

Tomorrow (Monday) we are up early (5:30am) to start our long, 6 hour bus ride to Jining and our sister school.  We are so excited to finally meet with the host families and develop friendships!  I will write more tomorrow when I can (I'm not sure if I'll be able to post right away, though).

Just to close, I know now it's almost 10am in the states, so I would like to wish my family -- Mom, Dad, Kristina, Kevin, Grandma, Grandpa, Uncle Ed, Auntie Ang, and Eddie (and the rest of my family who could not come today!) -- Happy Easter!! Love you lots! :)

Wanan :)