Highlights

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Hi friends,

Again, it's been a while since I last wrote, and I apologize. My reason is not a lack of interesting material, that's for sure. In fact, just the opposite is true- I have had a very easy time staying quite busy here.

To be honest, I was not expecting to love China. I expected to learn a lot and for this experience to be very interesting, but it was not in my list of expectations to absolutely love my lifestyle here or to find a group of friends who are entirely genuine and inspiring. Writing from a Sunday night- this is the perfect time to tell you that China is really surpassing my expectations, and I am truly enjoying my time here.

So what have I been doing since the week that I spent in Kaili?

For one, I've been studying. There's a belief out there that study abroad is the equivalent of slacking off for a semester, but that is far from true at UIC (at least for those of us interested in having respectable grades to transfer back). In the beginning, the classes seemed far too basic, but in retrospect, that was the time when the professors were gauging levels of English and determining appropriate paces for their courses. Now, things have picked up a bit. The system here is very lecture oriented, and I certainly miss conversation style classes and an emphasis on learning from my peers, but I'm finding ways to stay engaged and interested in all of my courses.

Outside of classes, I've been participating in a few different student organizations. The skate club meets on Friday and Saturday nights for trick and street skating, and on Wednesdays for roller dance. I try to make it at least once a week, and aside from having met some great people, I have mastered the fish, snake, and "ba" techniques as well as the grapevine (which I can do in time to music).

The outdoors club is a bit more informal sort of club- a group of people who enjoy the same things and organize outings as it occurs to them. Mel and I both invested in hiking boots and sleeping bags, and have had two very enjoyable full day hikes as well as an awesome night camping on a beach near campus. We improvised to make s'mores, and Mel managed to keep a campfire going despite a complete lack of proper firewood. We also convinced John (from our homestay) to come along, and think we might have him hooked on the outdoorsy lifestyle.

John and one of his friends, Connan, along with another volunteer, Barbara, all went with me about a week ago to teach English at a local migrant school. The three of them were great assistants, and we had a lot of fun with our class of 50 thirteen-year-olds. The lesson we had planned for them proved to be far too elementary, so we're working on some other ideas and all look forward to going back when they have time for us again in a couple of weeks.

Other than that, recent highlights include a surfing outing (small waves, but enough for a beginner to practice techniques) and an afternoon at a local BBQ and boxing establishment with one of my classmates. Also, the weather is finally starting to cool down, which makes everything here much more comfortable.

This weekend Mel and I took our second trip to Macau. I have to go once a month in order to renew my visa, which may sounds like a bit of a hassle, but has actually turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Macau is more developed and more manageable than mainland China, and after both visits, I've returned to school feeling rested, refreshed, and ready to keep on with this adventure. This weekend we chouchsurfed with the same people we stayed with a month ago- Afonso and Rui, who are both from Portugal. (Macau was, until recently, a Portuguese colony, and now falls under the One Country, Two Systems policy of China. It has a super interesting history, but instead of going into it here, I'll just recommend that you read up on it if you have a bit of time). Highlights with Rui, Afonso, and friends have included Bollywood dance parties (x2), traditional Portuguese food, Afonso's awesome DJ skills, a walk and lunch in the village on Coloan island. The best, though, was probably the chance to finally use a kitchen. This weekend saw us consume a homemade Mexican (ok...reasonable Mexican) dinner, and banana pancakes for breakfast.

I am one happy camper.

Jiang Anyi was visiting John this weekend, and took us out for a lovely seafood dinner on the boardwalk of a nearby island tonight. It was really fun to see her, and even better to realize that my Chinese has noticeably improved. Now, rather than relying on John to interpret everything, I could use pretty basic sentences to express my general thought- and then let John fill in the missing pieces. Nothing spectacular, I know, but it feels like a tangible step.

And one last bit of news before I sign off: I got a new roommate this weekend! My student guide from the beginning of the semester, who I now consider a good friend, had been having roommate issues all semester, and I was living with a freshman student, which was not the intended arrangement. Anna is a third year student studying to be an English teacher, and she spent this past summer in Minnesota. Since we get along well, we decided that it would be good for both of us to make a roommate swap. She switched places with my roommate yesterday morning, and I really look forward to sharing a room with her for the rest of the semester!

Again, thank you all for your prayers and well wishes- it would be so difficult to be here if I didn't have such a spectacular support system back home!

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