ONE HOUR!

I'm completely packed.

My luggage weighs 50 pounds (hopefully)

My room is clean (and my closet is a little empty).

I'm bracing myself for 23 hours of travel followed by AWFUL jet lag.

I still can't believe I get to go back to China so soon since I haven't even been home a whole year!

China Horizons is seriously the best program to ever exist and if you want to go to China, forget ILP, choose CH.

I'm so excited it's almost impossible for me to write anything coherent.

I am using every bit of my self-control not to use 8 million exclamation marks.

I leave my house in less than an hour!

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

CHINA!

Changes

If you are confused, so am I, so don't worry. I'm going to help a medical home called Morning Star now. It could change again, who knows. Stay tuned... :)

Goodbyes

I really dislike saying goodbye to people. Perhaps it's the word. It just sounds so final. That's why the Chinese word for goodbye is so much better because it actually means “again see." 再见.

This weekend, I said goodbye to a lot of people. It leaves me exhausted and I crash in my bed and fall asleep like I'm suffering from jet lag.

Yesterday, I spent the day with my Chinese friend 艺泉 (Yi4 quan2), and two awesome guys from my Chinese class, Chance and Thomas. We went "shopping" at the mall (kind of like teenagers) and bought 艺泉 her first pretzel in America. Following that, we went to the dominating local Walmart and bought Valentine's Day treats since I will be travelling and miss Valentine's Day completely. When we went back to 艺泉's apartment we didn't do much of anything but eat and talk. Sometimes, I think that's the best time spent even though when people ask you what you did, it sounds totally lame. I'll be seeing 艺泉 in Shanghai before I fly home in June and I can't wait to see her in her own element.

Then I went to a bar.

Matt and Jayson came home from school this weekend. Jayson called me and told me to bring a coat and my wallet, but refused to tell me where we were going. We drove on the treacherous freeway to Salt Lake City and I saw 3 cars flipped over and at least ten other cars off the road because of the slick ice. We got to City Creek Mall and Jayson and I showed Matt our favorite store. It's our favorite store because when we were looking at clothes, Jayson found an article of clothing and asked me, "Why does this skirt have butt pads." I died laughing because it was a tube-top with a built-in bra. When Matt finished eating his Chick-fil-a chicken, we walked the snow covered streets of SLC to a bar. Jayson has been talking about this bar for a long time. It's called Keys on Main and apparently sometimes it's a karaoke bar. It wasn't karaoke night. It was Mardi Gras. It was really fun to watch the musicians play request after request of popular and not so popular music. They were so talented and probably make a lot of money off tips. I can't say I was completely comfortable being there surrounded by alcohol, but it was the best people watching I've ever had.

That is how we say goodbye. In just 4 days, I will be off to CHINA! The next blog post will for sure be all about China. Until then, 再见.

Beijing

When you go to China, you learn to become a last minute person, change plans at the drop of a dime. True to it's nature, China threw a curve ball at the last minute. Instead of Xi'an and the Starfish Foster Home, I'm off to Beijing and China Little Flower. A woman somehow related to the home offered to let Kendra and me board at her home while there which is beyond amazing of her. There is hope in humanity! ;)

I am completely determined to approach this new experience with an open mind and make Beijing my home. I want to make friends with the locals, and as always, live like the Chinese as much as possible. The best way to keep culture shock and homesickness at bay is to immerse yourself in the culture. It's amazing to embrace (as much as possible) another culture and really experience it. It opens you up to a whole new world you didn't ever know existed. It's the most beautiful experience, and I wish I had the words to truly help you see it the way I do. Better yet, go try it for yourself!

Things You Can and Can't Buy in China

大家好！

One of the biggest struggles I found while trying to pack for China my first time was that I didn't know what I could buy there and what I couldn't. Here is a pretty basic list of necessities that you can buy in China (Please note that this is a general list. You may be able to find some things in one city that you can't in another):

• Toothbrushes and toothpaste like Crest and also lots of really gross tasting ones. I'd just stick to Crest.
• Socks (not thick ones)
• Razors (though they are not as high quality and usually more expensive since they are uncommon)
• Makeup (Also can be expensive depending on how picky you are about brands, etc.)
• Hair dye (Only natural colors in blond and dark brown)
• Q-tips
• Nail clippers
• Office supplies like paper, scissors, colored pencils, markers, notebooks (often with poor English on the covers), etc. 
• Hair gel and spray (in larger cities mostly)
• Clothes (If you are of a small build) and shoes (if you are about a size 7 in women's or 10 in men's)
• Some decent brands of body wash, lotion, and shampoo and conditioner. While in China, I used the L'Oreal curly hair products, but they were a little pricey at 30 yuan a piece which is around $5. They do carry Olay products, but note that all things are in smaller quantities for higher prices because they are imported. If you can, just bring your own.
• Hair dyers and straighteners. There are little shops everywhere that sell random things, so it's not hard to find one for really cheap.
• Chapstick
• Laundry detergent though I do prefer to bring my own because I think the detergent in China is really hard on clothes. (Be careful when buying this if you do. Try to buy ones with colored clothing pictured on the package to be safe)

You cannot buy

• Deodorant
• Contacts and contact solution (I've heard that if you can find a Watson's you can find this there.)
• Dental floss
• Mouthwash
• Western medications such as ibuprofen, cold meds, Peptobismo, etc.
• Tampons
• Good sunscreen
• Shoes if your feet are over size 7 in women's or 10 in men's. I brought two pairs of shoes. Heels and some tennis shoes. My tennis shoes got holes and I had to buy new ones (at a foreign store that luckily carried my size) and I wished the whole time I was there that I had a pair of flats to wear to school instead of heels.

Here are a few things I brought that I found very useful:

• Pack of playing cards
• Sewing kit (packing is limited and China is hard on clothes. Your clothes are bound to get a little worn out with all the extra walking and travel so it's good to be able to do minor repairs)
• Granola bars and fruit snacks to eat while getting used to different food.
• A backpack or a big purse to carry lots of things with so you don't have to take your huge suitcase on shorter trips.
• A USB for printing things, sharing lessons, or anything else for that matter They are pretty expensive to buy in China sometimes, so I'd bring one just to be safe.
• An iPod with games and music
• A couple books to read though you can use the hostel book exchange if you find any good books there.
• A Mandarin-English dictionary. 
• A passport case to protect it from ware and tear. You can't take trains or planes  or stay in a hotel or hostel without it, so you use it a lot.
• A lint roller
• A basic light jacket you can wear inside or when you go outside to work out.
• A watch
• Warm socks (I spent more than half the time with frozen toes my first time even though)
• Boots (Like thick ones. I just bought cheap Ugg look a-likes and they kept my feet warm both the 2nd and 3rd time I went to China.)
• Gloves and scarves
• Adapters (the ones we bought at Walmart all broke so find one elsewhere)
• A laptop. Some schools will be willing to provide you with one to use, while others won't. Some schools will give you an office computer while others won't. A laptop is a great resource when you are teaching since you can make power points and get online ideas and help.

The China Horizons packing page has some good suggestions as well. To look at that, click here.

Good websites I frequented that will help you get around or get information:

• Ctrip is great for getting times and prices on trains and planes as well as finding hotels.
• Hostel World for booking hostels (a cheaper form of a hotel)
• The Great Firewall of China lets you test websites to see if they will work or not in Mainland (though not entirely reliable since it says Gmail doesn't work even though it does.)
• The Travel China Guide is great at giving you ideas of places to see in the cities you travel to.
• Sogou is where I get all my Chinese music from. You can get basically any other kind of music on there, too, but remember that it's illegal so I can't technicallly encourage it... ;)
• Youku is the Chinese YouTube. You can watch tons of TV shows and movies if you are in Mainland China (otherwise it doesn't work). It's great!
• Baidu is the Chinese google. I use the map on Baidu paired with Google Translate to find things in our city.
• (Note that blogs, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and many other websites won't work unless you have a VPN or proxy server. It's suggested you get one before you leave because once in China, it's much harder to get one. I've used Express VPN and Switch VPN. Of the two, I'd recommend Express, but Switch was cheaper.  As far as free goes, I haven't found any that work super great, but I have set up a proxy on my Google Chrome browser. You can do this by following the instructions on this website: http://mrjetlee.com/facebook-from-china/ )

For anyone who reads this, I really hope it helps you pack and prepare for your trip to China! 

It's COMING!

Since I get to go back to China in less than two months, I've started to get SO nostalgic and I think about China 80% of my day. I see myself walking around Nanjing, going to my apartment, in the classroom with my students, or riding on a sleeper train on my way to some exciting destination.

I must walk around in a state of trance because I'm not completely focused on everything else around me except the upcoming departure. I love China so much and I just can't wait to go back. I have started collecting items I'll need to take with me when I go and packing is going to be so much easier this time because I know what to bring and what I can buy there. I'm counting the days until I hop on a plane back to heaven.

On top of that, China Horizons asked me to help with the teacher training after the Hong Kong tour. Not only am I honored that they would ask me, but also that I can take part in this program and help prepare others for the time of their lives. I can't wait to share with them what I gained from teaching and what I learned about China and adjusting to a new culture. 

China, here I come! Are you ready?

Peace, Love, China

It's official! I'm going BACK to China! I was given a fantastic scholarship from China Horizons (check them out by clicking here). I applied for the scholarship on a whim without thinking I'd actually get it. Then, the email came with congratulations. I have the opportunity to live in a "foster home" in China for three months working with the staff and children there. The children are all between 0-4 years old and have special health needs. They receive health care and love until they are adopted by families all over the world. I can't tell you the feeling of joy that swells inside me to know that I once again get to live in China. I never dreamed it possible that I would get to go back so soon. The Lord works in mysterious ways, but let's just say, I'm not complaining!

When I went through all the pages on the Starfish Foster Home webpage, I bawled like a baby. Maybe you will too. I love the people in China and I can't believe I get to go and serve them more. They have given me so much and I can't wait to repay their kindness. I can't wait to hold these babies and love them with all my heart.

My tentative departure date is Valentine's day, but so much can change and since this is the first time CH is doing the scholarship, it will be a process, but I am honored that I was chosen to pioneer this adventure. Here's to yet another adventure! China, here I come!

P.S. I waited until I wasn't freaking out to write this so it wouldn't be so crazy all over the place. You're welcome! ;)