New name

This week has been a really good one. We've stayed busy doing lots of fun things. I'm getting use to pretty much doing whatever you want. If I want to learn guitar I can learn guitar, if I want to go play ping pong I can just go play ping pong. Its a good time just to get those things that you've always wanted to do done. There's lots of time here after teaching where you don't have to be constanting studying or working like at college. This week we have started taking Chinese lessons from a native named Vivi. She comes over like two to three times a week for like 1-2 hours for language lessons. This last time she gave us new Chinese names! My new name is Mao Yan Chun. Mao is for Amanda, and Yan Chun is for beautiful Spring. So kinda fun! Its really cool to learn the language. It is sooo intense. The same word can be spelled exactly the same but in Chinese they have four differen tones so if you say it slightly off then it has a whole new meaning. Oh! Annie also told us that we might get to have kung fu lessons on Saturday's too which would be so cool. Keep your fingers crossed that it will happen....

A bad day at the bakery

Hey all! Today was a great day off. Its nice for my voice to have a day off of screaming. We tried to sleep in but the sun comes up so much earlier here. Its broad daylight by 7:00 am in the morning here. Which is a good thing, we get a lot more cleaning done. We were suppose to get our apartment sparyed for bugs today and although we were all packed up (again) the guy didn't come. So I guess its been put off until Monday. Today we finally did what we've wanted to do since we got here... we got body massages. Pretty much amazing. I've never gotten one before so it was really interesting, the man who did it was blind. I guess that was better, still didn't take away the awkwardness when he was rubbing my butt though. After the massage we went to our favorite bakery. I grabbed two new things of bread to try and the were both pretty weird tasting. The first one had shredded meat on the sweet roll and the second sweet roll had red bean in the middle. It reminds me of refried beans...sad day at the bakery. Now we're going to watch "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" aren't you jealous? Don't you worry, we're still waiting anxiously for "Twilight"...

Another day

So today was pretty much a normal day. I've decided that teaching is just going to exhausing every day. But there is good that comes with the bad. Today Lucas came over to me and told me that he was "angry" with me. I wasn't sure why for a while until I finally was like "Lucas why are you angry with me?" His reply was "You are messy!" Nothing gets past these kids. We had a teachers meeting today and as we were walking down there we passed all of our kids waiting in line and they started screaming "Teachers!!!" They were sooo excited! When we got to them they all jumped onto us for lots of hugs. Pretty much my favorite moment ever. Here's some more pictures! I got a picture with my favorite little Jackey

Pictures with the kids!

Hey all I just thought I'd send you some pictures that Amy took of us teaching the kids today! The kids are absolutly the cutest little Chinese things ever!

Operation Evacuation

So Amy discovered that she had bed bugs yesterday. She even caught some, which were super gross. So they decided to throw away her matress and get some hard core chemicals to spray down their whole apartment. The three girls; Amy, Keegan, and Lindsey aren't allowed back into their apartment for 24 hrs. So we had one big slumber party last night! I guess tomorrow night their doing the same thing to our apartment. So we'll have a sleepover at their side. So pretty much we're all just super sick of bugs. Luckily I haven't had gotten any more bites, I haven't even had to take any of the pills the doctor gave me. Since the itch is gone and it is not for prevention then I don't really need it. The pus has gone away too, I actually got to expose my legs today without people running in horror :)
Everything has been going well with teaching. The last two days the kids have been sooo good! It makes it so fun to get to be around them. We've even noticed as we have our conversations to each other now days we start talking like the kids do. They're so cute! Anyway I better go, another class to prepare for... Much love

Motercycle Babe

So the last couple days have been ones of stress. Who knew that the kids were just easing us into teaching. They're actually poco diablos (little devils) that like to scream, yell, kick, hit each other, steal, and lots of other wonderful things. There are times though when its worth it. When they get so excited they just jump up and down squealing in delight or they're so tired they just lay their head in your lap. Those are the good days.
We started teaching a new class today. We team teach in groups of two for one hour with two classes (a half hour each). Its a group of kids of about 20-30 and we just go to their classroom and sing with them. Thats all. It was a little strange but its only for two days a week in the afternoon so we just have to learn a lot more songs.
So here their taxis are mostly motorcycles. Yesterday we traveled a far distance on foot to a store and really didn't want to walk back so Annie got us a taxi. A motorcycle! We each got our own little driver and got to sit on the back. As the kids say.... SOOO fun! You just have to keep your eyes shut the whole time because their driving scares you to death. Then today we got to ride on a motorcycle again but this time it was on the way to the hospital. My bites got worse so I had to go to the doctor. After much deliberation he decided that I had gotten an "insect bite". It was very profound. He gave me some pills to help with the itch so I hope they work. Oh, the wonders of China....
Anyway thanks for your love and prayers. I miss you all

A Good and Bad adventure

Hey all!! So how is everyone doing? The weekend has been a really good one mostly because it hasn't involved taking care of children. Teaching really isn't that bad but it is nice to have a break. Today we went to ShenZen to go to church. Instead of taking the bus we got a little 7 passanger van which was actually kind of fun. Although, we kept the windows down the whole time and by the time we got there we all had this think layer of pollution air stuck on our face. We had to scrub it off. The place that we went to was a little international branch in someone's house. The house was pretty big though so it could fit every different class. Right when we walked in we saw a ton of teachers from the other schools in our providence. We haven't seen them since our Hong Kong trip so it was really good to catch up! From what they tell us we really got the better end of the deal with our school. They get fed things like pig's blood and if you don't eat what's on your plate they charge you 50 yuan. Plus they don't get the week long vacation like we do so none of them get to go to the Great Wall. I am really sad for all of them but all the more grateful at where we are. Church was so cool. Everything felt like home. The church isn't anymore true here then it is at home. I mostly liked it because of the people that I got to meet. Everyone was so different, people from the states, people from China, several from Singapore, and lots more. Different colors, races, and all sorts of ages. I loved the classes because the people who would teach, and comment, have really lived a life. They have all had experiences that I only dream of having. I mean they must be adventurous if they are here in China. Plus after church they had a linger-longer and we got some homemade America food. Pretty much delightful. I'm so glad that we were able to go. It felt so good to be able to take the sacrament again.
So that was the good adventure. The bad adventure is that I've made some good friends with a bug. One of my students had a birthday the other night and when we were leaving his party I noticed several bites on my legs. We're all pretty use to mosquitoes by now so I didn't think anything of it. Now it is two days later, they have all swollen up to the size of a golf ball, have grown blisters on the top, and are oozing pus (I'm trying to give you a detailed description :)) It feels mostly like a horrible sunburn, that has flames shooting through them, that itches. So its not the best thing ever. I'll put some pictures on here so you can see it a little. I've always had ultra-sensitive skin but most people think I'm having a weird allergic reaction.... Mom, Dad, don't freak out. Its all apart of the China experience :) But I do hope they go away soon. Anyway thats all for now. I'll keep you updated when other stuff comes up, hopefully by then these little bites will have ceased to exist. Love you all! Thanks for you thoughts and prayers!

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Portion Sizes

So before I came to China I had decided that it was exactly like Mulan. That all the Chinese ate was rice and drank tea in those little tiny tiny cups and that they got full because eating with chopsticks takes so long. Its the next meal before you finish. I was pretty much right about the tea and rice thing. They drink tea everywhere and when we just say we want water they give us boiling hot water (at least its clean). The rice is a staple food that you eat at ever meal but surprisingly we haven't gotten sick of it yet (knock on wood). Their portion sizes, however, are HUGE!! We get down on America for their portion sizes, little did we know the Chinese do the same if not more. Annie usually will have like three plates full of whatever we're eating that day. Then they spit out all of the bones right next to you on the table so it makes you want to eat even more :(. I think their bodies are just made non-fat bodies. Jadie and I went running last night and as we were running along the busy streets people kept stopping on their scooters or cars and would motion that they would give us a ride. They thought that we were in a huge hurry to get somewhere. So pretty much in the next life I hope I get a Chinese body.
Teaching is over for the week and that is very exciting. I'm actually really liking it but it can be really chaotic. Right now I'm mostly trying to keep them under control, while keeping them entertained, while trying to keep them talking, while abiding by the ILP method of teaching. I've never been that good at multi-tasking. I never have a voice by the end of the day and am always sweating profusely (I know you wanted to know that). Sometimes I just want to scream and other times I'm so happy I'm where I am. I guess thats how it will be for awhile. Now its a free weekend but I have to have all my lesson plans for all next week made by tomorrow. So if any of you have any ideas of Arts and Crafts I could use all the help I can get. Thanks for caring whats going on in my life. I'll write more soon. Loves!

First Day

I'm still alive!! This may not seem like an accomplishment but it really was. I think I was nervous more then I should have been, with kids the nice thing is that they really don't care if everything goes according to plan. So there are six of us teachers and we each teach a different shop. The shops consist of: Arts and Crafts, Gym, Games, Kitchen, Drama, and Shop (where you like build things). For this whole month I'm in charge of Arts and Crafts which I'm excited about because that is probably going to be the easiest to get ideas for.
Each of us has a "Home group" of about six or seven kids that we're mostly responisble for. I've got the youngest kids out of the whole group. Our whole Elementary school ranges from about 3-6 in ages so you can imagine the energy they have. I really think that I'll like my group a lot. The kids are really responsive and very smart. It amazes me that kids that young already have picked up on so much. Most have grown up well-disciplined and since most of them were in the program last semester they are already more into the routine of how to do things.
At the beginning of the day the whole school gathered together and all seven of us went up to introduce ourselves and we sang "Princess Pat" for all of them. They loved it! We told Annie that we wanted to teach all of the teachers the song but Annie told us that they couldn't do it because they can't do the facial expressions that we can do. I never really thought that they couldn't do the facial expressions I just thought they didn't. They are a pretty "hard" people in the fact that they just don't show emotions. At the amusement parks they always thought we were so amusing to watch because we would scream. Here are probably the quietest Amusement parks you'll ever find.
After teaching we had lunch provided by the school and it was all the parts of a chicken. Raychel got the head and she about fainted in shock. So who knows what will be eating the rest of the time here.
Anyway so the first teaching day was good. I'm sure I'll have much more to talk about soon! Much love!

Guang Zhou

So we just got back from our trip and it was AMAZING! It was so fun to get out of the city for a couple days and go see the sights a little bit. There is a TON that we ended up doing so I'll mostly just tell you the big parts of it, like what all the pictures I posted are of. I'm going to start from the bottom up because that is the chronological order.
- The first picture is of our group of seven girls in Xiaolan. There is Emily, Raychel, Amy (our head teacher), me, Jadie, Lindsey, and Keegan in the front. I really like these girls, we do everything together and all get along really well.
- The next picture up is the biggest roller coaster in the world! It is called the Dive Coaster and it was completely insane! When we got to the Amusement park it was pretty much empty all day so we walked on every line and that line we rewalked many times. At the end of the day we had gone on it seven times and made really good friends with the worker there, Darrin. He would sneak us back on the ride after we would get off. Pretty much the highlight of my life
- The next picture up was an unexpected but most welcome adventure. The circus!!!! I don't think I've ever been to a circus before and it was the greatest thing I ever saw. The Chinese sure know how to give you a show. They had trapeze artists, dancers, divers, riders, jumpers, acrobats, spinners, TONS of different animals, and so much more! It was funny because during the performance some of the white people would see us while performing and wave at us. We all had an inner bond together now. It is so weird because you really do feel like a celebrity here, people just randomly stop you and ask to take pictures with you.
- The last picture is the best storytelling picture. Our second day in Guang Zhou we mostly just went sight seeing and shopping. We went to three different temples and this was the second one that we ended up going to. Right when we got there we saw this funny looking statue raising up this sword with his cheeks all red and his eyebrows growing into his forehead and thought it would be funny to pose like him. So we did our funny pose with the camera and right when we started to walk away people walked up to the statue putting incense to their head, bowing, and praying. So we pretty much felt like fools the rest of the time until we left. Hopefully they'll recognize that it was a honest mistake.

So that is the main points of the trip. I did also buy a (REAL) pearl and jade ring and DVDs for under two American dollars each which pretty much rocked my world. I had a fun time on the trip but glad to be back to my home away from home. Much love!

Pictures from Guang Zhou

FYI

So we're headed out on vacation tomorrow morning to Guang Zhou for one night and two days and I was just informed by our head teacher that right next to Guang Zhou is the BIGGEST ROLLER COASTER IN THE WORLD!!!! And guess who gets to go on it! Yep thats right! I'll make sure and report all of the thrilling and maybe throw-up details! I love China :)

Internet!

Okay so exciting news... I'm actually writing this from my apartment! No more walking 5 miles to the Bond Office to write on their sticky keyboards :) And that also means that I can get some pictures up... hopefully. We'll give this a try, hopefully I make Kyle proud.

If they show up they are all of Hong Kong (our favorite is the teacup ride one)

Chinese driving

So the driving here is completely insane. You know how we honk when we are mad or ticked off or something? Well here they honk everytime they round a corner or change lanes or anything. I don't even think have blinkers! You have every possible kind of transportation on the road. Bicycles, scooters, and cars. Its funny because as we were walking down the street we heard this really pretty music being played and we thought that it was going to be an ice cream truck but when it got near it was a dump truck. So for some reason their dump trucks here sing.
I've been able to see a couple of pet dogs during my stay here so that makes me happy to know that they are not all being eaten. Some of the marts that we walk past have dead animals just hangin out in the window. If the look of it doesn't get to you then the smell sure does :(
We're getting use to eating a lot of rice. Our Chinese friend that helps take care of us, Annie, came over last night for a lesson on American food. She taught us how to make some Chinese the other night so last night we taught her how to make 90 second cake! We were so excited, especially for her to try frostig. I guess in China they do not like sweet things. Annie had one little taste of the frosting and was done. She explained to us that they didn't like to eat sweet things because "we believe it makes you big". :) I think I have solved the mystery of why Asians are so tiny. We thought the cake was delightful though and after that we introduced Annie to "Spiderman"... She loved it!
So everything else here is going well. We're even getting Chinese rice delievered to us as we sit on this computer, I love this country. Thank you so much for commenting. I miss you all but I'm glad that I have such good friends who care.

Chinese head massages

So if any of you ever come to America you need to come a head massage! They are probably the most enjoyable thing ever and it was only two American dollars! The Chinese people LOVE Americans everywhere we go they stare and point and try out any English they know. Amy (my head teacher) said that they think Americans are beautiful. Instead of tanning like what we do they have bleaching cream! They like to bleach their skin to make themselves look lighter. It is really crazy.
We don't start teaching until next Thursday so we're mostly just training and travelig. And when we're not doing that we have places to go get body massages and manicure/pedicures... I know a rough life. The humidity is kinda funny because it makes the weather fluctuate a lot. It the mornings and at nights it really cold but in the day it is really warm. Soon it will be just hot all around, can't wait for that (not)!
The best food that I have found so far is probably their bakeries. They make the best bread here ever! Now I know why some people don't come back skinnier, most of the time they eat carbs, a little vegetables and few meat. Thats okay with me though because most of the time you dont really know what the meat is. It is hard not being able to communicate with the people but it is amazing what you can communicate with gestures and smiles. They really are a happy people here.
Well we still don't have internet in my apartment yet but I promise as soon as we do I will send pictures! Thank you all for your comments and concern. I'll write soon

Hello everyone from China!

Hey all! Sorry I haven't written yet I'm just barley getting the chance to get on the internet for a couple of minutes. I just got to my school in Xiolan and it definitely different from what I expected but I'm glad to be here! China is great, their driving is absoultly nuts though. They drive on the other side of the road and are constantly honking everywhere they go. It keeps it so the city is never quiet though. I'm looking out the window of their main office right now and instead of barbed wire over their fences they have shareds of glass... creepy. We get stares everywhere we go, the people here don't get to see American's much especially blonde curly ones like Raychel and Jadie so you would think we were stars! We don't get to start teaching until around the 10th of February so we're just going to try and get use to life here until then. The humidity isn't as bad as I thought it would be, it is still breathable air. The food here is SPICY!!!! You think Mexican food is bad! This stuff makes the snot shoot right out your nose! We went to dinner last night in a really nice restaurant where they just keep putting food on a turning table and you grab whatever you want off it. I ended up grabbing frog and almost ate it when images of Chubby and Fatboy (our frogs from Kanab) popped in my head and I couldn't bring myself to do it. Which was probably good since Emily had to spit it our because she kept eating the bones! Anyway, all is going well. It is good to be in a humbling situation because you become closer to your Heavenly Father and realized how blessed you are..... Ha all the kids are screaming for joy upstairs because the bell just rang the class is over! I miss you all, thank you for your thoughts and prayers and emails it really means a lot to me that I have so many who care. I'll try to get on here as frequently as possible but the internet is a little limited right now. Hope all is going well in your own life! I'll write soon!

Pictures of the airport

 

At airport