Tuesday, November 25, 2008

Mid terms are no fun

Since this week has been all about catching up and this week all about studying for midterms i have been busy. This wednesday i have my kouyu midterm and this friday i have my hanyu midterm. And can i just say my nai nai is AMAZING? I asked her to proof read my chinese oral and we spent an hour going over corrections and talking about my topic...snowboarding! Anyway, in the end, my little sister my grandmother and my nanny/cook/housekeeper all looking over my shoulder as i retyped my speech (in chinese of course) It was a bonding moment of sorts. Anyway, im going to get back to studying. I have a quiz tomorrow morning as well.
Wish me luck!
A.

Ps. this is a random picture i took at the summer palace. At local tourist sites you can usually find one or two people who make these creatures out of palm leaves. Really cool in my opinion. (and yes i bought one)

Friday, November 21, 2008

Its getting colder here too

Hello all!
I'm not dead contrary to popular blogging belief, although i did feel close to it this morning...I woke up this morning and threw up in my trash can. Not fun. I think i ate something that did not agree with my stomach last night. I was pretty embarrassed and didn't really know how to tell my aiyi (literally translates into aunt, but is also the standard name to call a woman who is slightly older then you but not your mothers age.) My house has an aiyi who helps my nainai (fathers mother) cook and clean and take care of my meimei (younger sister). She was so sweet and helped me clean it up right away, she also made sure i took some medicine and and slept all afternoon. At night my nainai made me soup! I never eat with the family because we're not allowed to, because we dont give the family stipend money for food. But tonight she made me the most amazing soup that was made from red and yellow beans, black rice and some other things. She told me i wasnt allowed to eat oily food or I would feel sick again. Its times like this I LOVE living with a family. Even if they do live really far away. I feel all better now, and I sat down and answered ALL of my emails finally.
Get this! I may be able to interview a dickinson applicant! She lives in China and is applying to Dickinson:) My friend JP got to interview a different girl and said that its a really neat process. Im also celebrating Thanksgiving with JiJi Jones and her family and some family friends. All of the other Dickinson students are going to a texas restraunt which is hosting a big Thanksgiving dinner and sounds really fun, but I think meeting JiJis family and her friends and learning about how life is for foriegners in China will be even more interesting.
Also, its getting quite nippy here. Today was really nice with a high of 55, but nights are brutal. I am thinking about buying another sweater. I think it would be a very wise investment. I am SO glad i asked for my UGG boots!
As for finances. I am not going to Europe and I am not going to Japan:( The plan right now is for me to travel with 3 friends down the coast of China and into Vietnam for the month, with will be about 1500 dollars we think, but nothing has been settles completely. Going to Japan would have been extremely costly and a little out of my budget even if i didnt go anywere else. And Europe is always expensive. But, with my current plan I am completely set moneywise and have no more financial worries, so there is always a silver lining.
Tomorrow im meeting with a new chinese friend I just met in the Cafateria on thursay, and then Sunday night the Dickinson Kids are going to Gao Laoshi's house for dinner. Next week I also have 2 big midterms. no fun. And thats all ive got so far.
happy almost Thanksgiving!
A.

Sunday, November 16, 2008

long time no see









Its been a while and im sorry I havent updated in a while. Its hard to find the time to update, especially when my house is so far away from my school and no where near anywhere i usually frequent.
This update is specifically for my fabulous parents. Here are a few picture of the Forbidden city and the Summer Palace. The Dickinson group went to the FC 2 weekends ago and the SP this last weekend. I also went to a spa (remind me to tell you all about THAT) and i've been sick all week with a nasty cold and im just getting better now. I have an 80 WORD quiz tomorrow in Kou Yu (speaking class) and i took a huge Ting Li (listening comprehension class) mid term last thursday. I went out to dinner tonight with JP and last night with sarah, both very low key. And last night i played barbies with my youngest host sister and taught her how to make paper cranes. I am also curently on the lookout for healthy food. I dont even know where to start looking. Its hard to tell whats healthy here and whats not when you can even read the names. Anyway. here are some pictures. Enjoy!