Countdown to China: The Pre-Departure Orientaion

Hi everyone.

Today I attended my first (of many) Pre-Departure Orientation. It was very interesting, well done, and detail oriented. I could enjoy the time the faculty and administration put into program preparation. At first, we all had breakfast and met all the program administrators; we went over the program expectations (from both the students and the faculty). Although we were in the meeting nearly all day, it wasn’t bothersome just because it was so well balanced with fun bonding activities. They showed us some very inspiring and motivating videos from Foreign Service Officers and past participants. Then, we had lunch and took a language placement test. I was very nervous and I knew I would probably be demoted from the advanced class to the high intermediate because I haven’t had access to a Chinese class in a year and I don’t know how to read and write as well as I can speak. I will definitely be working on that on the plane tomorrow. Afterwards, we went through the guidelines and student code of conduct word for word, but what I most appreciated was how the director was very honest and straightforward about why the rules were written and what the negative consequences were when past participants violated said rules.

My new family <3

 I really appreciated how genuine everyone is being and how the administration is supportive of all our goals. I know they will push me just as hard as I push myself so that I can reach my full potential and that’s something I look forward to.

Funny Airport Stories: Is That Your Hair?

Hi everyone!

So I was in the airport waiting to board my plane to New Jersey to meet my scholarship group and an older lady sits next to me. She drops her pen behind the seat and I pick it up for her. She says thank you and continues to stare at me for a little while. I look up and smile at her and she finally asks me “Is that your real hair? Is all of that yours?” I laugh a little because people have asked me this several times before. I look at her and say “Well if I purchased it, then yes, it all belongs to me”.  Her eyes widen and she laughs with me. She says “Well you can’t even tell” and I reply with a friendly thank you. Then she starts telling me that she loves to play scrabble and how she’s gotten married twice, and had several varying careers from education to law.  I tell her about how I’m on my way to China and that I am really interested in international relations. Then she tells me that she’s going to an IQ convention in San Diego and I should see if I can join the society. Her name was Judy and she was very nice. I would have never known anything about her if her curiosity didn’t get the best of her for her to be bold enough to ask me if my hair is real. 

Curiosity is a beautiful thing and it shouldn’t be stifled. I want to be like Miss Judy-bold enough to ask the world’s most pressing questions.

P.S. Thank you for reading, sharing, and commenting on my post. I really appreciate it and I hope you stay tuned for my China series starting on July 1 or July 2 (depending on when I get there). Thanks for all the support <3333

Countdown to China: Emotional Toll

Hi everyone.

It's gotten more and more real that I will be going to China for 6 weeks. I am not scared, but this morning I was a  little sad thinking about all the people I'd miss like my friends, my family, and my parents. I know that this is whats best for me and my future. I'm also fortunate enough to be born in this age of technology so something tells me communication won't be a problem :)


P.S. I'm starting my journey to China today so make sure you come back and check for updates. ^_^

Countdown to China: Preparation

 

Hello everyone!
I have completed summer semester and I finally have a couple days free before I get on a plane to go to China. Right now, I am taking inventory of everything I want to take, reviewing Chinese vocabulary, and spending time with my friends and family. I also purchased some cute touristy stuff for my host family. I am just really excited to see where this adventure takes me and I will be documenting everything along the way ^_^

P.S. Thank you for continuing to view the blog despite of my lack of posting; summer semester is over so I will definitely be posting more :)

Don't Cheat on Me

大家好！Hello everyone!
In 8th grade, I had this awesome language arts teacher whom we will refer to as Mr.Wood. Moments before our first test in his class, he asks us "Why do men and women get upset when their significant other cheats? " Some responses included "because it hurts their feelings" and "because it makes them feel ugly". I said "People get upset when spouses cheat because it violates an agreed bond of monogamy and trust" (I was a mature 8th grader). He says "Exactly! So guys when you take this test, please don't cheat on me." I'll never forget that.

Today I took the SATs for the second time and there was a girl sitting next to me. During the test, I would catch her sneaking peeks at my paper. In an effort to deter her, I kept sliding my paper under my test book. She gets the message and stops...for a whole 5 minutes before I see her giving herself whiplash trying to look back at my paper. I think to myself 

This is a college entrance exam, why would she try to copy off of a stranger? Maybe she thinks I'm pretty and keeps getting distracted by my face...or maybe there's something on my face...wait, what am I reading again?

And the cycle continued through the first 3 sections of the test. I was trying to be patient and kind and forgiving because this stranger is clearly cheating on me, cheating off me, and doing it poorly at that; however, the last straw was when we were in the middle of testing for section 4 and I see the girl working on section 3 trying to adjust her answers to match my answers and giving herself extra time. That was the moment when I officially broke up with this cheating stranger; that was the moment when I forgot about my test; that was the moment when I looked her dead in the eye to give her one more chance to stop cheating and she looked right back as she erased and rewrote answers from previous sections. I raised my hand and wrote a note saying "Some people are changing their answers in previous sections" and drew an arrow pointing to her. The proctor comes over, looks at me, and says "it's okay, just erase it" and then winks. He starts walking around the classroom and catches her in the act. He takes her outside and asks if she understood the directions given before the test that explicitly stated that alterations of answers were prohibited. She said that she understood exactly what he said and that she didn't care. She said she wanted extra time and didn't care about the consequences. The moral of the story is to be honest and maintain integrity in all aspects of life; lying  is not a good look. I write this story as a request to my viewers; "Please, don't cheat on me".

P.S. As always, thank you for reading, commenting on, and sharing my posts. I really appreciate it. And shoutout to all the viewers of my last post; I've never had a post receive more than 60 views so for my last post to get 140+ views was pretty amazing. Thank you for all the support <3