Host Family: Day 6

Hi everyone!!!

Soldier's tag is white. 

I wake up, eat breakfast, and my 妈妈mama tells me to clean my room because the housekeeper is coming. I assume I misunderstood what she said but I clean my room anyway because that's what she instructs me to do. Afterwards, 爸爸Baba drives me to school  and we talk all the way. I say obvious things like 我们在隧道里面 "we're in a tunnel"。He points out a vehicle with a special military licenses plate saying "巨人的车“ solider's car. I ask him what he liked to do when he was little. He says he likes to play baseball. I tell him that I've never played baseball, but that I play volleyball. We start talking about my sisters 姐姐和妹妹。He says that my youngest sister plays sports at school and that my other sister doesn't play sports at all. I asked him why she's always sweating when she comes home and he says its because she exercises with her personal trainer. When I ask him if he exercises, he says of course. At night I drink beers. He does his lifting motion for me and I start laughing. I tell him his muscles must be big. He laughs and before we know it we've reached our destination.

On the drive home conversation is feeling more forced because we're both tired. I ask if he has any Beatles music. He taught me how to "you got all of my love". 你得到我最好的爱。

Pre-dinner dumplings

I walk home to see the housekeeper cleaning my room and my newly cleaned pairs of converse. They have been had washed, dried, and re-stringed with new strings. I am extremely grateful, but my mother doesn't take too many thanks. She just says  不用谢 which literally translates to "I don't use thanks" (aka the Chinese "you're welcome).  妈妈 的朋友 My mother's friend makes spicy food for me because they know I like it.

There's a special kind of enthusiasm is Chinese hospitality that goes above and beyond that of  American (including southern) hospitality. My favorite part of the day was recognizing the irony of my family cleaning the house before the housekeeper cleans the house. It's as if they are trying to lighten her load or impress her with their cleanliness. Its...different; let's just call it a culture shock ^_^

Host Family: Day 5

I ride home from school with my father for the first time. The ride home is long because of the 5 o'clock 车水马龙（Che shui ma long) "heavy traffic". My baba loves the Eagles and the Beatles. He doesn't really speak English, but he can sing all the words to "Witchy Woman". He asks me about the witchy woman. I tell him that 她很淘气 （ta hen tao qi) "she is very mischievous". He agrees.

Host Family: Day 3 ^_^

Hi everyone! 

Today I have no school because the program wants to give us a chance to get to know our families. My host family is great. They let me sleep in (until 7:30 am). When I wake up there is a freshly made 包子 (meat bun) waiting for me and they promptly make me a cup of 奶茶 （milk tea). Today we have been invited by another host family to go out. Fortunately, I'm good friends with the guest of the other host family so I'm excited. We ride out of the city all the way into the country side. We ride until there are no more roads to be driven on-and even then we get out and walk a dirt path through some open farmland. We get to a bunch of large old fashion buildings with pots, pans, fruits, and chairs outside. The irony of this area is that I would assume that these farmers are poor, but it's quite the opposite. They have an old fashioned 3 story Chinese house equipped with all of their necessities. They also have a 2nd house down the road that they're grandparents built and that they have preserved. The house has people coming in and out so I really can't tell who lives there and who doesn't. There are about 5 children 12-20 adults, and 5 teenagers. They have boiled peanuts, watermelon, and fresh tea  waiting for us. We go out to their farmland and pull the fruits and vegetables straight out of the ground. The fruits and vegetables in China are so large and nutrient filled. Their 桃子 (peaches) are both big and tasty. When we walk back to the house with the fruits of our labor, the cooks take them and immediately start cooking. We take family photos and the food is laid out on the table. Everything is extremely fresh-sometimes too fresh - waiting to be eaten. Our host bring out plate after plate to ensure all their guests are well fed. Afterwards, we start playing with the younger kids and start talking with the elders. My friend shows them a picture of me dancing. We all discuss my hair and how it's done. I show them how to braid. They say I braid quickly. We take more pictures. We visit the second house and get a real life history lesson. The house had been built by the ancestors of the other host mother. The inside was well constructed an consisted of a small courtyard, a memorial, a kitchen, and several other rooms. We take one last walk back to the large farm  house before we go home. We take all of our freshly picked vegetables in the kitchen and immediately start chopping. After about an hour of chopping, folding, and taste testing, our merged families are ready to eat. We eat until we are吃饱了 （full) and then we all sit around the house a relax together.


I love that I can wake up on the opposite side of the world, yet feel just as comfortable as I do at home. I think it's because these people, this land, and this culture-this is my home <3

Host Family: Day 2

I come home to a home cooked meal and talk with my host mom and dad. They ask me if I miss my American home. I tell them I miss it a little bit, but that I really like my Chinese home. They are pleased. I go to my room, do my HW and have the eldest of my younger sisters check it. Most of it is good, but some of it is incorrect. I change the mistakes and go to sleep.

Host Family: Day 1

My host family consists of a mother, a father, and two teenage siblings. They sat in the first row waiting to pick me up right on time. My family is that of an upper middle class. My baba drove us home in a new Lexus. My 17 year old sister is very shy and has the highest vocabulary of English. I do most of the talking on the car ride and utilize some new vocabulary 车水马龙 to the describe the traffic. When we arrive home, we arrive at a complex of tall buildings and walk straight to the back. At this point, I expect my family to have a small apartment and I'm excited to see the interior design. The door opens and the floor plan is suprisingly spacious-consists of an upstairs, a downstairs, and an office space. They have cleared a bedroom and a full bathroom for me. We go visit grandma and grandpa at the nursing home and then we go to a fancy restaurant. We sit at a round table with a spinning glass table atop and everyone shares all the food we ordered. It was just sooo much food. Then I went home, unpacked my bag, and went to sleep.

**China Side Effects

Hi everyone. 

These last weeks I've really enjoyed China and I've had time to do a lot of self-reflection. Here are some of my the side effects of my Chinese experience.

Diversity withdrawal
I'm from a very diverse area so it's kind of weird to only hear one type of language and see one common type of face. I actually felt a little sad last week because I hadn't seen any foreigners since meeting my African friends. To treat this, I started going places where I knew there would be more diversity like the soccer field and more popular tourist areas.

Donde esta el queso?
Cheese is not a common household ingredient as it is in my hometown. I really miss cheese. The only cheese I've had since I landed was on a "pizza" and it was not the same. To treat this, I commonly drink milk tea (奶茶） which is a popular drink here which I can't really get back home.

Chinese pizza

Heighten sensitivity
There's a certain standard for beauty here which includes not being overexposed. The lack of sexual subliminal messages from TV, advertisements, and general fashion really shows me how desensitized I was. There's a general respect for women that I really appreciate.

Absence makes the heart grow fonder
I really miss my family and friends so much more being here. Unconditional love is hard to come by so I miss them so much and I appreciate them that much more.

P.S. Be on the look out for other side effects ^_^

Africans in China ^_^

Hi everyone!

Today we left campus and went to a museum in Quanzhou. When we pulled up to the Maritime Museum, I saw 3 black women and I was both excited and curious to know why there were so many black people in one place. As I walk through the doors of the museum, I see even more black people in traditional African clothing. These aren't African-Americans; these are Africans!! I am feeling so excited to see all of these people who look like me in one place. They are staring and smiling at me. They actually stand on the indoor balcony and smile down at me.  It was so sweet. I look at them and they invite me to come talk to them. They are so sweet and loving and they treat me like family. They give me a hug before they even ask for my name. I ask them when they are from and they say Zimbabwe, Kenya, and Antigua. I'm so elated I forgot to tell them my name and where I'm from. Eventually they figure out that I am from the United States and I am here to study Chinese. They ask me where my parents are from and I have to explain that I am black because I'm
Haitian and African American. They are still just as loving as they were before.  They had to leave quickly after our encounter, but not before snapping a few pictures.

It is so nice to be able to find comfort in strangers. It wasn't because they were black, but more because they were smiling and so welcoming. Their friendliness was just so contagious and comforting. It really helped soothe my homesickness. Just seeing people that I share a similar origin with in a foreign country is an experience beyond compare and is something that I'll never forget.

5,000 Views!!!!!!! (☆_☆)(^o^)*\(^o^)/*

 

Hi everyone! 

I'm excited to announce that Camy's Corner broke 5,000 views. I just want to thank all my viewers for accompanying me on this journey of my crazy beautiful life.  Thank you to my long time international  viewers in  United States, Russia, United Kingdom, Taiwan, Japan, India, Cyprus, Saudi Arabia, Canada, Barbados, Brazil, France, Italy, Turkey, Poland, Mexico, Romania, Singapore, Spain, Germany, the Netherlands, Venezuela, Czech Republic, Ukraine, Malaysia, Israel, Hong Kong, Argentina, Indonesia, South Korea, Chile, the Dominican Republic, the Philippines, Tunisia, China, Austria, Cape Verdes,  Kyrgyzstan, and Kuwait. Thank you to my newest viewers from Macedonia, Thailand, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Norway, Guyana, Paraguay, Colombia, Puerto Rico, Ecuador, and Armenia. The overwhelming love and support is amazing and always appreciated. As always, please continue to read, share, and comment on my posts.

Black in China

Hi everyone!
In case you didn't know, I am a black person. I am very confident in my skin and proud of my heritage. Before I left for China, I had heard a lot of warnings of the weird things that would happen to me because I am a rare sight. As far as my experience goes, some things were accurate and others were false.

Stares - True/False
People definitely stared at my group but it was mostly because we were disturbing their daily pattern. A group of 30+ is naturally very distracting. In Shanghai, people barely looked my way. Only small children would stare and smile at me. One girl ran to her dad so that he could see the spectacle which is my existence. In Xiamen, I got way more stares and usually I just smile and wave at them. Most people smile and wave back; some break their stare.


Pictures-True!! So true!
As soon as I got off the bus in Xiamen University, a group of girls ran up to me and asked to take pictures with me-just laughing and giggling all the way. I was walking through the park with my group and people ran up to me to pose with me and take pictures every couple seconds. I like that they come and take pictures with me; they are openly expressing their admiration for diversity and exotic people, rather than being afraid of me or avoiding me. When people greet you like that, it makes you want to return; it feels good.


Racism-N/A
I haven't experienced any blatant racism, everyone has been really nice and friendly towards me. They're too curious to be racists; they're just very open and sweet and love to take pictures with foreigners. No has asked me if I'm from Africa yet, but if they do I will simply reply with 我是一个非洲公主 (I'm an African princess).