Connecting to the Chinese

In the last few weeks I have been jobless, as such I am doing the best I can to prepare for the year ahead of me. I got a hold of a set of pimsleur Learn Mandarin Chinese. A side note for anyone who is looking to learn a language for work or fun Pimsleur is the BEST solution out there. It does not teach the best vocabulary but what you learn you know. You learn to think in the new language instead of just repeating memorized phrases.

But that is enough of that. But I have been working hard to prepare. I have been studying Chinese. Also the act of searching the internet for new penpals has paid off and made many new friends in Wuhan, Bejing, Shanghai, well basically all over China. People to practice Chinese with, people to learn the culture from. It has been wonderful to learn so much from them. I have also been told that I will likely be the ONLY American at the University. I can only hope!

Also as I am jobless it means I have a lot of time on my hands. As such I have been looking to improve other skills. I have een learning magic tricks. After all magic is a great ice breaker, and an international language. Everyone likes a magician right? I know two tricks, but there is much more to learn!

I learned about cell phones in China. I definantly need one, according to my Chinese friends. And it does not sound expensive. My friends told me it is not expensive. So hopefully it transferes to American Dollars.

I have made doctors appointments and a trip to go get a visa. I have tickets. I am getting webcams for myself and family. Seems like there is nothing left but to go!

Wow, I really am going to China

I know it is a bit of an odd title but it is what I am feeling right now. It just started to hit that wow, I am going to China. I have insurance, I have started to make friends. I am starting to learn Chinese. I know its a bit late to START learning Chinese... It is kind of scary to think wow, I am really going to do this. I am going to leave my world, everything I know on the idea that it would be fun to go to a whole new culture, whole new language, a whole new land.



I honestly do not know if I can hack it but it is too late to turn back now. I have the acceptance letter, I have plane tickets, I have insurance. Im about to go get a visa...



i am not that worried anymore about being alone. I signed onto a dozen different penpal sites and just started emailing a ton of different Chinese kids about my age. Now I have friends in Bejing, Nanchang, Shanghai and Wuhan. New friends to help me learn about the culture, learn about the food, help with the language and keep me from feeling so forign. However I do get a lot of odd questions. "Why go to Wuhan? Why not Bejing or Shanghai like all the other Americans?"

A note about medical studies

for anyone who has concidered medical studies, DO them! this is the greatest h*** i have ever been in. i sit here for 13 days play cards, pool, computer games. the only downside, bad food, no freedom, no privacy, no outside. but for $3700... Heck yea! i do miss the outside world. bit i was able to get a lot of things accomplished while incarcerated. I registered my trip with the embassy, started to study chinese.

It dawned on me last night that I will know no one in in china. Well that sounded so lonely. I had to think of a way to aliveate that. So I spent hours sending emails to every penpal listing in wuhan fro, every penpal place I coud find. I must of signed up with 10 different penpal sites, and emailed about 50 different people. And it is starting to pay off. Already I am getting replies from people. So this looks like it is working. I may have some friends so I do not have to be in china without any connections.

the internet is glorious isnt it? I could not imagine a world without it.

The Beginning

This is just the first blog. Im new to blogging so this is sort just a how to get a feel for how the whole system works. Right now I am in a hospital bed participating in a medical research study to pay for this trip to China. But as that has nothing to do with anything than a really easy source of a few thousand dollars.
So to introduce myself and this adventure in a little bit more detail. I am a student at Texas State University Studying Aquatic Biology, with the aim of becomming a high school biology teacher. Because I am in a BA program I have to take a conciderable amount of language. I have already studied French for many years and the tought of taking Spanish, which in my opinion is dirty French, or other language so similar I thought silly. I started to learn a little about studying abroad and earning the credit that way. After a week or two of searching the internet I found out that Asia is REALLY cheap to study in, unlike Europe. School, Cost of living, Airfare, etc... its all cheaper in Asia. S. America is cheap but Spanish is last on my list of languages to learn. I really could not tell you why I have a predjudice against Spanish, most my family speaks it, well that might be it, I really don't know.
After a month of searching I discovered Wuhan University, by far the most beautiful university I have ever seen. With the tuition of roughly $2000 US for a year. Besides not speaking a word of Chinese, not knowing a thing about Chinese culture, not knowing anyone in the country. To be quite honest all I know about China is what I have seen in Jackie Chan movies. So besides that there is no reason not to go right?
Here let me list why I am going.

5. I need language credit, A year abroad will cover it
4. Its something other than French
3. I've never been to China
2. It's Cheap
1. Why not?

You may find it silly but honestly I think "Why Not" is the best reason to leave home for a year to the complete opposite of the world. People always say that youth is wasted on the young. How many country songs say to "don't blink" "Dont let the world pass you by?" This is what youth is about, I have my whole life to work, live in one place and do that whole suberbia. I have the time to venture now. I have the money to go. I have the youth to think a year that could possibly mean no hot water, malfunctioning laundry machines, 110 degree year around temperature change, a place where you could not drink the tap water, and a place where I speak not a word of the local language sounds like an awsome adventure that could not be passed up!

Well I think that is enough for one night.