I know it's been a little while now, my apologies. However, I've been really busy and have felt like I've been flying by the seat of my pants for the last two weeks. We had our third test last week. I had a paper due the previous week, and for the last two weeks I've been working on filming a movie in CHinese with my friends to put on display at a movie festival our study abroad program is having.
So I'll start with some exciting news and move the most exciting at the end of my post. I am going to get to sing with my Chinese home- stay sister Kou Dan at IES's China night. It's essentially like a sending off performance type of thing for all of IES and the people involved the night before everyone leaves. We're gonna sing Beijing welcomes you (that would be the title of the song in English). I'm super excited, but it's going to be a bit of a feat singing it as it is like a 7 minute song, meaning 7 minutes worth of words to memorize. haha The other bit of really cool news is that I will be appearing on a Beijing television talk show this upcoming thursday to be interviewed on what being a foreigner in China is like. We've had several lessons on how to talk about that in my classes so I should be able to use a lot of Chinese. I'm super excited and want to represent Americans well. So prayers for that would be very welcome!
The coolest news now. Tonight Lisa and I led a "Dad meeting" with four Chinese girls. I was supposed to prepare a lesson, but in the end decided that a more or less question answer format was best. The night went really well and we got to lay down the framework of who "Dad" is and what his son did for us. So cool! It was such a wonderful opportunity and I think all of the girls were even more interested at the end of the night so I'm looking forward to continuing to invest in them. Now we just need to get some guys to start coming.
In other news, I went to see some of the Ming dynasty's tombs this weekend with my home stay mom. My home stay mom brought back the closest thing to a Chinese burrito you will find in China for dinner tonight. My friends and I got our butts kicked by my Chinese kung fu teacher and one of my friends who does martial arts back in the U.S. for our movie's fight scene today, and my home stay mom called me "xiao huai dan" the other day. It means little bad egg, or in a better translation, little bastard. It's supposedly a term of endearment in China according to my Chinese teachers and I believe them as my mom said it with a smile on her face the whole time and doesn't seem like she could ever say anything mean.
Well, we've got a really light week with Thanksgiving coming up, so I should be able to update more, but for those family members I will be missing. Travel safe, I'll be missing you and all the delicious food we always eat.
Oh, also, the Chinese government finally turned on the heat after weeks of shivering in my home stay. I first wanted to thank Hu Jin Tao and second wanted to let my parents that due to the increase in the internal temperature of my house I am now showering every other day instead of every third or fourth.
God Bless!!!
Be sure to video and post your performance of China night! Glad things are going so well. You'll have to get together with Sam when you're home and get the rust out of her Chinese.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to your tales!
Susan
OH Colton--you dear boy--it is just wonderful to read about all your adventures! You can't imagine how happy it made Grandpa that you called him--he just beamed about it! Irene said he just couldn't stop smiling!! We had our family feast on Sunday--celebrated Thanksgiving and birthdays since Mary will have to work on Thanksgiving, we decided to do it early--had a great time, but of cours, missed the Houseman clan!!! Can't wait to ring in 2011 w/you guys!! Be safe will be praying for much siccess for your singing and talk!! We love youxoxoxoxoxoxo
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