Little by little...

I'm now finished with my third week here at language school! More pictures are on Facebook and Instagram.
Some bullet point blessings:

• I'm slowly beginning to speak with friends and peers in Chinese (before, it was mainly during class, or with my language partner). I've also tried writing in my Chinese journal. Even though I only have a small knowledge of Chinese, I can tell it's very choppy! But I know it's just one step towards improving! :) One of the teachers at the English college (also my language partner) tells me, “越嗨越好！（yuèhāiyuèhǎo）” This basically means, the more I practice, the better I'll get!
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• Several of us are going to visit a tea plantation on Sunday!
• I have time to read this weekend! Though I love reading, I definitely have not made time for it! Maybe this weekend is just the beginning of a good habit!
• I really enjoy teaching kids English! I've been volunteering an hour a day at the English language academy, and sporadically getting to visit some classrooms near our town. It's so fun to see more confidence and progress when the students get to practice what they're learning in the classroom!
• Today it's really rainy, so here's my song of the day!

 

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First week summary

It has been hard to write this post, and not because I haven't had time. It is great in this little touristy town, but it is very frustrating not to communicate much yet! I gotten to know some of my fellow classmates and other students from this school and the English counterpart down the road. 

I've gotten an opportunity to work at a school that was giving a camp this week for kids around China to learn English. That was a lot of fun! Now that I've gotten a whole week under my belt, I'm beginning to get some sort of grasp on vocabulary, which I think will help me later. I'm beginning to work with a language partner this week, so that will be really helpful. Just a work in progress! 

On a side note, I've begun to reread a favorite book by Lisa Bevere called, Lioness Arising, about becoming who God has called you to be through following the Lord. I'm excited to review some of the things I've learned since the last time I read it!
*note: pictures are on Instagram and Facebook!

China Bound!

At the time of my writing this, I am headed to China for three and a half months!! I know, crazy, right! :) I've started up my blog again so that family and friends can keep up with my life, too! I am beyond excited, though I must admit that sometimes I think I've bitten off more than I can chew! 
I've included an inspiration from one of my favorite authors, J.R.R. Tolkien, found in his book, The Hobbit--click here for e-book version. (*quote from Etsy.com)

Since I was a teenager, I've wanted to visit China (zhong1 guo2) 中国, and I thought this would be the perfect opportunity! I've been an elementary teacher for six years, and I am ready to experience something different! Really, I have no other reason to be venturing this far from home, except to study a new culture and a completely different language! Have I mentioned how this is both exciting and nerve-wracking?

While in China, I will be studying for half a day and volunteering a couple hours each day. On weekends, I'll get to explore the city and visit other parts of China! This is my first time to travel here, so I hope to experience some awesome things! 
GOAL #1 for this week: get adjusted to China's timezone (13 hours difference!)
GOAL #2: make a couple new friends
GOAL #3: become familiar with some of the shops and buildings around here...maybe get some language practice in while I'm at it!
 Zai4 jian4! 再见！(bye!)