Life in China has been quite the experience so far. I never thought I would be able to say I have so many friends from all walks of like and all parts of this great earth we live in. My group of friends is a very diverse group coming from China of course, Mexico, Ecuador, Columbia, Sweden, Germany, England, right back to the USA. I believe many of these people will be life long friends as One has already returned home to Liverpool and we have still been talking on a regular basis. As for my host family, I believe I have made friends with them as well. My Host sister, a four year old girl named Amy has taken a liking to me right away. we have so much fun learning English and playing games. She is picking up on words quickly and can even say some complicated words like air conditioner which she wanted to know the English word for. We have two English lessons a day and always make it fun with games, and dancing, and singing.
In my free time here in China there is so much to do. You can go try your luck at the bargaining markets which is always fun for me. imagine going to a store and asking "How much is this?" and the seller says his price "150!" Then you say "that's to expensive, I will only 30." Then the seller says "are you crazy! that's too cheap I cant sell it for less then 100." Then you say How about 50?" the seller says no and you say fine then I don't want it and start to walk away but before you know it he's calling you back grabbing your arm saying "wait, wait, 70 is ok!" But you keep walking, "ok, ok, 50. A very good deal. This is what you can do for almost anything you want to buy here from clothes to luggage sometimes even food. I have picked up some great souvenirs for friends and family this way that I hope they will love. Other fun things to do can include visiting all the touristy areas or maybe the little known not touristy areas. For example, I recently joined a Chinese hiking group that will go on a hike at least once a month. Our first hike was the great wall but not the part of the wall known by all the tourists. This was an actual hike up the mountain over the ruins of the wall. This part of the wall has not been rebuilt so it made for a hard but fun Hike. When we finally arrived to the top, the view was breathtaking and definitely worth the hike. Standing there, on top of the great wall looking over the horizon was an amazing experience. I was on top of one of the great wonders of the world and how many people can say that? It really makes you appreciate life and live it to the fullest. We all sat down and had a picnic on top of the wall before starting our climb down the wall. I plan to do more hikes with this group and will hopefully get to see many more spectacular places in doing so. I feel as though I get to be a free spirit here and go wherever my life takes me and its an amazing feeling.
