I'm sitting on a rolling chair, in front of a silver Macbook Pro, eating cashews out of a bag that offers a Chinese-to-English translated name of "Universe." Out of a Hawaiian Starbucks traveler's mug, I'm drinking a pre-grind brew of Folgers Hazelnut coffee (with a dash of Kowloon Dairy milk of course). The sound waves in my room are carrying frequencies of The Prodigy's "Diesel Power" as I begin the process of thought-pouring. Carefully, slowly and with utmost caution, I start recollecting the things I need to say--the ideas that need to be put into a sea of alternating letters. All aboard:
I've been in China for almost four solid months. Within that interval of time, I've done a lot. I've learned a few survival-Putonghua words and phrases, traveled to different cities in the Guangdong province, and undertaken different initiatives in and out of the workplace.
The initiatives have been both mentally and physically taxing. I've enlarged my quads with kickboxing lessons, pieced together the school newspaper with the Journalism cadets and butchered the Chinese language (Putonghua) in front of my private, Chinese tutor. Nevertheless, the tutor told me that the force is still strong in me.
In addition to the above-listed activities, I've practiced popular songs on my acoustic guitar, graded tons of choppy homework papers and met with students for English Corners and other, school-related activities. Only on rare occasions, have I slept (when the coffeepot is dry).
Overall, the time I've spent in China has been a lot of fun thus far. I look forward to the oncoming years. Moreover, I look forward to stepping out of the transition period and into the next part of the experience/adventure.
