Well! End of my third week back in the US and my first week back at DU. It’s different, but I am very aware that I’m different, too. I learned so much while I was abroad: I expanded my world view, gained a more comprehensive perspective on everything Chinese, met new people, tasted new foods, got my first internship, learned Chinese, learned how to bargain, wrote three 4,000+ word papers, and came back with a better idea of what I’d like to do with my life. I would absolutely go back to China… but it’s time to move forward and face the rest of my college career with energy and focus. read more…
I just finished an apple that tasted like candy, it was so good. The fruit here is some of the most delicious I’ve ever had, and so cheap. I’m going to miss being able to just walk out onto the street and buy a bag full of fresh fruit every morning!
This weekend my class took a trip to the Shanghai Wildlife Zoo. The park is huge; many of the animals have such large enclosures that the only way to access them is by bus. So, upon arriving at the Zoo, we immediately toured the “African” enclosure, which was enormous and included plenty of different herbivores. After going through a security check that reminded me vividly of Jurassic Park, we drove through the sections for cheetahs, tigers, lions, bears, and white tigers. I really liked being able to drive through such large areas like that. Not only do the animals have so much more room than the zoo model I’m used to seeing, but we have the opportunity to see them from much closer. The white tigers were beautiful, and we were close enough to one to see his bright blue eyes. read more…
I’ve had this annoyingly persistent variation on bronchitis for the past week so, instead of going on the class trip to Nanjing this weekend, I opted to stay home and get some rest. While definitely not the most fun option, I think it was the right call – I’ve been sleeping for over 12 hours every night and am finally starting to feel a bit better. I think knowing when to make myself rest, even though I’m missing out on something that’s undoubtedly really cool, is probably one of the more important lessons I’ve learned in the past year. The lesson that I’ve learned here is how to sit down and make myself work. I put both in to play this weekend, and have been remarkably productive so far. If I can keep it up tomorrow, I might actually be ahead on work! ….but really, let’s be realistic, at least I’m getting caught up. read more…