(FIRST POST of 2012 Exchange) Bleary-Eyed Goodbyes

(Mr Viz - blogmaster!)

It's hard to believe that the 10th D-S China Exchange Group has just departed on another epic, 8-week experience in China!  As usual, I'm green with envy and jealousy.  Envious because they get to unplug from their daily routines and immerse themselves into life in another country, for such a wonderful length of time. And jealous because they are as young as they are, at an age when their experiences will without doubt help mold their future. ...


So there we were, bleary-eyed at Logan at 4am! Call me weird, but I love that place even at that ungodly hour. Dunkin' Donuts, open. People bustling around in the middle of the night.  So unlike Boston, so much more like NYC. Love it. Just imagine what Hong Kong will be like ...

Clutching my coffee in one hand and my Canon EOS-40D in the other, I surveyed this year's exchange group and performed my usual photo duties ... last minute obligatory "action" shots demanded by Ms Viz.  Yes, they do look similar every year, but every group does have its own character.  I can tell that this one will have a great time, especially once they get their traveling street-smarts under their belts.

This year's group consists of  students Emily Brown, Melissa Whitehouse, Andrew Ahn and Allen Liu, and teacher Joseph Catalfano.  As I post this, they are in the air on their way to San Francisco, where they have a few-hour layover before the long flight to Hong Kong (better a layover than the anxiety of split-second scheduling, especially given the usual possibility of snowstorms on this end!).

Can't wait for their first blog entries!  I hope you'll join me in following their exploits for the next 8 weeks (click on Follow on the top line of the blog).  And please share this blog and posts with all your social network friends!