Wei, Ni Men Hao!

(Patty)

Feeling quite refreshed after the two hour spa visit my host mom treated me to last night, I met the Bears this morning for our Chinese Culture class, in which we learn everything from simple Chinese phrases to Confucian sayings. Today, our teacher discussed with us the history of Chinese writing, and had us guessing at the meaning of old Chinese pictographs, most of which we interpreted quite inaccurately. After class, we met up with Ms. Moy, who couldn't make it to class because of her busy teaching schedule, and ventured off-campus for lunch. We made our way to a restaurant which specializes in Hong Kong cuisine, and was super delicious. Although we love Chef Bacon (the Chinese uncle we never had) and his awesome cooking, we all appreciated having some bear-time where we discussed everything from our new host families to the proper technique behind eating yogurt (and yes, there is a proper technique).

After an hours break for lunch, we went over to English corner, which is a favorite daily activity of the bears. We got a peek at one of our classmates new mopeds, made plans for KTV this weekend, and like always were peppered with question. Towards the end of English Corner when the crowd began to decline, the four of us (and Apple) showed Ms. Moy and Mifield the outcome of yesterday's dance class: a highly synchronized (not really) and highly hilarious dance to Shakira's "Waka Waka", the song from the World Cup in South Africa.

The rest of the afternoon was devoted to school work; Deanna worked on some math problems, while Michael, Brandon, and I all did some catching up on our English homework. My host sister and I then made the commute home, which involves two city busses and a lot of shoving. Once at home we were greeted by a delicious home cooked meal. At dinner, my host parents asked me what I usually eat at home, and after I told them about my favorite Italian dishes they requested that I help with tomorrow's dinner. We were all quite tired by the end of the day, so the evening was spent reading and relaxing.

I can't believe we have so little time left in Hangzhou, next week is our last before we depart for Beijing.

Until next time