"It is a far, far better thing that I do, than I have ever done..."

(Brandon)

This week flew by. It feels as if we just got off the train from Shanghai and met our second host families for the first time. Whatever the case, today started off on a normal note. Spring out of bed (well, more like a long groan followed by the untangling of sheets) and head out for school. Not before Mrs. Ye could hand me a delicious apple however while on my way out the front door.

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).

Bargaining: A New Skill to Learn

(Deanna)

Good day to those near and far!

My host sister Serenity and I headed off to school where I went to the usual room of 209. We had handiwork class where we made whistles out of bamboo with our names on it! I was excited because I had never made a whistle before and it was even cooler to be able to have my name engraved on the whistle via laser. While waiting for our whistles to be engraved, Apple showed us a song by Team H (Apple is a really big fan), which it was possible that we spotted Team H in Shanghai.

A Rainy Day in Hangzhou

(Deanna)

I was woken up by the sound of my rather calm alarm clock and looked out of my room window to see rain. After getting ready for school, I went downstairs to what seemed to be a very quiet house at 06:45. My host mum was in the kitchen warming up some milk and I made my morning coffee. I put my boots on and whilst our voyage to school, I noticed that it seemed like a rather sleepy morning, everyone yawning in the car; my host sister Rong Danqing and I fell asleep on the way to school. Waking up in time to get out of the car, the streets this morning were particularly less inhabited by cars but more occupied by us all trying to go to our classrooms.

Taxi, Metro (subway), or Trans-Shanghai Journey?

(Brandon)

After an eventful Saturday night (and that's an understatement), we elected to sleep in. Mike and I missed the memo and got up unnecessarily early. After meeting up with the gang, we took the Metro, the local subway system, to an extensive antique market on Dongtai Road. We saw a of lot intriguing items, from copies of Mao's Red Book to ancient film cameras. Mike purchased a black ushanka and proudly put it on. After finishing up in the antique market, we wandered around the area in hopes of finding the insect and bird market but were unsuccessful. We then took a cab over to Xintiandi and the French Concession.