Still alive and going strong after 18 days!!!!

Sorry it has been so long since my last post, I have just been putting it off. So I am into my second week at work and loving it still. Phillip and I are doing really good on our project and we got our Hong Kong trip scheduled yesterday. We will ride on a train with a co-worker who leaves for Hong Kong every Friday, Chapman. He is from Hong Kong and is so nice! You will see him in pictures soon. We have been working here for nine days now and today may be the first day we buy our own lunch. Our bosses take us to amazing places everyday. Yesterday we ate Dim Sum which is very popular in southern china. You sit and waiters push around carts with many different foods and you pick what you want as they come by. We have also played Badminton and tennis with our bosses and it has been so much fun. On tues we played tennis at the Guangzhou country club and it was a very nice place. We played for three hours and Phil and I were horrible! We finished up about 9 and as we left the courts, they announced that now we will take showers and go to dinner. What?! We did not come prepared for that but I put on my work clothes after a shower in the fancy locker room and off we went. We ate at a Hong Kong style tea house and had rice noodles and dumplings. I finally got home about 10:30 and I was exhausted.

This past weekend, Phil and I went to visit the Cheng Clan temple with Phil's host brother David. David is very nice and speaks English very well. He enjoys telling us about the history of China (and also America) and he looks quite spiffy in his fanny pack. On Monday night, he took us for an hour walk around campus and was even kind enough to sing us"Are you going to Scarborough Affair", one of his most very favorite songs! (My tongue was bleeding) David is a perfect example of how the same personality types exist in every culture. My host sister is a little bit more laid back than Dave. Her name is Xiao Rong (Not Chi, like I said before. Turns out, I have been calling her by her last name for a week and she finally told me that.) and she is learning English. They both study and read a lot even though they are on summer break. David a little more than Xiao Rong, he says his nick name given from his class mates is "Scholar".

I really enjoy my host mom even though we can hardly communicate verbally. She is really funny and silly and if we drive some where, she will sing loudly to the radio just to be funny. Last night, I drove with her and Xiao Rong to her office on campus. She had to pick up some things. It is a very nice, new building. She always tries to teach me phrases in Chinese and I teach her some in English.

So, I know I have promised pictures, and they are on there way. It takes about 6hrs just to upload 40 pics bc my camera is 8 megapixels and I love it by the way. Thanks dad! I totally fit the tourist stereotype. I try to take pictures of everything. Well, I will have about 5 albums done on yahoo pictures by Friday and I will send out an email to access my picture account. Also, just so you know, I cannot check the comments left on my blog from Chinese internet but I can access them from Phil's blackberry phone. For that reason, I only check them about once a week and I will answer them in bulk. Here I go!

J-deezy, this is the thing, I have had like a billion and one Ps but I have not had one full one bc I talk myself down everytime. You would be quite proud. Of course the first one was on the 18 hour flight!

Uncle Dave, I am so glad you found my pogs at the lake! Also, Our main competition in China is Esso(Exxon/Mobil), PetroChina/BP(joint venture with the Chinese gov. Oil company), and Sinopec(which is also a gov. oil company). The funny thing is, everyone has to buy their oil from the Chinese government and we are also competing with their stations!

And I know you guys don't believe me about the driving, but if you could just see how crazy it is. People just drive in both lanes, or just cut buses off going like 80kph. I could never drive here. You can't even get your drivers license until you are 18. Neither one of our host siblings can drive and they are 21.

Emily, I am hustling to get these pics up as fast as I can, and I hope you enjoyed the story I emailed you.

Trace, the smoozing is way fun and they always make us do everything first. First bite, first to get in the car, everything! They treat me like a "princess" so you would fit in perfectly over here!

Courtney, actually I am part ninja. My mother's father's cousin's half brother's aunt was actually married to a ninja so it is in my blood. Also, I don't take showers, just stand in the bathroom and let the water run for a little bit. Showers make you week and they are for wussy people. Also, thank you for my fortune from pei wei, I believe in the magic of the cookie!

Ok, like I said, I will email when my pics are done posting!

P.S. Sorry I have such bad spelling and typos. I am writing really fast with no time to proof read and besides, Eye am jhust a whorrable speallar.