I'm in BEJING.

Once upon a time, I missed half a day and ended up miserably in China. Not that China was miserable. It's just that without the musical talents of Justin Bieber and my Disney Princess coloring books, I would never have survived the 15-hour flight from LA to Hong Kong, and then struggled on to Beijing. 

THAT'S RIGHT--I'M HERE. BOOYAH, BEIJING!

I still don't know what time or day it is, my body gets hungry around midnight, and my sinuses feel like they are chiseling straight out of my head, leaping out to fight the smog that is pressing down on them. But here we are. Until Monday, they are easing us into China and out of jetlag. Then the real classes begin.

I'm going to pretend that nothing happened between Monday and Thursday morning because most of that time I was completely useless. On Thursday, however, we got to take a look around the town we'll be living in until August 26th...and by town, I mean the capitol city of China. 

 No, I have no idea what those buildings are. I just took a picture because it looked cool.

 There is no way I can fully explain to you what it's like. I can't bottle up the smell and feel of the less-airconditioned, muggy city air filled with particles of something-or-another that American lungs are unfamiliar with. I can't place you among the constant chatter of strange sounds buzzing around your swollen ears. I can't bring to you the mindset required to live in a place where organization is different and much more every man for himself. 

I won't lie to you: there were moments, especially right at the beginning where I went "SHOOT. WHAT HAVE I GOTTEN MYSELF INTO???" But the Father's peace is sustaining. And I kind of like not worrying about personal space and constantly saying "Excuse me" and having to wait for a sign to tell me to cross all the crazy traffic.

Remember that time I went to Uganda? This is actually a LOT like the cities in Uganda and I'm finally understanding more about why the Father sent me there. If I hadn't gone there first, there's no way I'd be as prepared for this.

Anywho, the fun stuff. So far I have: 

Used three squatty potties (One without doors!! I'M A BALLER.)

Nibbled some else's scorpion

Gotten a back massage from someone who didn't speak English

Bought "Pillows with rich cocoa filling" at Wu Mart

Acquired a transportation pass for the city of Beijing

Eaten lots of Asian style food

Gotten unknown bruises 

This would also be a really good time to have the gift of tongues....because....yeah. Trying to figure why the cashier at the supermarket is waving a dragonfruit around and chittering at you about it is a little bit daunting. 

These are the girls who will be on my team this year. Go Team Taiyuan!

STOP BEATING MY BACK.

Yum.

Kind of like hash browns...but stacky.

They were just mesmerized at Alex's beauty. Like, a lot. A crowd was gathering across the river to take pictures of people taking pictures with Alex. INTENSE.

More to come!