We started school this week at 聽and this is how a normal School day goes:
-wake up at 8:00 to shower and eat breakfast (which my host mom leaves out for me because everyone else is already gone for the day)
-catch bus 35 to the university (its about a 15 minute bus ride)
-2 hours of Chinese language class from 9-11 with a 15 minute break in between
-2 1/2 hour lunch break
-Chinese history and religion class for 1 1/2 hours
– for 1 hour (I love it! So relaxing)
-calligraphy class for 1 hour
-get home around 6:30
-dinner with my host family every night at exactly 7:00… it鈥檚 so funny!
-shower, homework, and bed (It is a pretty long day of nonstop stuff, so by the time I get home I’m exhausted and ready for bed.)

For lunch we have been enjoying street food from this really popular street called yi xu茅 j铆e. The food is AMAZING. At first I was kind of sketched out eating food made on the street, but man it鈥檚 good and cheap! You can get this huge bowl of noodles made for 5 ku脿i (), which is not even $1. And when I say a huge bowl, I mean huge. I never can finish. We also found this awesome bakery on the same street. It鈥檚 not like our bakeries at home; it honestly might be better. Oh, and let me add in that it鈥檚 so cheap! I got this egg and cheese bread thing (you never know what you鈥檙e ordering; normally you can’t even take a guess so you just kind of pick something and hope for the best) that was the size of my face for 2.50 ku脿i. I seriously could go on for days about how cheap stuff is here.

This past Wednesday, I went to a high school in town and taught 4 different classes English for 1 hour each. I walked away really considering a change in my major at 91短视频. I fell in love. The kids were wonderful, and so eager and excited to learn. I didn鈥檛 want to leave. I was in tears. You could just see on those kids’ beautiful faces how much it meant to them to have me there, and the same for me. I would be so content to stay there and teach those kids for the rest of this trip. I could go on forever. I really loved it. Even though I didn鈥檛 totally love the part where they made me sing Taylor Swift BY MYSELF and dance around the classroom. But I got some smiles and some laughs, so that鈥檚 what matters! Luckily, I go back every Wednesday for the next 3 weeks!!! YAY! Also, today I went to my host sister鈥檚 middle school and taught English to her class. And I signed up to volunteer with this children’s English program they have here in Nanchong as a teacher.聽 So, once a week, I will go there and teach younger children English. I am trying to take every opportunity I can while I have the chance.

So I have been with my host family one week, and man do they catch on fast. Their English has improved so much in one week, it is crazy and kind of sad considering I am taking a Chinese class right now and haven’t gotten any better. Chinese is hard! Like, no joke! You have to learn tones, words, characters, and . It鈥檚 insane. I think I will come home with no Chinese learned and my English worse than when I left. I am getting a lot more comfortable with my host family but not so comfortable with the bathroom. When I was teaching in the high school the other day I walked in the bathroom to find myself facing probably 6 or so girls just squatting and peeing. No doors or stalls, just holes in a big open room. They probably thought I was insane because I screamed and ran out so fast I almost tripped on the disgusting pee floor. It鈥檚 so鈥攁h I don鈥檛 even know what word to use. It鈥檚 just different. The showers are too. They are literally just a shower head on the wall with the squat pot underneath you. So while trying to shower you have to try not to fall into the squat hole. Its pretty difficult, I might add. Malika and I have our own room, although we do have to share a bed, but we don鈥檛 mind. We live in a 2 bedroom, 1 bath apartment. It overlooks the beautiful park but not so beautiful singing (wait, that was mean. It鈥檚 not bad, its just not really what you would consider singing. More like screeching into the microphone but with a pretty band playing behind it). Every day, and I mean every day, from 3-6;00, this lady comes all dressed up and sings and dances out in the park. A ton of older people come out and it鈥檚 totally fun, but extremely loud. We鈥檙e on the 7th floor right beside the park, and from 3-6:00 we have to scream to one another just to hear. It鈥檚 pretty hilarious.

I help my host sister with her English homework every night, and she helps me with my Chinese. It鈥檚 pretty great. She is 13 and will be 14 on October聽9th. She is in the 9th grade, but in China that is still middle school. She speaks English very well, although she says she is no good. She has grown up learning English because they start them at a very young age. My host mom is the sweetest but speaks no English. Well she didn’t, but she has learned some this week. She is a kindergarten teacher. And my host dad, well, I don’t really know鈥� he isn’t around a lot. He randomly brings kids by that I don鈥檛 know. So, I kind of think he has a second wife, but that鈥檚 probably just my too much TV brain playing with me. Our apartment is nice. Nothing fancy. But getting to the apartment and the building is kind of sketchy. I saw a rat in the stairway and about died. And like I said, we鈥檙e on the 7th floor, so that鈥檚 a workout. Especially when trying to carry my suitcase up 7 flights. I have to wear slippers all the time. Walking around barefoot inside someone鈥檚 home or anywhere is considered rude. China is very different than home, but I am really loving this experience. But maybe a tiny bit missing America, American food, and of course all of you.

My chopstick skills are improving so that鈥檚 an extra bonus. And if I wanted to, I could learn how to cough loogies like a man. Because everyone and their brother does it here, and I mean everyone. I saw a man spit one right onto the floor in the middle of a nice restaurant. Let鈥檚 just say my appetite was gone fast. And for any of you who know my love of clothes, you need to feel my pain right now as I say I am so sick of my 5 outfits and it鈥檚 only been 2 weeks. Ah! Especially when everyone here is dressed super nice and wears heels and I鈥檓 over here chilling in聽my Chacos, sport shorts, and a wrinkled t-shirt. They probably think I鈥檓 a bum. Well I am sure you鈥檙e probably tired of reading this ridiculously long post. There is just so much to learn and share about my experiences.

Z脿i ji脿n (goodbye)

Hattie Berg
Gu贸 f煤 (My Chinese name. It means beautiful Lily)