Well I've had some adventures in the last couple of weeks. We went to the Summer Palace on Sunday. There was a big lake in the middle but it wasn't exactly swimming water if you can picture that. We walked around the grounds and up and down a lot of steps. Good thing it is a summer palace because the steps would be too slippery for a winter palace. We got stopped for pictures because there were two blond girls in our group. The Chinese really like light hair. It was also strange to see other foreigners and hear a language besides Chinese. Our guide Lynn is a woman who works at the place I'm volunteering at. Her English is very good so she told us about the different things the Summer Palace has to offer. There were people singing and vendors selling food. One woman was selling cucumbers and people peeled them and ate them. I certainly did not buy one but hey, different strokes for different folks.
Another adventure was at the Pearl Market. It is basically a giant indoor flea market. They sell purses, shoes, souvenirs, and pearls of course. While the goods were of doubtful authenticity, it was still fun to walk around. I bought a pair of Toms shoes, a pearl necklace, and a scroll that had a passage on it from a certain book (you can guess which one...just not in the comments). The artist did it right in front of me in Chinese characters. Another delightful thing at the Pearl Market was the Starbucks. I have found a new favorite drink...blackcurrant raspberry juice tea. Sadly it does not exist in America. There was also a McDonalds nearby. Fun fact: They offer corn as a side in Chinese McDonalds.
Aside from all of the fun things we have been doing, I have done some work. I am working on setting up activities for the Chinese and foreign homeschoolers. They are going to be performing variations on The Three Little Pigs. The older group is doing "The True Story of the Three Little Pigs" and the younger kids are doing "The Three Little Javelinas." It is going to be very fun when they perform in a few weeks. Another opportunity I have had is working in the preschool for local children. I have been teaching English. They are learning simple words like apple, tomato, carrot, etc. Last week we worked on furniture like desk, sofa, chair, etc. They are so much fun! Here is a link related to my summer: http://www.newdaycreations.com/foster/
Another adventure was at the Pearl Market. It is basically a giant indoor flea market. They sell purses, shoes, souvenirs, and pearls of course. While the goods were of doubtful authenticity, it was still fun to walk around. I bought a pair of Toms shoes, a pearl necklace, and a scroll that had a passage on it from a certain book (you can guess which one...just not in the comments). The artist did it right in front of me in Chinese characters. Another delightful thing at the Pearl Market was the Starbucks. I have found a new favorite drink...blackcurrant raspberry juice tea. Sadly it does not exist in America. There was also a McDonalds nearby. Fun fact: They offer corn as a side in Chinese McDonalds.
Aside from all of the fun things we have been doing, I have done some work. I am working on setting up activities for the Chinese and foreign homeschoolers. They are going to be performing variations on The Three Little Pigs. The older group is doing "The True Story of the Three Little Pigs" and the younger kids are doing "The Three Little Javelinas." It is going to be very fun when they perform in a few weeks. Another opportunity I have had is working in the preschool for local children. I have been teaching English. They are learning simple words like apple, tomato, carrot, etc. Last week we worked on furniture like desk, sofa, chair, etc. They are so much fun! Here is a link related to my summer: http://www.newdaycreations.com/foster/