When we first got here, we kept hearing people shout, "For Narnia!!!" We would put our fists up and do the same! Haha Then we found out cha nania means "Where are you going?" in Chinese. So all this time they were asking us where we are going, but even to this day it still sounds like they are saying For Narnia!!! So if your ever in the mood to just shout that through a crowd of people, just say you were trying to ask someone where they are going in Chinese.
Quite a bit has happened recently! All of us girls boarded a train to get to an island that’s only two hours away. The island is called Xiamen, and its full of many places to visit! We went to the aquarium there and saw so many different fish and animals! At one point I look above me and there are so many different sharks! Ekk! My favorite animal to see was surprisingly the jellyfish. They had so many different types in this particular aquarium! We were also able to see the world’s largest and most complete sperm whale skeleton! It washed up on the shores of Fuqing and has 232 pieces of bones. It was quite a sight! I loved watching the video about how many people it took to excavate the whale and save all of its bones. We did a lot of shopping that day, and ate yummy noodles afterwards. We even found a Dairy Queen and I ate a blizzard in China! How cool is that!
For Easter I painted all of the kid’s faces with little Easter eggs, or Easter egg baskets. They watched the movie Cars while I took turns painting their faces. I love making these kids smile!! I also taught them about what we do on Easter, giving them M&Ms to try.
A very good friend of mine from America came to visit me while he was staying here for China for a month to do business. I almost started crying when I saw him come up to school grounds! It was so nice to see someone familiar on Easter. I showed him the school and we then went out to town and ate some amazingly yummy Chinese food. After that my friend Dani and I went to the park with a friend of ours named Anna. We went to the park and then came back and she cooked us noodles and we ate duck. It was nice to have an Easter dinner with her! So that’s what you do for Easter in China! :)
My Ye Ye came from America to visit me on Easter!
Me and my roommate Dani
Me and my friend Anna
Last night, there was a huge storm and it just made me think of home. I said to one of the girls, “Do you know what North Carolinians do when there is a storm like this?” She said no of course, so then I grabbed a chair and put it on our balcony, sat down, and watched the storm for a little bit. I miss that about North Carolina. I miss the beach the most. When I close my eyes at night that’s what I dream about. The sound of the water hitting the shore, the feel of the sand in between your toes, the smell of the ocean. Hmmm makes me want it too bad! But then I remember how exotic and beautiful this place is, and I try to tell myself I will only be here once, so I better cherish every moment!
I’m sorry I have not written in a while! We had the head boss of the whole program come in to do evaluations and we were all pretty busy preparing for that. I wish you guys could be with me here in China. I love the kids, I love seeing them run up to me every day and shout, “Teacha Ambahhhh!!!” Makes me smile and feel like my life is complete. I love going out and seeing more of China. I love eating their food and trying new things. I love it when I can ride a taxi motorcycle and feel the wind on my face. I love it when we get stared and pointed at because were white. Haha China has become home. I will miss it so much when I get back! I love you all and miss you!
-Amber Toy
P.S. More pictures here on Photobucket
