getting here

Well it took me a while to get here I had some plane difficulty. My flight was delayed in Chicago. So I missed my flight to Beijing so there where 6 of us on my program that had to fly through Tokyo to get here but it turned out to be kind of a good thing because I got to know those 6 guys a little better and they have turned out to be some of my better friends so far so I guess everything worked out. The biggest problem was I was so tired because I had to get up at 530 in the morning to get my plane from Chicago and it was exactly 24 hours later when I finally arrived in Beijing. That included 18 hours in the air and 3 airplanes and airports.

Why??? Continued

Since my flight just got delayed and I have nothing else to do I figured I had time to finish my last post and talk about my personal reasons for going to China. I have always had a an interest in China and Chinese culture. Then while I was in the Air Force I had the chance to serve in South Korea. It really changed the way that I looked at the world. I found it fascinating how different everything and everyone was. Then when I started back at college I knew I wanted learn another language and I thought about it and realized that learning Chinese would probably be the most benefitial and interesting . Then I started taking the class and that is when I really got hooked. It was not just about the language and the challenge of learning it but it was also the Chinese people that I met. They where all nice, helpful and very encouraging. I have to say if it had not been for my two teachers that I had I would not be going to China. Then I began to learn more of the language and the culture. I knew I wanted to study abroad so after taking Chinese I decided obviously to go to China. I really cannot explain why I am going for two semesters instead of just the normal 1 semester. I tell people it is because I like the "go big or go home" way of thinking but it probably isn't that either. It probably just comes from my philosophy that every couple of years or so I have to do something that scares the shit out of me. Because that is what I have done starting with joining the Air Force and every time I have done that it has forced me to grow up and improve as a person and that has made all of the difference to me. That is the long and the short it probably more than any of you ever wanted to know but there it is. My next post should come from Beijing so please keep reading.

Why??

I want to address a question that I have been asked about 100 times over the past couple of months. Why do you want to go to China? I thought I would answer this in my blog. China is fascinating to me. Because of their economy/government and the culture. First of all they are officially a communist country who has the fastest growing economy in the world. It is estimated that by the end of 2007 it will pass Germany and become the 3rd largest economy in the world just behind Japan and the United States. The idea of beinng communist wiht a market economy seem very contradictory but they are directly connected. The government knows that to maintain power they must keep the peasents happy because every major revolution in chinese history has started with the poorest people. So there thinking is that if they keep the economy strong then the people will be happy. I recentlly read one estimate that the Chinese would have to create 24 million jobs next year just to keep up with all of the people moving to the cities from the countryside. This is one motivation why the current communist party in control of China right now needs to keep the economy booming. That is one thing that fascinates me about China. The other is the culture it is 5000 years old. It has had so many invaders and emperors and westerners who have tried to colonize it but it still has maintained its identity as Chinese. The language both the writing and the spoken language although very difficult for a native english speaker is very intriguing. There is no alphabet and the language includes 4 tones. That does not just mean that you can say one word four different ways and it still means the same thing. It means that you can say one word 4 different ways and it will mean 4 different things. It makes it frustrating but also rewarding. I just hope that I can someday learn how to speak it fluently but that will take alot of work and is one of the many reasons I want to go to China. This are just few reasons why I want to go there are still more.

Preparing to leave!!

It is less than 3 weeks before I leave for my two semesters studying abroad in China. I get more excited everyday. Right now I am just trying to get everything figured out before I leave.
I am trying to sell my truck, get my scholarship money, get the correct textbooks and a million other things. I will not be posting to much before I leave but after the 26 I will try and post as often I as I can so please check back at a later date.