Ramping up for departure

Everything is kicking into high gear around here. I’ll be leaving for China in just a few short days. I’ve got my bags all packed and I’m more excited about the trip every day. To prepare for the trip over the last few weeks, I’ve been trying to pick up a bit of Chinese. I’m no Confucius, but I think I’m starting to get the hang it.

I wrote the conversation below in Pinyin (basically Chinese writing spelled in the Roman alphabet) over my lunch break a few days ago.

Although it’s only a page, I feel like I cover a lot of ground here – the characters discuss their names, what country they come from, what day it is, and if they like Chinese food. I’ll admit, though, it ends rather abruptly. Person 1 asks person 2  what time the train comes. Since I can’t tell time in Chinese yet, person 2 replies “I don’t understand. Goodbye!”

I sure hope P1 doesn’t miss his train.

 

I’m not 100% sure which websites will be available when I’m abroad, but I’ll do my best to keep you all updated. Thanks for checkin’ in.

 

Looking to the future

To the esteemed readers I still have left;

Thanks for hanging in there! It’s been so long, I feel like I should catch you up to speed on the new and old. Here’s what’s old these days:

-My nephew is no longer the size of a rutabaga, but is now a part of the world and the size of a real live human baby. So that’s cool.

-I received a snow blower earlier this winter through a vast network of intricate social connections. Thanks, Johnstons. Until just yesterday, it had done a great job of keeping the weather unseasonably warm and therefore snow off of the driveway.

-In their annual year-in-review email, WordPress informs me that in 2011, most people found my blog because they were (once again) looking for pictures of cantaloupe. And apparently my popularity is growing in Belgium and India – who knew?

 

Here’s what’s new:

-As you may have gathered, I’m headed to China in a few short weeks! I’ll be backpacking across Asia with my college buddy Craig. We’ll be there to celebrate the nuptials of our friend Joe and the soon to be Ms. Joe. The wedding will take place in a town 8 hours north of Shanghai during the several day long Chinese New Year (or Spring Festival).

We’ll fly into China about a week ahead of time to explore Shanghai and get accustomed to the time difference. Joe and Ms. Joe will get hitched that weekend. After the ceremony, Craig and I will part company with the honeymooners and work our way through Macau, Bangkok, and Hong Kong.

For those of you who don’t have a map of Asia memorized, our trip will look a little something like this:

 

Despite any glaring similarities this trip bears to the recent box office smash Contagion, rest easy – I’m not planning to shake hands with any casino chefs any time soon.

So yeah, the trip will take a little under 3 weeks in total. I’m hoping to blog about it while I’m there, but I’m not 100% sure about which websites will be available due to the Great (Fire)Wall of China.

Thanks for hanging in there, dear readers. More to come!

 

The Next Big Adventure

View Larger Map