Hey Everyone i hope you're having a good summer... I have only about 2 weeks left in Changzhou :[ I am doing well in language classes and my speaking has greatly improved. I found out that i really like writing chinese calligraphy, so i bought some supplies to take back to the states. This past weekend, my host family took me to the Zoo, and there i fed Tigers, Bears, and Baboons. It was really cool. Then we met up with my host family's extended family. They took us out to lunch and they seemed really eager to practice their english with me, and in return, i practiced my chinese with them.
okay time for class bye!

Hey Everyone, it's my fourth day here in changzhou and i think im starting to adapt. My host family is really nice... My host dad is a professor at the university so he has the summer off so i spend a lot of time with him and my host brother who is a year younger than me so he also has the summer off. My mandarin is really coming in handy and i figured out that i can communicate with most of the people. Since i studied traditional characters in the United States its been kind of hard to adjust to the dominant simplified form in mainland china. In a couple of days, china will experience a SOLAR ECLIPSE! Im so excited... i've seen a lunar eclipse but never a solar eclipse. The super rare orbital event happens only a couple times on earth every year. And this time it will be visable from Changzhou! It is unbelievably hot here now.. and we are heading into the two hottest days of the year in changzhou, so we have been trying to figure out ways to beat the heat.
I hope everyone is having a nice summer...
Ryan

Host Family!

Hey Everyone,

I have one more week in the United States before I leave for China. Today I received my host family information and I can't wait to meet them! They are interested in similar things I am interested in.

There was a slight change to the itinerary due to H1N1 virus concerns. The group of US students will stay in Shanghai for our first week and start off with our lessons and cultural activities at our hotel.

I hope everyone is having a great summer!

stay tuned for my first email newsletter coming out this week!

Almost there....

Hey guys,

First, I would like to thank everyone for helping me and making this trip possible. Without the support and donations I would never get to achieve my goal. I'm almost there... about $1,000 more to go. My trip is coming up really fast, I am really excited to be leaving in three weeks. First off I am headed down to Los Angeles for Pre-Departure Orientation and on July 10th I will be flying to Pu Dong Airport in Shanghai. In Shanghai I will have In-Country Orientations and from there will leave for Changzhou. Changzhou will be the city that I will be staying in. Changzhou is a city really close to Shanghai in the bordering province of Jiangsu. The city of Changzhou, a university town, that has academically elite colleges and high schools. Changzhou was also awarded the most environmentally friendly city in China. Ill be staying with my host family and going to Changzhou No. 1 High School to study Mandarin for four weeks. The school day includes Mandarin study in the morning and Cultural Activities during the afternoon like martial arts, cooking, and calligraphy. Also we will be taking frequent field trips around the city.

Aside from that, I will start my first newsletter during the week before my trip for sure. After that I will try to make newsletters as much as possible (once a week at the least) depending on computer availabilty. Ill try to update my blog as much as possible and notify you with email about blog updates.

My very first Blog post!

Hey Everyone! My name is Ryan Lim, I am currently a freshman at Mills High School in Millbrae, California and I am 15 years old. I would describe myself as a big dreamer, younger I always dreamed of success and my future profession. I dreamed of being an Animal Planet Network Host, a surgeon, a zoologist, and now my dream is to study Mandarin in China! I am almost done with my first year of Mandarin, and it was love at first word for me. After watching my dedication and enjoyment for Mandarin, my teacher sent me an email that contained what was to me, an opportunity. An opportunity to follow my dreams and expand my knowledge with Mandarin. I am completely in love with the culture and language of China. Even though I am Chinese, I would say that I do not know much about my culture and before this year, I didn't understand any Chinese at all. I am fascinated with China because to me, it is a long lost part of me waiting to be discovered and expressed. Living in China for four weeks and studying Mandarin would be the summer of a lifetime, and I believe, my only chance to see the real China.

I expect to gain a better understanding of Mandarin, life long friends, new members to my family, an experience that shows me the everyday life in China, and a better sense of who I am. On top of all of that, I hope to gain assets like independence, an ability to cope with difficult situations, better communication, and better people skills. I am willing to give countless hours of service for AFS, because I believe that AFS can create bonds between people and cultures one student at a time. That is really important to me, because AFS has helped me out with the financial side of the experience very much. To show my appreciation, I would gladly volunteer for AFS and strive to share my knowledge to those around me about AFS and its mission.

I received a scholarship from AFS for my academic and community involvement. I am greatly appreciative towards AFS and the people who helped me get my scholarship.

To jumpstart my fundraising efforts, I am having a garage sale and selling things that I have grown out of, like my old bicycle. I also plan to send out emails telling family and friends about this blog and ask them to donate as much as they can to help support the cause. I am also looking into the idea of an email newsletter or raffles. With the topic of donating in mind, I would like to remind you to donate to my cause by clicking the ChipIn button. No donation is too small, and every dollar counts! Your donations would be greatly appreciated and would help me reach my dreams!