The Final Countdown

This post marks the beginning of my third China blog...who would've thought I'd keep coming back for more? China, man, it'll getcha...kinda like SARS. Okay, that was too far. But in all seriousness, everyone knows how much I like China, and "like" might be an understatement.

Anyway, this blog will document my next two months in the Middle Kingdom, and I plan on doing things I've never done before (not that the other two summers were any different). This summer my trip is paid for by the nice people at Vanderbilt, who apparently thought I was doing good things and wanted to give me stipend to do volunteer work somewhere in the world. Nice. So here's how my itinerary looks:

June 17: Leave for China in the evening

June 19: Arrive in Beijing at 5:20 am, leave the next day for Huanren to start preparing for the cultural camp which I will be helping to lead

July 12: Opening Ceremony of the cultural camp

July 20: Closing Ceremony of the cultural camp, return to Beijing for an "internship" with Enlight Media, the company owned by a friend of mine in Beijing

August 14-16: Attend Olympic Games wearing outlandish U.S.A. garb...might offend a few people, who knows?

August 18: Depart Beijing and get back to the island stupid early the next morning

Now that you have an idea of what we're getting into, I just wanted to recount the last few days on the island, which were pretty awesome. Of course I did a lot of packing, errands, and preparation shenanigans, but on my third time I've found that the best way to get ready to leave the country is to just chill with friends and family.

Once again we used my exodus as an excuse to get everyone together for burgers and beverages. The cookout on Saturday night was pretty solid--I got to see a lot of people I haven't seen in a long time, including the cops (check the background of the pic), who are now 3-for-3 in breaking up going away parties...it's just that this year everyone was 21. Fantastic. Some things never change on the island. Also, we were able to get in plenty of basketball on Pat's new sexy goal (see pic), thanks to Mr. Loria who tore down the last goal...you monster. And I even got a farewell lunch with my friends on my mom's dime.

That was just before the Last Supper, which was served at Chili's Too in the Atlanta airport. I got a Chipotle Bleu Cheese Bacon Burger, and it was about 1/2 as big and 1/2 as good as the local Chili's. Oh well. This was after my 1 hour flight from Jacksonville, and just before a 4 and 1/2 hour flight to LAX, and then another 12+ hours to Beijing. I'll get back to you on this soon.

(By the way, I've been typing this message in a "wang ba" or "internet bar", as I'm already in China. I don't usually come into these things for the same reasons I've experienced today: it costs money, it's so hot and stuffy that you start to sweat, and there's enough cigarette smoke to make even the nicotine-addicted gag. The entire general feel basically makes you feel like you need to take a shower when you leave. The hoards of Chinese teens and middle-aged guys playing World of Warcraft really doesn't bother me.)