Final Day in Tianjin, China.

And just like that, three weeks flew by. Had my last day of class today. Overall, I've been satisfied with my Chinese lessons here in Tianjin. I feel my 发音 （ tones and sounds ) improved a lot. I feel my 信心 ( confidence ) in my Mandarin abilities is at the level where I have no trepidation of speaking with other native speakers. I can hold my own ground, and I plan to continue studying Mandarin either on my own or maybe with another school out in LA. ( I've also talked about Skyping with some of the teachers here on a weekly basis to continue my Chinese training. )

I will try to write a post-trip reflection once back in the states. But honestly, I think, whether or not this was a successful spritual journey, I feel I have grown, even if it's in a very small way. For one thing, I've learned to accept my uniqueness of being a very emotional person. I think of it now more as a trait than a weakness. And being in China, I've learned to control it better. In fact, now that I look back at the many incidents of this past year where I just lost it over someone or something, I just laugh and think how absurd I was back then. I definitely embrace it, but I think from here on out, I'm gonna be okay. Sure, feelings may arise here and there, but I'll be able to keep things in perspective, instead of hanging my heart on my sleeve for all to see.

It was definitely a bitter sweet day, having to say farewell to the many friends and students I made during these short three weeks. During one of my breaks today in between classes, I chatted with my language partner/teacher for a bit, and then suddenly she started tearing up, drops strolling down her face. I asked her "什么问题？" (What's the problem?). She said it wasn't anything, but then I realized she was feeling the same way many of my close friends feel when things come to an end...she was having a hard time saying good bye. She really liked me as her student, always praising how hard working and smart I was. I basically told her all my dreams of learning Chinese so that maybe one day I can act in Chinese movies. Basically all my teachers know I hope to become a 演员 ( actor ) someday, and all have been supportive of me, always encouraging me and asking me what my plan of action is. So cool to be talking about my dreams in Chinese :)

I'm looking forward to going back to the states. I've lost a lot of weight since being in China, due to lack of exercise and nutrition. All my shirts are now loose on me, no longer that nice wrap around muscles I feel I'm used to back at MIT. I plan to hit the weights hard once I move to LA, among many other things I have to do ( find apartment, buy car, find/enroll in acting class, furniture, etc. ) The real world is setting in real fast, and I look forward to it. Besides my family, the thing I look forward to the most is being a student of the craft again. I miss it so badly, and it's itching inside me to just ACT!

Early flight back to Hawaii tomorrow....NOT! Making a pit stop in Korea for a few days, then heading back to Paradise. Can't wait to see what Korea has to offer. Best part...no teaching, no learning, just plain enjoyment!

2 Down, 1 To Go.

Two weeks of Chinese classes have already passed. TGIF! It's definitely mean a grueling week of Mandarin speaking and listening, but I am starting to not only improve in confidence and pronounication, but also developing a real passion for the Mandarin language. I guess I really enjoy being able to walk up to anyone in town and just strike up a conversation in a totally new language. Now, I know they probably expect me to already speak well, since I LOOK Chinese, but deep down, I'm always going to be a 美籍华人。 But I'm still determined to do my best, and learn as much as I can during my next final week in Tianjin, and in China in general.

A few days ago, I was ordering food at KFC ( yes, I'm so tired of Chinese Food! ). After I finished my order, the customer behind me asked if I was Japanese? Korean? I promptly asked her why she would assume such thing, and she told me, 因为你中文说得不好。 I had to hold back my anger from slapping this old lady in the face. Here I was busting my ass trying to master this language, and she just outright insults me. ( I'm sure she didn't mean to. ) Anyway, I'm realizing there will always be haters and negative individuals out there, and at first, I was thinking, why even bother learning something if I'm never going to be great at it, never going to master it. But I know I'm learning this for myself, not for a grade, not for my parents, but for myself. And if opportunities come up my way because of this skill, great. If not, at least I know how to speak and listen to another language, even if it'll forever be at a basic level.

Enough be ranting. Haven't updated for a while. Let's talk about last weekend. This past Saturday my friend's cousin took me around Tianjin. She and her family were so nice, and showed me the city, ate a fantastic dinner, and checked out the beauty of Tianjin at night. Sunday some friends from Beijing came down to Tianjin, and we lurked around the city, and had a really nice time. Monday was sooo tiring for me, and had a hard time staying alert. But the days afterwards ran pretty smoothly. Though because my classes start at 8 in the morning, and I sometimes skip breakfast cause I wake up too late, and by the time lunch comes around, I'm starving. Not a good idea, since I have four hours of class in the morning!

I am not gonna lie, I look forward to going back home. I'm definitely going to keep in touch with my Chinese friends here, and also my Chinese language partner, who has been very awesome. I wish I talked with locals more. I just got back from class, and saw some old ladies playing with the Chinese version of a hacky sack, and decided to just jump in. We conversed for a while, and then they corrected my tone for 教。 I guess sometimes when I speak casually I don't really think about tones, and then everything just messes up. Sometimes I wish Mandarin came as an overnight success for me, but I know like anything else in life, if you want to get better at something, you gotta practice.

Not sure what's in store for me this weekend. I'm hoping to learn some Kung Fu with a teacher tomorrow, and then just do some hard core studying. Maybe hang out with some of the other students, and then just take advantage of my last week of classes. One on one classes has its advantages and disadvantages; definitely a good amount of individualized attention ( you're the ONLY one :)

Tianjin is 好！

It's been rainy weather here in 天津，but ain't letting that ruin my parade. Life has been good. Very tired right now from reviewing and doing homework. 5 hours of lessons a day can really tire a man out. But I'm loving all this Chinese that I'm learning. In just three days I already feel like I've identified my weaknesses in the different areas of Mandarin, and working really hard, in and out of class to improve.

From listening to CDs, to asking lots of questions in class, to answering questions asked by teachers, to conversing with my language partner, to chatting with local people, I'm really enjoying this "only having to focus on one subject" life. Even got to learn how to make Chicken Chow Mein tonight from a local 天津 woman.

Two more days till the weekend. Wonder what's in store for me?

In Tianjin!

To my faithful followers, ( 1 or 2 of you out there ), I apologize for not having been blogging for the past weeks. I've been battling a cold that's been going on for about two weeks now. Just when I think it's better, I start sneezing again like a wild hyena, and eyes just start leaking with tears like a waterfall. Not sure if it's cause of the weather, or if it's just my body. But either way, each day has been a battle for me. After a 5 hour train ride from Wuhan last week Wednesday morning ( july 18 ), we finally arrived in Wuxi Wednesday afternoon. After a while, cities in China start to look very similar. Nothing really special about this city to be honest. Maybe less cars, but the weather is just as hot here as it is in Wuhan. I am starting to really, really, miss home. The room I’m staying in is definitely a downgrade from the last two places I’ve stayed at. Truth be told, if I were to leave China right now, I’d be completely fine with it. Hopefully when I start learning Chinese in Tianjin things will be much better. I’m really looking forward to just being a student again instead of having to teach all the time. We ended up with only 8-10 students. Somehow the school did not prepare well in advance for our arrival, and therefore student recruitment was a big disappointment. But we ended up having a great session, meeting many different students, who appreciated our time there. We gave a total of 4 lectures on Python, and the rest of the time was spent sharing MIT and American life, exploring Wuxi ( lots of lakes! ), and going to our contact's company to present on interviewing and hometown life. After Wuxi I flew down to Shenzhen to vist friends and family. Yesterday ( July 28 ), I went down to ZhongShan, the hometown of my parents. The last time I went there I was 3 years old. It was so surreal, walking around the neighborhood that my parents grew up in. I wish they were there with me, sharing me some stories, but my uncle did his best to tell me about my mom and her life while growing up. I definitely conjured up this feeling inside that is somewhat difficult to describe. All I can say is that I've definitely found a new found gratefulness for all the sacrifices and hard work my parents have done in order to get where they are today, and raising all up me and my sister so well. This afternoon I arrived in Tianjin, where for the next 3 weeks I will undergo intensive Mandarin lessons. Each day, Mon-Fri, 4 hours of 1 on 1 lessons. I will go at my own pace, but I plan to make a huge dent and impact on my skill level. This is what I've ultimately wanted to do since coming to China ( in addition to spiritual awakening ), and although it's somewhat lonely now that my two travel mates have gone back home, I'm trying to not lose motivation and just remind myself why I came here in the first place. That's all for now. I met this wonderful woman Ann, who's used to be the coordinator of this Chinese program. Before joining the company, she was actually a veteranirian for 25 years before relocating to Tianjin, and has since lived here for 10 years. We got to grab dinner together this afternoon, and hearing about her journeys was definitely exciting. And her Mandarin speaking abilities definitely puts mine to shame. First class at 8 tomorrow morning. Nice to be the student for a change!

Reflection and Singing!

I can not believe tomorrow is our last day in Wuhan. This one and a half week flew by faster than I could have imagined. Don’t get me wrong, Wuhan is a VERY hot place, and I will not miss the weather. But the students here have been nothing but awesome. We were literally together every single day since last Monday, and in that short period of time many stories have been shared, funny activities have been played, embarrassing dancing displayed, and all that good stuff. Even this entire day, from preparing our mini final talent performance, to singing ~6 hours of KTV, everyone had some good laughs, exchange of ideas, and the expression of dreams and aspirations.

I look forward to coming back to America, not just because of the lifestyle I will be able to lead, but also knowing the fact that I will be full speed ahead as I pursue my own dreams, and after teaching Drama to the kids last week, they definitely saw that burning passion within me as we performed Sonnet 90.

I may not have a clear end goal in mind, but I know at this moment, the path I’m taking is the right one. I owe it to myself, and now these new fans that I have made, to give this thing a shot. And I know in the end, I will receive much more than I put in, because the art in itself will return plentifolds to those who dare to dream big.

Drama!

Had a really successful day of teaching Drama. I must admit these students definitely surpassed my expectations, and I was tearing up during the final performances of the groups. It was really good; some I had to offer some feedback and have them do it again, but once I saw the drastic improvement it was just incredible! Started the morning with an American culture lecture, which then turned into Louis and I teaching them how to shuffle and dougie. We’ll be having a class party at the last day of class, so definitely looking forward to showing off more dance moves for the students. The first half of drama I explained to everyone what acting was, some of the benefits of learning drama, why I’m such a bad-ass actor, etc. Then we did some breathing exercises, vocal exercises, tongue twisters, practiced pronounciating our consanants, and finished the morning with freezetag, a type of improve game. Really interesting how many of the kids came up with relationship and love scenarios. The afternoon was a lot more emotional. I introduced everyone to Sonnet 90 by Shakespeare, which I worked on for a semester for Voice and Speech for the Actor at MIT. We went over the meaning behind this sonnet, and I was amazed that I still knew this by heart; I guess because I was able to relate to this at a personal level. I was really happy cause the students began to open up more about life, feelings, love, lost, etc. Some thing one would normally talk about with people you just met for two days. Glad I was able to create this open and safe environment for the students to express themselves. At the end of the afternoon I had to students split up into groups to practice their own interpretation of the sonnet, and perform it in front of the class. Some of the groups created this atmosphere that really touched my heart, and they really took this sonnet and ran with him. Same lines, same words, but their own emotions and stories brought to life. Acting…Love how it changes people and gives them this creativity that no other art can give. Ended the night with a showing of a good ole American classic, Casablanca. After the movie we had a great discussion on love, the possibility of loving two people at the same time, and so on. Wow, just realized today was a pretty emotional day, but a very healthy type of emotional day, which is always great for everyone. Thank you to those who have been following this blog, and pushing me to write more. I’ll try harder despite the crappy internet connection in China. Until next time, Aloha!

Lecture Week!

Finally, after two weeks, our third week began and we finally started teaching students. Monday we gave a two hour lecture on Introduction to Programming with Python. The students supposedly had experience with C before, but as I walked around the classroom trying to assist them with the mini exercises, many of them had no idea what a for loop or while loop were, and what made it more difficult was their English listening and speaking skills weren't as fluent as we hoped it would. I ended up trying to explain in Chinese what a loop was, or that you had to convert a string into an int before being able to use mathematical operations on it. It was definitely an interesting challenge for me, and I made a note to myself to look up key Chinese terms for the next lecture I would give. I ended up teaching lists, strings, and dictionaries, talking at a very slow pace and using Chinese whenever I could to clarify my ideas. The students were quite impressed with how much one could do with python, and I myself started feeling the love for programming again ( say what?! )

Later than evening Louis and I gave a lecture on American culture. Covered everything from film, education, music to dance. Dance was my favorite part. We taught them how to dougie and shuffle. They seemed really impressed, and I told all the guys if you mastered these moves all the ladies will want you ( i'm really good at faking this type of confidence :P )

Had some volunteers come up to dance and try it out. Girls are very very shy, and I had to drag some of the guys up, but all in all it was fantastic. One student told me he used to be very shy, but after tonight and seeing my energy and enthusiasm, he said he would change and try to get out of his comfort zone more. Really proud and happy of everything we've done and will continue to do throughout the week!