Yongzhou - Home Sweet Home at 6:54 PM

So on Wednesday the guys from my school came and picked and Jason and Brook (the other teachers working at my school) from Changsha. Of course it was about a 4-5 hour drive so when they got to Changsha they wanted to take a break for a while before we hit the road again. They fed us lunch, which was really nice of them, and then they took us out to the car they drove up, which was big enough to seat three people, but not big enough for the luggage that three people brought (not a huge car). So they asked us if they could take our luggage to the train station and send it down that way while we drove. Not a big deal, except that we didn't know when we'd get the bags back and we didn't have any other clothes because they were in our bags, and we took our valuables with us so they wouldn't get stolen on the train. So I went about two days in the same clothes, kind of fun. I have this idea about adventure that makes everything more fun and less painful, so it actually didn't bother me too much.

Once we got to Yongzhou that night they took us to a banquet where they fed us again (they treat us really well, especially for China) and we ate more wierd stuff. Here's a list of the crazy stuff I've eaten in the last 72 hours.

• Pig's ear (actually really disgusting)
• Pig intestine (You can bet I didn't know what that was until after I ate it, actually wasn't that bad)
• Honey Bee Larvae (as in thoroughly cooked maggots, Slimy, yet satisfying)
• Chicken Foot
• Pickled radish (If you like pickled stuff, it's great)
• and a bunch of other stuff which I probably will never know what it was

Overall, this is turning into quite the adventure. I'm really happy about it. At the dinner we had when we got to Yongzhou, we met a guy named Lucas (I don't know what his Chinese name is) who was really awesome. He toasted us quite a bit at dinner and drank quite a bit. He kept trying to offer us whatever it was, (it was like a chinese whiskey, he told us it was 58% alcohol) and told me that I was a sissy for drinking juice when he toasted us, and that he was a real man. It was actually really funny, and then at the end of the night he rejoiced that we're colleagues. At that dinner, it kind of started to hit me that I've really gotten myself into something deep here, but the more I think about it, the more excited I get.

Yesterday morning after we settled in (I live in this sweet apartment, that's bigger than anything I had at BYU, even if it's a little different) Lucas took us around the town to show us where everything is and how to get around. And it was crazy. There's loads of people on the street here selling their wares. Most of the people selling on the street are selling food. You can go buy meat, fruits and veggies, and live chickens and frogs (all for consumption). As for the neighborhoods we drove through, it's pretty crazy. It's kind of this third world meets first world type of thing. The last bus I rode yesterday was really dirty and dingy, but it had a nice LCD screen mounted above the driver so you could watch commercials while he drove. The neighborhoods we drove through ranged from nice city to really 3rd world huts and alleys and everything in between. In the middle class part of town you can walk by a nice fast food place that's right next to a really dirty empty space that used to be a store, but looks like the building caved in. you can drive on the main street with the buses and the scooters and theirs the occasional guy pulling a wooden cart by himself ON THE ROAD. It's really kind of an amazing place. Now that I'm a little more situated, I'll start taking and posting more pictures.

Anyways, I love this place. I start teaching school on Tuesday (which I think is when a lot of schools start teaching in the states too) and more posts to come.

Thanks again for all the emails. I love to hear from everyone.