HI FACEBOOK FRIENDS!!!

We're at 47 days to go - I have just announced my trip to my facebook peeps, so howdy to all of you!

I'm really excited about next weekend. That's Orientation Weekend in Bloomington. Time to meet all of the people going on the trip, and hopefully finding out the itinerary. Woo hoo!! Really looking forward to this next step as I know it brings me a bit closer to leaving. Oh, China...hurry up and get here!

Here's a funny moment - I got an e-mail from Cathy Gao at the EASC asking me to fill out my Chinese visa application and to send it along with my passport and a passport picture to them. I got up this past Saturday and got out to Walgreens to have a pic taken. Someone had loaded what had to be 1,012 pictures on the machine, so I had to wait. Worst part of all of this was the fact that it was 11:45 and I needed to get to teh post office by 12! FINALLY I managed to get out of there, and got to eh post office just in time to have them lock the door right when I had my hand on the handle. Yep. That's right. There was no one behind me, no one around, one person still inside at the counter, and I was burned and spurned the US Postal Service. Grr. Guess I will be heading back down there tomorrow. And the post office wonders why they are losing money...

The EASC sent me some books to read before the trip. I am midway through the second. Here's a list, in case you're looking for some Chinese literature to read (and you are, right?):

The Diary of Ma Yan: The Struggles and Hopes of a Chinese School Girl
by Ma Yan and Pierre Haskel
This book is set in NW China, and is about a student who is a Hui. Essentially, that means that she is a Chinese Muslim. We will be traveling to Xi'An, which has a large Hui population. This was a quick and easy read. It definitely shed some light on the poverty problem in China. Recommended!

Postcards from Tomorrow Square
by James Fallows
I am currently in the middle of this one. It is a collection of essays written by the author when he moved to China with his wife. I like what I have read so far - little snippets on the life of the Chinese, and it looks at China's perception of itself, ans well as the world's perception of China. SO far, so good!

Country Driving: A Journey Through China from Farm to Factory
by Peter Hessler
I haven't touched this one yet. Thicker than the other two, but still pretty interesting looking. I am sure it will focus on China's economics some. Econ is not my favorite area of study, but if this has some historical and cultural info in it, I am sure I will get through it. Check back for updates!

Lonely Planet: China
Oh, travel guide books...how I love thee. This is the Mack Daddy of travel books - if you want info, Lonely Planet has it. Definitely not something you read to cover to cover, but it has kept me entertained for days now.

All for now - must get back to obsessive list making.