A Post About Animals & Good Food.

Talk about a lame blog title... Sooooo I've been avoiding blogging again because life is far too eventful for documentation. Fortunately & unfortunately I have lost my voice & am currently craving any sort of communication. So I figure this is the perfect opportunity to share some stuff. I suppose I will dedicate this post to a wonderful weekend spent in Guangzhou. Here are some perks..

-We got to ride the metro a lot. I love the metro.

-Our hostel was the greatest place ever. Regardless of the mold on the walls & nasty community bathroom, the environment & people were lovely. I was especially fond of an attractive Finnish guy we met & our witty roommate. Both with the most darling accents. 

-Going to the Safari Park. It was a dream come true. I'm not kidding. SO MANY ANIMALS. Every animal imaginable & at least ten of each kind. One of the coolest parts was that very few animals were caged so they just roamed free. Cars were constantly stopping because a giraffe or some animal was in the middle of the road. Not to mention the park was a jungle. We were able to feed a baby tiger, giraffes & monkeys. As well as get kisses from & ride elephants. I don't think I will ever be able to go to a normal zoo again! 

-Found a subway!! It was the most exciting & delicious thing ever. Although it tasted very little like the subway in america. It was just so wonderful to see cheese & meat without bones! 

-Went to district conference. It was so amazing to see all the members in The Guangdong Province. Although the numbers were few it was neat to hear what brought people to China & their experiences being a member over here. Then all the ILP teachers from Zhongshan went to a member of the presidency's beautiful home [on the 32nd floor of a building] & had lunch. You would have thought that we had never seen food before. But what do you expect when you stick hungry foreigners in a room full of corn bread & chocolate cake?

I'm fully aware that was a picture overload but that's what happens when you take two hundred pictures in one day. Peace playas! 

72 Hours.

Everyday here in China is a complete adventure. Yet the last 72 hours have been especially eventful. Let me break it down for you.

-Went to a park with six of my babies & their parents. It was so fun & amazingly beautiful. We climbed over 2,000 stairs to get to a pagoda but it was a great time nonetheless. Then we ate very yummy food. I learned that some people like to eat the WHOLE ENTIRE shrimp, including the eyes & shell.

-Wandered Walking Street & bought more clothing for dirt cheap. I'm becoming a shopaholic. We were able to hold some darling puppies & get ice cream from Cyncia. Also we had McDonalds & it was sooo delicious. The lights at night are wonderful around those parts. Unfortunately I didn't capture many pictures but I will share more soon enough.

-Got stuck in an small elevator with 12 ILP teachers. When we would call the emergency line they would simply hang up because they couldn't understand us. Luckily, with the help of a couple phrase books we were able to let them know that we needed help. Despite the minor feelings of claustrophobia I thought it was quite funny.

-We were able to go to church for the first time since arriving here & it was splendid. It was very different having to travel hours to attend & holding the meeting in a living room. I really loved it. We talked a little bit about how ready the people of China are for the gospel & how excited we are for them to receive it. It will be the best day! I can hardly wait.

-An ancient man danced with us on the bus.

-Got attacked by a midget. We were walking out of the bakery when this midget started pestering us. She wanted our food & money & wasn't taking no for an answer. It wasn't long before she decided to cling on to one of the other teachers. She would not let go & literally had to be pried off of her. It was easily one of the funniest things I have ever seen.

-I went & had dinner at Michael's house. Which was the nicest place ever & learned how to make dumplings! So delicious.

-I paid the hospital a little visit. I was teaching the kids when I sliced my finger open. I knew from the moment I saw it I would need some stitches. After visiting the school nurse, passing out & being told "To the hospital we go" I found myself in the emergency room. They sent me back & forth & back & forth & gave me the medication I needed. Then I was told to stand against the wall & wait for assistance. Let me just paint a picture for you of my surroundings. People screaming left & right. A man with a melted face. A women coughing up blood. A completely naked old man moaning. After treating the mutated face man [and not cleaning up any of the bloody mess] they had me sit in his spot. Right next to the naked old man, where a boy who looked sixteen & had earrings stitched me up. I was then given two more shots in what they called my "bums" & was sent to a room full of people holding IV bags over their heads. I am now expected to take 36 pills a day [I'm not exaggerating] & visit the hospital every two days. It was quite the experience. But on the bright side now all my kids constantly kiss it better & say "Will the finger be okay?"

-Anna climbed onto my lap & whispered in my ear saying, "I really really like you" & everything was right in the world. Then she had me put her hair in a side pony so we could be matching. Excuse the blurry photo. 

Life is so good!