Etc.

Well Last night was my class dinner, which was pretty fun. My mashed potatoes were a success and there wasn't anything left at the end. Not bad for my first time making them on my own. I was the only one to actually bring any food, so brownie points for me! The class "president", the guy who's place we had the dinner at, made us Sangria. YUM! I think I would have been happy going to Spain as well. Any who, it was nice to just hang out with my classmates outside of class and kick back. The only thing that bothers me is that soooo many people smoke! Before class, inbetween classes, one cigarette after the other. I either have to suck it up or avoid it. Sometimes the second one isn't possible. I miss Iowa's law. Apparently there is no smoking in public in Australia as well, so my classmate David sympathizes.

Tomorrow I'm finally cashing in on the photo shoot I won a while back. So Jack and I are getting official pictures together! Him somewhat reluctantly, but he can suck it up for a little bit. It will be worth the memories. The photo place also wants to use our pictures as a display at their studio. Not sure what to think of that. I guess I don't really care either way, I just want the pictures for myself. Hopefully they will come out well and we will have some fun doing it.

The day after tomorrow Is the class trip to the Thousand Island Lake. Turns out Jack and I won't be able to ride on the bus together since we are divided by classes, but we should still get to hang out on the islands. Hopefully it's not so terribly hot. Today is a little bit cooler than the past few days. But it's like one day here, it just decided to stop raining and be summer. Scorching hot and dry. Now I kind of miss the rain. The dryness makes the air feel much dirtier here and my throat has been bothering me. My room, being on the 6th floor is suffocatingly hot, even at night. Looks like I'm going to be having to use a lot more electricity during the summer on air conditioning.

Also the bugs are running rampant and I've become a human smorgesboard. Not only do I have a lot of bites, but some of them are huge! I think I might be allergic to something here. Or I'm just scratching them too much. Luckily today when I met with May, she noticed my itching and got me some salve that is supposed to keep the bugs away and heal the bites. It was funny how quickly she went into mommy mode. I told her a little bit about Iowa and Pella, but I think she was a bit distracted today because she seemed to understand me less than usual. Her son had surgery on his throat a while back so he has been having to stop in the hospital every few weeks. Also she has been very busy with her research. Guess I can't blame her. But I think I convinced her to come see Pella when she comes to the States. :)

As for class....my break wasn't long enough. Definately not motivated to go to classes, even though we only have three school days this week. Luckily another long weekend coming up and then Beijing. Hopefully I'll come back revitalized.

notes:

-excited for the Great Wall!

-Jack and I are going to try and plan a trip to see the terra cotta soldiers sometime soon!

-going to have to find a swimming pool