Hi everyone,
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Sorry it's been so long since I've posted. I finally got my computer back, and I'm settling io my permanent site. After ten weeks of training, I've passed my Chinese exam, sworn in, and moved all my stuff to Tongren in Guizhou Province.
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All the trainees took the LPI, Language Proficiency Interview, a few days before the end of training. It was a day of stress for everyone. There were a few blow-ups, but we all came out of it okay. I ended up getting an Intermediate Mid, one level above what we needed to pass, so I was happy about that. But I was a little embarrased by my performance during the exam. I realized that I kept using the word "fangbian," which means "convenient," instead of using the correct word "fangjian," which means "room," when trying to make a hotel reservation. So I kept asking questions like, "Do you have any convenient available?" "Does your convenient have air conditioning?" Oh, well...I passed.
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Then we moved out of our host families' houses and left the university to move into a hotel where we all stayed and had sessions. It was one last chance to see a lot of each other before we moved to different parts of the country. I was surprised by the emotions I experienced in those last few days with my new friends, and now I find myself really missing some of them.
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Our swearing-in ceremony was at a nice hotel in downtown Chengdu. Many of us had qipaos made for the occasion (you can see mine in the picture above). The national director of Peace Corps came to China to swear us in, which was a nice surprise. At swearing in, we heard some speeches, had a slide show (which my friend Harley put together), and sang a traditional Chinese song. The song is a Tibetan love song, which was used in the opening credits of Survivor China, I believe. If you're interested in hearing a Western Folk rendition, use the link below. Overall, swearing in was a good celebration...they even fed us lasagne!
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http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5LTMuLS9tqk
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The same evening we swore in, we gathered our things, took a taxi to the train station, went through the painful process of checking our bags (never do it if you can avoid it), and took the overnight to Tongren. Our counterpart teacher, Sherry (previously named Miselle), met us in Chengdu and came back with us; you can also see her in the photo with myself and Jacq, my sitemate.
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Finally now, we are in Tongren, settling in and adjusting to our new lives here. I'm continuing to learn more about my new town, and will post soon about it.
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Love you and miss you all,
Jennifer
