So Beijing was SooO awesome! So the first thing I noticed was it was more spacious which is obvious because it’s a bigger country. Surprisingly, I didn’t really feel suffocated by pollution. It had more smog I would say than pollution. Also, it was actually VERY clean. I kept on hearing that it’s really dirty and I think in other parts it is, but I was AMAZED at how I barely saw trash like how I see it in Korea more often. Everyone’s theory is since the Olympics they’ve cleaned up since then and keeping it up. There was more diversity in the architecture then in Korea. Korea is great but they have a theme in the fortresses than in China it’s more diverse in the design of buildings, castles, and temples. The traffic is more spacious BUT surprisingly more dangerous. The bikers don’t stop and sometimes neither do the cars, which is crazy!! So if you go to China you have to REALLY careful. Koreans are much more looking out for each other with danger then in China. Well I don’t know Chinese culture that much, but from my experience in the traffic that is something I can definitely say. It was really interesting walking around Beijing and listening to the language. I could pick up on what Hangul adopted from Chinese. I could hear the “ship-shee-eeyo” and “mmmnida”. The Chinese accent is really different and interesting when you hear them speaking in China. Actually it’s kinda funny to compare. In Korean language there’s a LOT of “uh’s” and “eis” at the end of their words. Example “orange-ie” is how they say orange. Passport is “passport-uh” in Korean. And table is “table-uh” in Korean. haha! Interesting huh? Also in the Chinese accent, when their speaking English you hear more of an accent that sounds “ong, shong, chong” more ongy soundy. and Korean English is more “ies, and uhs” sounds. So I can definitely tell the difference. The Chinese physiques I noticed were boxier look but with a figure obviously. There was more diverse range in different figures then in Korea. Most Koreans are fairly skinny, taller and they’re bodies are more elongated but proportional. Although, I did see a few tall Chinese people. Obviously, as time as goes on, Asians are getting taller and taller. Chinese faces are rounder though and Koreans face is more oval. Now the eyes, that’s still a challenge to tell the difference and if they’re even is a difference. In China there more aggressive with sales, it’s quite ridiculous. It’s like if you see something you buy you can’t just look. It’s crazy! You have to say “booya” which means I don’t want it in Chinese. I felt so rude saying that cuz in American culture it means “in your face”. But oh well. So we went on a tour! We first went to an Underground Palace, which was interesting, but I didn’t quite find it that fascinating. But I learned they throw money at tombs for good luck. But it was that pretty so I didn’t take that many pictures. Second we went on the Great Wall! WOW what a wonder of the world! The wall is so huge. The tour was great but my only complaint is that we only had 2 hours on the Great Wall =(. Oh well. But during the climb up we made friends with a donkey! Ha!  But there was an awesome chute we could take on the way down which was awesome! Too cool! Did a little shopping, it’s awesome cheap there. I felt bad for them, cuz they were really aggressive with selling, and you have to be REALLY firm with them when you don’t want it. I wonder if they were always like that or if they were like that even before the economy went bad. Anyone who’s been china for a long time know that answer?? Our Tour Guide was great! He was teaching us a little about how they teach numbers in Chinese with their hands. VERY different then American style. Culture shock there. Third, we went to Jade Museum. Talk about wow how they made those things. It’s obviously a lot more intense work then pottery but I could see similarities but more dangerous. They showed us and explained the difference between fake and real jade. It was cool cuz she asked us what we thought was real and fake. I was right picking which one was right!  Woo hoo! We had lunch at the museum for free. (Included in the tour). Next we went to a Silk Factory and they explained about it. WOW it was beautiful and fascinating. What’s gross I have to say is that they obviously remove the silk from the silkworms; they fry them and eat them! Blagh! No way will I eat those. We had to get back from the tour at 6:30pm cuz pickup for the Chinese Opera was at 7! Which we found out last minute. But boy talk about the opera! The costumes were amazing of course but the singing was ummm… NOT Italian opera that’s for sure. Very screechy and not pretty. But the 2nd short opera we saw had more acrobatic and dance in the opera. VERY cool! I recommend going cuz it’s a mind-opener experience. We stayed in a youth hostel. FYI those of you who want to go to Beijing! Go to a youth hostel! We only paid $14 bucks a night! There were people from India, Germany, England, and Ireland. Oh goodness I could go on and on. I mean I didn’t meet all of them, but there were definitely people there I didn’t know where they were from but from other parts of the world.The next day we went as a group to the Summer Palace. It took us 4 hours to go through the whole palace! It was huge. FYI for those of you going there be prepared to spend that much time there. The Forbidden City was really cool as well! Seriously those 2 things took us all day! Crazy huh? We had dinner at the Forbidden City if my memory serves me correctly. After that, we went to a Chinese Acrobat Show. Now keep in mind these were literally young kids / preteens. First of all, talk about talent and secondly in China they’re very brutal in training for the acrobats in general. My heart goes out to them! I gave them a standing ovation at the end! =)Last day, we got up at the crack of dawn to see a changing of the guards’ ceremony. Honestly, I don’t really recommend it. It’s not that fascinating. I would have rather gone to see the Temple of Heaven. But oh well. There’s a TON more to see in Beijing, I may go back for another weekend to visit a few more sites. But I definitely want to go see Shanghai. The culture was similar to Korean but definitely there were differences. I found this awesome Elephant Nature Park online I want to go volunteer at in Northern Thailand. I’ve been talking to someone I know who’s in Thailand and he said there’s still protests going on but it’s still pretty peaceful right now. My group of friends I went to Beijing with, are talking about taking a trip to Thailand next! Woo hooo! Gotta ride an elephant in Thailand this year. That was on my to do list this year! I have the Great Wall now off my list! =) So happy!! So I changed my mind to work at a public school when my contract ends. I like my hagwon but I feel like I would get an even more knowledgeable experience working one year at a hagwon and another at a public school. To see the difference and learn more about the education system in Korea. I know people that are working in a public school. What astounds me is that a Hagwon here is more about keeping the parents happy (a business) not about what’s best for the kids. Definitely not like America in that way. Plus I’ll be working probably the same about of hours but in a public school you have more opportunities to make more money and more vacation time so I can travel more! YAY! Public school also gives you an orientation in the province where you meet all of the other English teachers in the province, so it’s easier to meet people. Not that I don’t like my good niche of friends, but why not meet more interesting people right?? There’s a musical theater festival coming up I’m going to this weekend north of Seoul and I went to DJ Seoul Festival. Ehh coulda been better actually. But it was ok.. That’s all for now! Ciao! Anyo!

Oh and I gotta tell you the most hilarious part of our trip was randomly speaking korean throughout our trip! haha.. My buddy herman asked this chinese guy "how much is this?" and the chinese guy is just smiling and didn't respond cuz he didn't understand obviously. So Herman tries "Ul-may-I-yo?" which in korean is how much is this? We all started laughing! oh that was great!! HAHA! =)