11 days after Arrival

I can already feel myself changing. The atmosphere, other than the smog, is different but then again, it is very similar to what i'm familiar with. Beijing is a city that is constantly moving but the pace it at a more leisured pace compared to NYC. Statistics say that Beijing house 18 million residents, and that's excluding the tourists and foreign visiters. Beijing is a huge city which is broken up into sections due to the 5 ring of highways that circle it. The subway system is amazing! The subway is clean, new, fast, and efficient. Along with the subway system, public transportation, specifically referring to buses, is also very sufficient. Both forms of transportation carry televisions. But although many things are very modern, many things are also ancient. Beijing is definitely a place that preserves its history. For that I respect the city. I also found out that the government controls the weather...to a certain extent. Due to the lack of rain during the summer months, these chemical pellets are dispersed in the air, towards the clouds and with hours it begins to rain. It's fascinating. If nature doesn't make it rain, the government somehow forces it to rain anyway, so like clockwork, it rains every week. I have to leave, but there are many other interesting things that i have neglected to talk about, but will address that in my next blog. bye for now.

One Week Left Before Departure

Hello everyone, I have about a week left until departure. I am very excited! I also found out that in certain parts of China, they have reestablished the use of facebook...hopefully they reestablished it where i will be residing. :) I have tons of packing, and preparing for the trip. This week will be havoc. As to the fundraising of the $800 left, so far $20 has been donated. I appreciate those who donated. But because of this i have resolved to work literally up until the day before i leave. But on the flipside, i am thrilled and can't wait to arrive in China, although i am dreading the 19 hour flight ugh! Hopefully i will be able to blog when i get to China. Toodles folks, and thanks again for your support and kind words.

Possible Bad News!

ok, here's the scoop, :) I might not be able to continue the blog when I get to China. I heard that because of the dispute between China and Google, that Google is now banned in China along with alot of sites affiliated with Google. I might not be able to blog, facebook, twitter, etc. It's a sad realization, but I will still keep a log of my daily activities and excursions. In addition, I believe I will be too enthralled with my surroundings anyways to have massive amounts of free time to be on the internet in general. Okay folks, wish me luck. Oh by the way, thanks for more donations that have poured in. As of today, I have received $1390 in donations!!!!!! Only have $800 to come up with. We can do it! Thanks everyone!

Update 2!!!

Hey everyone, got exciting news...I am only $1000 away from my goal. With my hard work in working 2 jobs coupled with the contributions from people around me (love you guys), and the loan I was able to secure for about $2000, I am 100% confident that I will reach my goal! I am deeply moved by all the help I have been getting and I am very appreciative to all the people that have informed me and given me advice on certain issues for when I travel to China. It is set, I leave August 19 in the morning. Thanks again everyone! I owe this soon-to-be life experience to your help and magnanimous support.

A Month and 10 Days Until Departure

Hey Folks. I'm sorry I haven't blogged since June 25th, but I've just been excessively working. I do have awesome news though. Between working at both jobs now, I have accumulated enough and have bought my ticket. As for donations, I haven't accumulated any more since the last update...so it is still at $100, which I am still grateful for. I also appealed and wrote to financial aid at my school again, and this time they helped me with an extra grant which will provide a refund of $1000 come September...WHOOPI! so seeing that $1000 (refund) + $1200 (ticket) = $2200 and subtract that from $6000 that leaves $3800...BUT I was told about a special loan through my school which allows me to apply for a loan with a cosigner (with great credit and income of course) and that is in the works, so I might be able to get a loan, I'm not sure how much I would be eligible for, but I should know by next week...Ok folks, thanks for the comments and support and please, keep those donations coming!

Update!!!

hello everyone, yesterday i went for a job interview and landed the job. So now i have two jobs again. This job i start next weekend, so i am very excited to now have income coming from two sources. As for the paypal donations, i have raised $100 so far and personally i have saved about $700, so i have to come up with $400 more because i came across a site which sells cheaper tickets so i only have to come up with $1200. After that happens i subtract that from the $6000 that needs to be raised...$4800 left. We can do this folks! Once again i am not putting pressure on you to donate, if you have any money to spare it will be truly appreciated, any amount, even $5 is something substantial in my mind. Once again Thanks.

3 Days Later: Presumptuous or Not?

Hi everyone. I received a disturbing comment and want to ask folks if they in fact believe it was too presumptuous of me to ask for monetary aid in this particular endeavor. Please be honest and let me know of your thoughts. I am only human, so mistakes are inevitable. If anyone has any better suggestions for how i might be able to raise this money PLEASE let me know. Thanks again.