A few of the things I miss....

Of course family is one of the things I miss most. I miss my mom, dad, brothers and all my other family. It was really nice to see them in August in Zhuhai for the family reunion and my grandma's birthday. They are always on my mind.
I also miss my friends from back home. The first picture is from a "Thursday night dinner." Those were some of the funnest nights I had throughout college. A few good friends and I always arranged dinners and drinks at my house on Thursday nights. We did this the last semester of my senior year at the U of M. It turned into a big deal and was something that helped everyone get through the weeks. Sweet times! There was nothing better than cooking great food and enjoy it with great company and a few drinks!
The second picture is again with some good friends while in Chicago walking along the beautifully blue lake. I miss the skyline cities of the US, the blue skies and all the lakes especially in Minnesota!
The last picture is something I miss dearly, my moto. tear tear. I had a lot of fun with this bike and it treated me well. However, I know there will be more bikes in the future! I also miss the green grass(kinda brown, i think there was a drought that year) of the background. I miss running through fresh green grass. Its just something you can't do in Beijing...

China Life Intensive English Training Closing Ceremony

January 22, 2008. After 3 months of training and teaching, it was time to bring the China Life English Training Course to an end. I was chosen to host the closing ceremony with none other than my very own student Shi BoHui as a co-host. I think I speak for both of us when I say we were very nervous. Sitting front and center was the CIO, top managers, a few of my bosses and about 50 other people behind them, yikes!!! I was so nervous. It was my first time doing something like this but it was also kind of fun and a good experience and it is something I look forward to doing again.
It was a really great experience to teach the IT department of China Life English. They were all very professional students and very hard working. I also think that it was a mutually beneficial relationship because I learned a lot from my students as well. I hope that I can keep in touch with my students throughout the future!
(Pictures: Top: Shi BoHui and I hosting. Bottom: Iris, my boss, giving a toast with Paul (the other teacher) and I.)

Hitting the Slopes in Beijing

Beijing has a lot of fake things, including fake snow! Mother nature isn't going to sue China! So, I took advantage of this and hit the slopes of Nan Shan with my colleagues. I hadn't been skiing in several years so I was a bit nervous because all of my colleagues were counting on me to teach them how to ski. Well, I guess skiing is kinda like riding a bike. I tired to teach as many of them as I could but before I got too frustrated my boss said, "lets go to the big slopes." She didn't have to ask me twice. It was a lot of fun skiing and going out to have fun with my colleagues. They do say, all work and no play makes Justin a dull boy....

Flashback; Australia

Whitsunday Islands Sailing

Beautiful mix of Blues and Greens near Gold Coast

Surf and City in Surfer's Paradise

Hidden Inland beach on Frasier Island

Its been a little over a year since I left my home in Minnesota and embarked on a journey, which has led me to Beijing. But before Beijing, there was Oz. It seems like so long ago since i was there with my good friend Chris, I guess time flys! I got on my flight in LA, popped some NyQuil, downed a glass of Red Wine and 9 hours of un-interrupted sleep later I woke up to "ding" please fasten your seat belts and prepare for landing! I sleep great on flights. I landed in Sydney and met up with Chris. We then traveled up the East Coast of Oz stopping in Byron Bay, Gold Coast, Surfers Paradise, Brisbane and Airley Beach. We did all that in 3 weeks. It wasn't enough time at all, but we made the most out of it. We also met up with 2 of our other friends whom we met in Sweden. We all studied in the same program in Vaxjo. It was such a great time. I enjoyed Byron Bay the best. It was a nice beach town that was a little quiet but had good vibes. Sydney was also great. I got the chance to go sailing for the first time when we went to Airley Beach. We went on a 3 day 3 night sailing excursion in the Whitsunday Islands. It is said to be some of the best sailing in the world, when it isn't raining!!! The first day was dry, however, the following days of sailing we were completely soaked! Nonetheless, it was an amazing experience and the group of people we went with made it the best we could! It couldn't have been better and I decided I love sailing. Hopefully it can be a hobby some day....