Let's get oriented...

Well, when I heard that I was going to Anshun I had no idea exactly where that was. Maybe you feel the same way!

Here is a map of China with Guizhou (the province) in red:

And here's a map of Guizhou with Anshun circled in red:

I made a little legend in the corner of the map. As you can see, Guiyang is the capital of the Guizhou province. I hear it is about an hour and a half bus ride from Anshun. And Guiyang has two Walmarts! It's crazy to me that there is Walmart in China! Anyway, the neighboring provinces to Guizhou are Sichuan (which is often spelled Schezwan-as in Schezwan chicken-in the US), Chongqing, Yunnan (you can see it in the map), Guangxi (also in the map), and Hunan. You can also see that Anshun is pretty close to North Vietnam (about 200 miles), which makes my mom nervous. Don't worry Mom, I have no plans to go to Vietnam!

Here are some other tidbits of information about Guizhou from answers.com:
Climate - subtropical: there are few seasonal changes
Average temperature - 10-20°c (50-68°F)
January temperature - 1-10°c (34-50°F)
July temperature - 17-28°c (63-86°F)
Per capita income - 3568 RMB ($470 USD): this is the lowest of any province in China.

Oh, and the picture of the waterfalls in the top left of the page are the Huanggoushu waterfalls. They are the largest waterfalls in Asia, and are located in Anshun. I can't wait to vist them myself!!

So, now we all know a little more about Anshun and Guizhou.

Until next time,
Elizabeth

Introductions

I think that the first thing to do would be to introduce myself.

My name is Elizabeth and I am getting ready to travel to Anshun, China for a year. I will leave in mid-August.

I just graduated from Taylor University in December. It took me a few months to find a job. But in one crazy week I got a job as a teacher's assistant and I met the China representatives. My current job is perfect for me: it ends in the summer and then I can go to China and not feel like I'm letting anyone down by quitting. And I get to work in a school, which I love. And I'm really excited to go to China. I'm so happy to be learning a new language and experiencing a new culture. This is such a great fit for me!

This is the list of things I need to do still:
[ ] Get my blood drawn for an HIV test to get into the country
[ ] Get my diploma from Taylor (even though I graduated they won't give me my diploma until I walk in the ceremony in May)
[ ] Sort through my house and pack boxes so that I don't leave my parents with piles of junk
[ ] Raise money (about $5000 I think)
[ ] Learn Chinese

I'm sure that my list will grow, but that's all I can think of right now.

Until next time,
Elizabeth