Preface

Seven days ago I dried off my shampoo bottle, slipped it in a ziplock bag, and packed it away last. I zipped my upright, secrued the turquoise ribbon I hoped would ensure I saw the bag at the end of a 13 hour flight, and 20 minutes later hugged my sister good-bye at the Tulsa airport. At 5:30 am, we had our complete Tulsa group through security sitting at our boarding gate sizing up each other, uncertain about what the next 21 days would hold.

One thing we did know was that we had hours and hours of traveling ahead. Cabin fever set in early, but we all arrived in Beijing at 4:40 pm local time on Sunday July 13. And are now, a week later, filled with authentic Chinese food, packed with experiences to process, sore with muscles used to climb ancient walls, famous squares, and modern stairs in classroom buildings and dorms, and are settled into a remarkably fast paced schedule at a boarding school on the rural outskirts of Xi'an.

With limited internet access, I'm posting in a journal, and typing online as soon as possible. Read on. And see photos at www.picasaweb.com/jentufts26.