Sarah Leone: Our Chongqing Welcome

When we arrived at the airport in Chongqing, the students from CTBU who met us were SO excited to see us!  They couldn't stop smiling and once we got to the campus all they wanted to do was help and make us feel comfortable.  What a great welcome!  The students were so cute and made me smile a lot.  I have to admit though, the first night in Chongqing was the biggest culture shock I've ever experienced.  I was cranky and exhausted.  The shower was the biggest thing that got me.  My first shower over flooded into my kitchen and I couldn't mop it all up.  Water was everywhere!  There were a lot of mosquitoes and other bugs I've never seen before.  I didn't know how to handle it.  After a good night’s sleep I woke up refreshed and ready to go!  We had a welcome ceremony, for us and for the students from Koera, Montreal, and the Netherlands.  The speaker said "one world, one dream".  She was so right.  We all live in this big world together, and have the same dreams, no matter what country you live in, what language you speak, or what your culture is! We are all equal!  The campus is beautiful and huge.  20,000 students!  I'm getting accustomed to everything between the shower, toilets, bugs and heat.  I'm still trying to get used to the food, but I've been trying new things and am very proud of myself, as well as everyone else!  I'm also trying my hardest to learn basic Chinese words to communicate.  Their English is SO good and they love learning it just as much as we love learning Chinese!  Our student helpers have been so nice.  They take us to lunch and are going to bring us to their favorite shopping spots!  We're all excited.  A butterfly landed on my head the other day, and the Chinese students told me it meant good luck!  Then at dinner I was clumsy and dropped a plate, but one student told me that meant peace!  Yay! =]  We ate a resturant close to the Yangtze River's south bank then got to see Chongqing city's bulidings all lit up.  It was like the New York skyline, only a million times better in my opinion.  It was beautiful!  There was a square where tons of people were doing dances together.  Some of us tried the dances too.  Today we had our first Chinese class to learn some phrases!  The teacher was really helpful.  She gave us all Chinese names.  Mine is Yuan Yue, meaning full moon!  Later is a tour of the downtown city!  I'm loving life in China, as I think most of us are.  Everyone is so generous and it's awesome to see the international interaction and friendships forming!  I'm very grateful to be here!  So many memories already, can't wait for more!!