From Heather Hepbron

May 14, 2010

I did not fully realize that I was coming to China until I was on the plane flying here. My biggest fear was flying since I was only on one other plane when I was younger. When I realized that all Widener students were not sitting together, and I was seated next to two men, my fear grew even more. It wasn’t until halfway through the flight that I realized that one of the men spoke English, and was actually from Beijing. I started talking to him, and he told me the other man was from Chongqing, but didn’t speak any English. This made my flight a lot better, because I could actually talk to someone and learn new things, and the men were extremely nice.

The first night when we arrived at Beijing, I was panicked because I could not get my phone to work and I needed to call my mom. I am extremely close to my parents and I’m used to talking to them frequently. After I got my phone taken care of I was in a better mood, and was ready to take on the Great Wall.

Another challenge for me is some of the culture and social changes, a huge one for me is the personal space issue. I’m not used to people standing so close to me or bumping into me. Another is the bathrooms, which for the most part I have adjusted pretty well to. One thing I do love is that the students and younger Chinese people are very helpful and will do anything for you. The food is another challenge for me, due to my stomach, but I want to fit in and not be the “sick” girl, because I am having some trouble fitting into our own group of Widener students.

One huge positive is that I have started to come out of my shell a little and I am becoming more out-going, hope that continues to go well.