Summer/Fall Update

Well, I obviously have made it home safe and sound. Returned back to the states on July 13 only to be welcomed with the biggest hugs from my family in Chicago. The final picture count: over 7,000. My camera broke the last day I was in Thailand, in Bangkok, at the Grand Palace. I slipped on some marble stairs and smashed it in catching my fall. Very sad but between disposable cameras and some of Ellen's pictures, I have been able to keep up my photo albums.

I also have been inspired by my trip to pursue instruction in English as a Second Language (ESL). I have applied for a job on North Campus this year to teach ESL in their community language program to young kids. My interview is on September 8, so cross your fingers for me! Another possible idea for a future career is some sort of outdoor education. That way, I could still be outside, teaching, and working with kids. I have another year in my Kinesiology undergrad but my trip to Asia this summer has made me think twice about what type of grad school program to apply to. We'll see what happens.

I also am living in a Global Scholars living community at school this year. It is for people who are interested in studying, working and living abroad and improving the cross-cultural/global communication in the world. I will be taking classes and attending a lecture series through the program and will be communicating with people at colleges and universities such as Seoul, British Columbia, etc. I am very excited to continue my education in global issues, expand my knowledge base on various cultures, and improve my cross-cultural communication.

Lastly, I move back to school tomorrow (into my Global Scholars community) and will have a few more assignments for GIEU before I am officially done with the program. We have a debriefing session this weekend Friday and Saturday and a final symposium project the end of September. Not sure what we're doing or how it all works yet but a final project on our time in China will be presented.

Thanks for following my adventures in Asia this summer!

zài jiàn!

Mo Chou