After a 27 hour train ride, Aaron and I arrived in Chengdu, the biggest city of the western Chinese provinces. I’ve been waiting for this trip since I decided to come to China for two main reasons; Sichuan is the … Continued
The next several posts chronicle my trip around China over the last couple of weeks. Many posts I wrote on the train in between destinations. On the trip I spent just over 100 hours on 7 trains traveling almost 10,000 … Continued
I just finished my final week as an English teacher at Anhui University in Hefei, China. I’ve learned a lot, taught a lot and hopefully inspired a lot. My final exam for my students, all but one freshmen, was for … Continued
During the Nazi invasion of Europe and the ensuing Holocaust, thousands of Jewish people and others were forced to flee their homes or be killed or imprisoned and tortured. At the time, no nation was willing to welcome Jewish people … Continued
All around the Shanghai region of China there are numerous canal or water towns. These are towns built around a series of streams, rivers and canals with wonderful bridges spanning them. Of course, if you’re in China for any real … Continued
Happy Memorial Day to everyone! Over the last ten months I’ve once again gained new appreciation for the freedoms I enjoy in my homeland as I’ve lived in a land where my access to news is blocked because it may … Continued
Last weekend I took a final trip to Nanjing with Aaron. We used the opportunity to buy some souvenirs at what I think is the best market in China and to see some of the sites we hadn’t seen on … Continued
At nearby Songshan is another famous temple, the Shaolin Temple – home of kung fu. Before heading back to Hefei, we journeyed to this beautiful place hoping to see some awesome monks practicing the true arts of kung fu. We … Continued
Hundreds of thousands of hand-chiseled Buddha effigies and the first Buddhist temple in China also call Luoyang home. These were our destinations for day two. Longmen Grottoes A UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Longmen Grottoes are an impressive monument to … Continued
An ancient capitol city and home to Chinese Buddhism, Luoyang, Henan is a great city to visit. May 1 was International Labor Day, a holiday that China recognizes meaning school was out for a few days. Aaron and I took … Continued