Classes start tomorrow!

Luke again--nothing much to report here. We're still settling in, trying to get things to work (like the toilet), etc. Tomorrow is the first day of classes for me and Katherine, so I'm a little nervous. Finn, lucky guy that he is, doesn't have classes for three weeks! Keep us in your thoughts. When I have more to post, and internet that works in my own apartment, I'll write more.

Greetings from Shiyan

Hey, everyone! This is Luke, posting for the Breland crew in China. Today, we finally have our internet working (kinda), so here's my first post. I tried to post once from Hong Kong's airport, but it didn't work for some reason.

So far, I am confused and nervous, Katherine is blase, and Finn is...Finn. At least he is teaching freshmen, which means his classes don't start for 3 weeks! I'm the only one in the group with a full load from the beginning. We've started settling into our apartments on campus, and they are...strange. Well, they actually aren't bad at all, aside from the kitchen and the bathroom. We'll get used to them. Poor Finn, however, is on the 7th floor of our building, which has no elevators. Katherine and I are on the 4th floor, and that's bad enough; I can't imagine needing to hike up all of those stairs every day! Poor Finn. At least he can hang out at our apartment all he wants.

Not much has happened. We've found a good place to eat, which the teachers here call "Happy Lady" (because the chef/owner never stops smiling), but any health inspector from the States would have a heart attack if he walked into the restaurant. Aside from that, we've just been taking naps and trying to get over our jet lag. Our Xbox is working (woohoo!), but I don't believe we'll be able to get it hooked up to the internet. So, no Xbox Live for us. The city itself is rather pretty, now that it has stopped raining, and I can see the hills and mountains surrounding it. It reminds me of Charleston WV a little bit, but it is in many ways beyond comparison.

Well, I can't think much right now, so I'll just wrap this up. For all those who are wondering, we are all doing well, in good health, etc. Don't worry about us, but please keep us in your thoughts!

WE ARE ON OUR WAY!!!!

Thanks to the Huntsville Airport, we are able to fire off one quick departure post!  Hugs have been exchanged, passports have been checked, Luke has been unnecessarily scanned by security, and the obligatory water and tic tacs have been purchased!

So we now await the boarding call for our flight to Dallas.  From there, we will fly to L.A., where we change airlines, cross the Pacific Ocean, stop in Hong Kong, and continue into Wuhan!  As exhausted as we are from a long night of packing and goodbyes, we are all running off of a seemingly boundless amount of nervous energy and excitement (Luke is so giddy that he has been dancing down the concourse)!  

Thanks for your thoughts and prayers as we fly.  We hope to update again as soon as we find internet in China.   This may be a few days so be patient with us!  Pictures and news to come later!

Peace and Blessings,

-The Brelands

Departure

We'll be leaving for China in 18 days!