Today, after finishing our OPI interviews, I finally got to meet my host family. My host family is small and sweet – Dad, Mom, and a 17-year old brother, William. The host family’s apartment is around 20 minutes away from Xiamen University. Everyone was very nice to me, and we chatted a little in Mandarin before eating dinner. During dinner, I gave my family presents I had brought from the US and explained the significance of each one. Given that I am from Boston, I presented them with Red Sox baseball caps. Tim Kilduff (former race director for the Boston Marathon) had generously given me posters celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Boston Marathon – my host family really liked this present. After dinner, they showed me to my room. Btw, it is a great coincidence that my brother and I like the same football club, Bayern Munich!
I am looking forward to spending the next 2 weeks with my host family, getting to know them and improving my Mandarin. I think they are as excited as I am to share and enjoy what should be a wonderful experience!
My Travels in China 