Last night after dinner we made a trip to a new hotel near the airport where we met with our professor Dr. Zhou of Albany State University. The rooms were very nice and the bests were softer at this Best Western which was a very nice change from the previous bed. Dr. Zhou informed us we needed to get our rest because we would need to be in the lobby with our luggage by 3:00am in order to get to the airport and board our flight in time. We were to arrive at Xiamen University, where we would begin our studies.
With this in mind I thanked Mr. Shine for everything he had done for us, then returned to my room and placed my clothes out for the morning. A few hours went by and there we were on the way to another flight. It was storming pretty bad and I was more nervous now for my roommate Kristal, who is terrified of flights, than myself. We boarded our plane and I began to create a l I wanted to see, do, and buy we landed. My classmates Kristal, Tiasha, and I stayed up talking about our aspirations as the three hour flight flew by. The next thing we knew we were landing.
The air was clearer here than in Beijing. The sun was out. Students from Xiamen University were waiting us at the door. I felt so welcomed. We loaded yet another van and headed toward the Xiamen campus.
The scenery is so different from Beijing and I love it. We arrived on the very large campus and stopped in front of a very tall building. This is where we would spend the next few week. We checked in and I received a key to room 913. The beds were once again hard but the view was lovely. From the ninth floor I could see the entire campus and the beach.
We had a few minutes to rest before we set up our bank accounts and meal plan with the university and ate dinner in the cantina. For dinner I played it safe by ordering a dish I had had before curry chicken and rice. Today was a long day and all I wanted to do was sleep in my hard bed.