Xi'an, China

For the next year I will be living in Xi'an, China.  The characters for Xi'an look like this:   西安 and mean Western Peace.

The population of Xi'an is about 8 million people.

Xi'an is 3,100 years old - one of the oldest cities in China.

The main attractions here are the Terracotta Warriors, museums, the wall surrounding the city, and the Bell Tower.

There is an airport, train station, and bus system.

Since leaving Cambodia I've had to start all over again.  New people, new climate, new language, new currency, new food, new apartment, completely new culture.

In my life I have never felt like a foreigner before.  I live outside the center of the city so almost no one speaks English.  There are no signs in English.  Sometimes I walk into stores and have no clue what they sell.  The sign is in Chinese, the boxes or packaging is in Chinese, the workers only speak Chinese.  Menus at restaurants are all in Chinese.

I get stared at a lot.  I don't notice it as much when I'm walking around with other people but when I'm by myself it's impossible not to notice all the stares.  Sometimes people will say the one word they know in English - usually hello.  I met 2 ladies on the bus that just talked and talked to me - all in Chinese.  They were fascinated by my blue eyes, nose, and hair.  I don't know how to relate to seeing a foreign person for the first time.

A couple people in our neighborhood that we see every day have recently learned to say hello in English.  The convenience store is working on their numbers to tell us how much things cost.  We are also working on our numbers and greetings in Chinese.

I am enjoying China despite (or maybe because of) the differences.  It's a shock that China has been more of a challenge than Cambodia.  Everything (internet, phones, food, language, getting small tasks accomplished) just seems to be harder here.  I'm learning patience and how to adapt!