Last of Beijing…

We’ve been doing tons in the last few days…. We have really found Beijing to be a learning and testing experience… from the practical to the spiritual… we've definitely learned how to get a good deal on a taxi, (and as we learned before… rickshaws arent the best option either) we have really gotten a feel for the real China… not the tourist view, not the stuff you hear about on the news, the things you read…. It all gives you a fairly skewed image of China in my opinion. The things we hear about are here, somewhere… but theres so much more. We have met so many kind and gracious people, we’ve been quite free to pray in our rooms and at restaurants. Its been fun, and an experience… Yes, every time I see a little girl, I'm still surprised, yes there are a lot of soldiers roaming around, just making an appearance, but you should see their smiles… sometimes… if the timings right, they’ll slip you one in return for yours. Its great interacting with people… of course, sign language has become a valuable skill… and we speak the word thank-you fluently – Shehsheh! Lots of people like to come up and just get a picture with us and our blonde, red or brown hair… we feel like celebrities sometimes!
I really think I have learned a lot about respect from and because of these people… as far as traffic, and sidewalk manners… forget it… but person to person… they really value politeness, and respect. We have had the occasional rude salesman, or taxi-driver… but for the most part, they really are great people of respect. Can’t wait to see them in Heaven one day.The highlights this week have been visiting Bethel, a blind children's orphanage, Walking the great wall (among other things like running, playing hockey, doing handstands on the edge…) continuing to eat great Chinese food… honing our chopstick skills, and finding cheap snacks in the streets below our cool hostel… Bethel was amazing, it was an hour bus ride outside Beijing, and it was just really cool to get to play with the kids and see their trust in their caretakers… they would literally run full speed until someone caught them in their arms… I thought it was such a perfect image of how our relationship with God should be… The kids knew really good English, taught us some Chinese, sang us a song… it was interesting seeing the different personalities… one girl was obsessed with sticks! She kept wanting us to break them with her… we even made some macaroni with them. Another girl, Jenny was her English name, was very much an inspector, she literally felt every part of my camera, sound every pocket and battery in its case… smelled it… it was really funny! We had such a great time with them. These kids really taught us that theres not much that can stop you from learning, enjoying life, and loving… cause they did it all very well…
The great wall was awesome... it was so surreal actually being on this wall that I have heard about all my life... it was really beautiful, thought provoking, and tiring... because only on the bus ride over did we find out it was a 10.5 kilometer, or 4 or 5 mile hike! We all were pretty tired at the end of it, but oh was it worth it! Thats my second wonder of the world that Ive seen, 5 to go, and Im only 19!
Anyways, my favorite food here so far is this awesome chicken, peanut, and green pepper dish... we almost always get it when we go out to get food, and its just the bomb... haha. We have all loved using our chopsticks - which IS the only thing they give you here at most restaurants, so you really have to get used to it!
As for our current state, most of us are a bit under the weather, or at least not quite 100% - but I think our upcoming train trip tomorrow morning at 7:30 will really help us get some rest, and hopefully get away from all this smog thats been bugging us... today has been a packing day, and we're stoked to leave - pray for us as we go! God has been incredibly good to us in the way of provision... and we really haven't been all that bad as far as health... it could just be better. We're happy to be here and are looking forward to everything to come!