A New Approach to Journaling

You will definitely want to bring a journal with you on this trip, even if you aren't much of a writer. Here are some fun new ideas on journaling that will keep you engaged and give you some good memories to look back on later:

1. -Start by journaling NOW. What should you write about?

• Fears
• Anxieties
• Hopes
• Wants
• Curiosities




2. -Choose a journaling style

These include Traveler, Objective Observation, Perspective and Focus.

A) The Traveler's Journal

This idea was developed by Nancy Taylor Nicodemus. Here, you will divide your journal into four categories and journal according to each category’s contents.

1. The Impressions Section is for jotting down the places, people, events, concepts, ideas, smells, signs, and other things you remember. You write words, phrases, or sentences that will spark your memory.

2. In the Descriptive Section you will not elaborate on what you think about what you are writing. Instead, you will use your descriptive abilities to create a vivid picture of what you experienced.

3. The Narrative Section is to satisfy the storyteller in you. There’s no doubt you will come home with stories – good, bad, funny, and otherwise. Write about them in this section before you forget.

4. In the Expressive Section you get to vent, debate, praise, hypothesize, and evaluate. Where you may have described an event in one of your descriptive sections, you may then make an entry in this section to record what you thought and felt about that event.


B) Objective Observation

Divide your journal into three sections.

1. Write a detailed description of what happened.

2. Write about your reactions and feelings toward the event.

3. Write about what you learned.


C) Perspective Writing

Imagine a day in the life of a local.

1. In what ways are you similar to this person?

2. In what ways are you different from each other?

3. What do locals eat? When?

4. How do they spend their day?

5. How does this person view you as an American?

6. What are some thoughts that run through your mind when you see a local? Are they fair? Biased?


D) Focus Writing

With focus writing, you are attempting to narrow down your entries to blurbs about something in particular: a lesson you learned, a quality you discovered that might be good or even negative, something you’ve realized about yourself or something or someone else.

1. What feeling, idea or quality about you seems especially strong today?

2. Does this alter your perception of yourself?

3. What have you discovered about other people?


Ideas for Journals and Scrapbooks

• List what you will miss from home and then what you will miss from your host country.
• Add sketches to your journal.
• Save stamps, coins, wrappers, tickets, postcards and clippings from local magazines or newspapers. Glue an envelope in the back of your journal to hold these items.
• Incorporate your emails or blogs into your journal.
• Keep markers, colored pens and glue sticks handy.

Goodluck with your journals!

Paula

Getting Ready - One Month to Go!

We have just about a month before that long, tiring, wonderful, exciting flight to Beijing. Just one month! The summer flew by, and I'm willing to bet many aspirations and promises to study Chinese or invest in preparing for the cultural differences haven't happened the way we thought they would. Well, not to worry. Here's an idea to give you some inspiration.

Before you go, brush up on your Chinese! And if you don't know any Chinese...try to learn a little here! ChinesePod is a good resource for learning Chinese. There are some free lessons to be found here, so check it out and learn a little before you go - or review what you've already learned.

http://chinesepod.com/?a_aid=b33a29db&a_bid=e3e9ac2e

  

Paula

Summer cometh before a fall

Hey, you all!

In preparation for this autumn, I hope to make a few inspirational posts that will get you thinking about our trip. You may even want to reference some of these posts throughout the semester, as a reminder, and even later, at the end of the semester for when you are preparing to return to the US. A lot of different people are going to be rubbing off on us during our time in Beijing, and as a result, we'll be returning with new habits, new vocabulary, and new views. Check out these 10 Commandments for the Traveler!

1. Thou shalt not expect to find all things precisely as they are at home. Thou hast left home to find things different.


2. Thou shalt travel in a spirit of utter humility. The fact that people may think, speak, and act differently does not make them inferior.


3. Thou shalt not let thy travel companions get on thy nerves, for thou art paying good money to enjoy thyself.


4. Thou shalt not worry about things at home or at the office while thou art away, for he or she that worrieth hath little joy.


5. Thou shalt not judge all people of a city or a country by one person with whom thou hast had a problem.


6. Thou shalt remember that endless waiting lines, delays, cancellations, and bad food are a part of traveling, and thou shalt smile and not complain.


7. Thou shalt not expect or demand that everyone speak English.


8. Thou shalt carry thy passport on thy person at all times, for it is said that a person without a passport is a person without a country. (this loosely applies to our trip, but is crucial for weekend excursions and fieldtrips!)


9. Thou shalt not litter or in any way spoil the places thou shalt visit. Take away only thy memories; leave behind only thy smile.


10. Thou shalt not make promises to the people you meet unless thou can follow through.




-Author Unknown-




You will be surprised how many of these will apply as the semester progresses!

Have a great summer!

Paula