There are so many stories to share from the last three months that I hardly know where to begin! The short of it is that our tickets to training in California were purchased, we moved out of our apartment, we sold much of our stuff, and we are just three weeks from our departure date. We're in the midst of classes and training in preparation for our intensive training in CA (four weeks), all with the aim of being more fully prepared for our September 24 arrival in China.
We will be teaching in Lanzhou (lawn-joe), which is in centrally located Gansu Province, at the Northwest Normal University. Our city is located on the banks of the Yellow River, on the ancient Old Silk Road, relatively close to the Gobi Desert and the Tibetan Plateau... A very beautiful, ancient city filled with lots of green trees and history. We are thrilled!
We join a veteran teacher, Christina, who has been in Lanzhou for three years already. There is also another team in the city who will also be family away from home. We hear there is great hiking in Lanzhou, lots of tourist spots to help us learn about our host culture, and delicious melons, noodle dishes, and other Chinese/Muslim/Tibetan delicacies. A melting pot of ethnic (Han) Chinese, Tibetans and Muslims, Lanzhou will prove to be a diverse place... but this pale, blonde one will still stick out I hear :)
Today marks the last Monday at work for me (Amanda). I am sad to leave my colleagues and the work I so enjoy. As in all things, we are excited to go but sad to leave. We know our teaching experience will be a time of enormous growth and learning for us, and we ache to get started!
We think of you often and hope you are well as this MN summer closes on a rather chilly note :) For those who are interested, Lanzhou appears to have a similar climate to MN, but without the precipitation. Being huddled in the mountains, the city gets little rain or snow, but the winds are similar to the gusts we enjoy in MN winters!
Til next time...
M+A
"Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, 'Come along now and sit down to eat'? Would he not rather say, 'Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink'? Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do?
So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.' "
So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, 'We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.' "
About Me
- Mike and Amanda
- We are Team Keller and we want to stay in touch with friends and family, share stories and pictures, and give you all some insight into the life He has for us at the present and in the future.