Ling Rhui Xin

That's my Chinese name. I haven't gotten a complete explanation for what it means, but everyone agrees that it is a good name and very complementary. My students chose it for me the other day, and they say that it has something to do with power, wisdom, and sunshine (since they somehow have this idea that I'm a morning person!). It's a good thing that they chose one, because in the closing ceremony today we all were given jade seals with our names engraved in them. Mine has a dragon on top; it's pretty cool. Evidently one of the kids wanted to name me ''Ma Fi A'', since our classes always played mafia together. I think I like this one a bit more. I didn't expect to get sentimental at our closing ceremonies today, but I realized that I've gotten pretty attached to my students and Beijing. The people here that I've had the opportunity to meet really show you their hearts; there is not the same concept of hiding 'the real you' until two people become good friends. They answer your questions with complete sincerity, in a way that is at once charming and completely disarming. So, despite the fact that I've only known my students for three weeks, I feel like we've learned each other pretty well. Part of the final ceremony was an original drama. My class worked with another class and developed a comedic public service announcement that was meant to be anti-suicide and anti-gambling. It featured Kono, who after having a falling out with his girlfriend Maria (me) who only spoke Spanish, was kicked out of his house, and decides to exact revenge on me by gambling, getting lots of money, and then living in a better house with many beautiful women. Unfortunately for him, he is a sitting duck and everyone playing cards with him steals his chips. Left with, as he puts it, ''No money, and no honey'', he decides to commit suicide by jumping from a tall building. On the way down, he sees the lives of the other people he played cards with, and realizes that his life is not as bad as he thought it was. He also manages to hit on women (which makes him reconsider suicide) and see one of his male friends in the shower (which made him want to fall faster), in the process. The story ends with the narrator informing us that although Kono regretted jumping, he had died. And then saying, jusssst kidding. The other teacher (who in the play only speaks French) and I are now dating and driving around in a garbage truck of which Kono lands in the back. We have a little scene, and then after we leave, the narrator comes out (to the tune of ''It's raining men'') and says that Kono must be an angel sent to her from heaven since he just fell out of the sky, and they live happily ever after. Pretty creative and hilarious for 24 hours of time to work on it. This week has also been a lot of fun. On Wednesday Nicole and I tried to go to the Lama Temple, which is the oldest Buddhist temple in Beijing, and old enough that most things are written in Sanskrit, I believe, instead of Mandarin. It closed minutes before we got there, but I did happen upon one of Colin's good friends from school, which was totally unexpected and still blows my mind. So, Nicole and I improvised by wandering around that part of the city and looked into a few hutongs, which are the traditional dwelling areas and courtyards that Beijing citizens used to inhabit, though most are being destroyed now in renovations, while trying all sorts of dried flowers and fruits (most of which we cannot identify, but we really like!). We eventually ended up at Xiangshan Park, which is right north of the Forbidden City. Because it was a wonderfully clear day, and we happened to be there right around sunset, our climb to the top of the hill (evidently a place where an emperor from the Ming Dynasty had chosen to commit suicide, though we didn't know that) was rewarded with a stunning view of the city and the mountains in some amazing lighting. Because part of the park was closed for construction, it was also relatively empty, so we really had the place mainly to ourselves. Definitely one of the most beautiful things I have seen in a long time. Yesterday, as soon as class ended Nicole and I hopped a cab to Lama temple and had a chance to actually go inside and take a look. It was beautiful; golden buddhas and beautifully decorated temples abounded. Many people had lit incense, so the place also had a very nice smell. The different languages were really cool, and it was interesting to see a place of worship that seemed to be free of western influence; a point of comparison, per se. We finished our little adventure with some more of those fruits/flowers. Yummmm. I had the opportunity to eat dinner last night with a girl, Sherry, that Walker became close with during his time here. She invited her mother and her two thai roommates, and we all went out for Hunan food, which EVIDENTLY is very spicy! I was crying during parts of the meal, but it tasted really good. I was worried that my brain might just explode from all the different languages that it was attempting to decipher. Sherry's English, however, is amazing, and she really has a heart of gold, so it was a lot of fun. Her mother kept forcing food upon me though in a way that made it difficult to refuse (though I did learn how to say ''I'm full!!''), and I even ate a huge piece of cantaloupe! We played cards after dinner--I taught them all how to play rummy--and promptly got badly beat. Guess that says good things about my teaching skills? Got to run. We leave for Shanghai tomorrow morning, so I want to make the most of my last hours here!