Here is the next batch of stuff that I need to catch you guys up on. Again…..if you want me to elaborate on anything, just leave me a comment.

pool and swimming

• I have started to swim laps in the pool under my school
• I started only being able to do 5 out-and-backs in a row….that was REALLY tough for me
• Before I left for the US, however, I got to the point where I could do 5 sets of 5
• I had to buy a Chinese bathing suit since I didn’t bring one from America. Chinese bathing suits are rather tight fitting and some people would even refer to them as banana hammocks. I feel strange wearing it, but I sort-of fit in

coming back to the USA for new years

• My teacher Michael went with me to Beijing to see me off
• I go the flight times wrong so we had time to wander around and see a few of the sights (tiananmen square)
• The Chinese airport was WAY chaotic, and they asked me a dozen questions, but it worked out
• The flight home was long, but I slept, watched movies, and listened to my mandarin MP3s.
• In Canada, I went through US customs so that the Vancouver-Los Angeles flight was “domestic”
• The x-ray guy in Canada was Chinese and saw me wearing my HUGE green Chinese army jacket and started speaking Chinese He was amazed when I was able to respond
• When I got to LA, my sister and her friends Rishi and Justin were there to meet me
• They were cool enough to bring me the thing I had been craving most – an in-n-out burger
• They, however, had a Laker game to get to and couldn’t stick around . I wanted to go, but was dead tired and needed to work on College apps. My goal was to finish them before going to Japan

Vegas New Years

• I flew out to Vegas with my dad, Krista, and my little bro Mikey. We met my sister’s friends Bobby and Chris at the airport and took a limo to the hotel
• The idea was that a dozen of my sister Rachel’s friends would fly in from all over the world and celebrate her [belated] 21st birthday and new years at the same time
• We stayed at the Rio in a 2 bedroom palazzo and 3 other suites
• Dad, Krista, Mikey, and the Nanny took 1 bedroom in the Palazzo, Rachel, Minali, and Stefi took the other bedroom, and the guys all shared the suites
• We used the palazzo as a meeting area
• Over the 4 days, we saw Cirque Du Soleil’s o-show, had numerous Texas-hold-em games, a few spa visits, a TON of craps sessions, and more meals than I can remember
• On the last day, both Ross and I got really sick, and both threw up a number of times
• Basically everything that was in my body came out some way or another, and then for 4 or 5 days, my body needed to “refill” and nothing came out

I drove back to L.A. with Scott, Zack, Ross, and Rishi

• Scott drove the Mercedes while Rachel drove my Explorer
• We hit 120mph out in the middle of the desert
• There was a TON of traffic so we spent around 8 hours driving home, stopping once for gas and once for in-n-out burgers
• It really reminded me of how much nicer it is to be able to fly your own plane out there

Two days later, Rachel, my Mom, and I went to Hawaii

• My mom flew from Boulder, Colorado and met us at LAX, where we flew to Oahu (Honolulu)
• My aunt Terry picked us up at the airport and took us to their condo in Waianai, one of the few cities that is still mostly native Hawaiian
• We had rented another condo in their complex so that there would be room for all of us
• The condo was right on the beach and had an AMAZING view.
• During the 5 days in Hawaii, I spent 3 solid days trapped in the room working on my applications
• I finished all the essays and spent 2 days just relaxing.
• It was great to get a chance to see my aunt Terry and uncle Gary again, but I was sad to have missed my cousin Summer who had just left for Europe to play professional Volleyball (She just signed to the Austrian team….Congratulations )

Back to LA

• I spent a day hanging out with Dad, Krista, and Rachel before they left for Palm Springs and the Bob Hope Desert Classic golf tournament
• I had wanted to have dinner with my friend Susanna Hyatt but she was too busy and couldn’t drive down from San Francisco
• I did get a chance to see John Medina (el viejo) which was fun. We spent almost 2 hours conversing only in Spanish. It reminded me of how much Spanish I have forgotten, and how much Chinese I have learned

Then it was off to JAPAN!!!……………………