China is off to a great start! After a long 15 hours of flying, we arrived at five in the afternoon. Soon after, we met our two instructors from Where There be Dragons and drove to our first housing, two hours outside of Beijing. We were instantly welcomed with a warm meal and the breathtaking surrounding of emerald mountains. The Great Wall can be seen stretching just outside of our farmhouse. We are currently in the biggest bedroom discussing tomorrow’s plan… we will be hiking the Great Wall. Stay tuned!
– Amanda

We arrived safely after our 12 hour and 45 minute (!) flight from Detroit to Beijing. After linking up with Daniel and Lisa, we set off on a bus ride to our farmhouse at the base of the Great Wall, about 2 hours ride north of Beijing. We were treated to a fantastic meal (see Amanda’s forthcoming post for pictures) and even managed to work in an impromptu game of basketball before collapsing in our beds. All in all, a great first day!

– Dr. Naujoks

1. Mosquito repellent.

2. Your high school student ID.

3. A regular school backpack that you can use to carry a change of clothing and a toothbrush on our hike through Tiger Leaping Gorge.

Feel free to reply to this post if you have any other questions related to packing / items to bring.