The Great Wall...is broken

This was the first of my email messages, sent June 13th. I thought I'd copy them in here to get all of the updates under one virtual roof, so to speak.
Enjoy!

We had the amazing experience of hiking the Great Wall of China today--I was wondering what that item on our field trip schedule meant...sort of thought Jason, who arranges all of these things for our group, was exaggerating by using "hiking".

It was definitely NOT an overstatement! We began the day pretty much like every day--driving very slowly through incredible traffic--but this time the bus left the city proper & went to a fairly remote area, not "touristy" at all, where we were served the most delicious grilled, seasoned fish (maybe trout?), cold chopped greens with spices, Tempura-style fried leaves, lamb, potato/tomato/ eggplant salad, Egg foo young-ish things, real Coke, and a surprise birthday cake for Gui Hua, the kids' mentor, all for LUNCH before the hike. We were the only people there, and while our hosts prepared the food we played ping-pong, pool, and badminton with the students--outdoors!  It was a great time.

After lunch we went straight UP the side of the wall, on a path that said "closed to the public" but that Jason had hiked before & said was fine. Well....it was definitely the toughest workout I've had in a while, and there were times I wasn't so sure I'd make it! But we got to the top & took a bunch of photos to prove it. It was the most beautiful thing I've ever seen, an amazing combination of man-made and natural.

One thing about my students that was totally impressive--not only do they treat us with incredible respect (Peter, who sat between AJ & me at lunch, made sure to pour us Coke before he had any), but they also really care for each other. They have only been together as a group since March--I think a couple are from the same orphanage, but generally they are a new group--but they really act like brothers & sisters most of the time. I think it's good that there are only eight of them for this first year. One of the guys, Tom, has a mild case of CP and has some difficulty walking. Well, we weren't so sure how he was going to do when we saw that trail--but the other guys helped him get to the top. The trip down was even more hazardous, what with the slope and the rubble, so rather than risk Tom getting hurt, Peter and David took turns carrying him the entire way. I was amazed.

Then after the hike (and the three-hour trip covering thirty miles back to the center of the city--no joke--) the students had their first American dinner at Paul's Steak & Eggs American Diner. What a menu! Most of them had huge burgers& fries or spaghetti --one had chicken parm, and one stayed safe with rice & veggies. It was pretty funny--they were  giving us chopstick lessons at lunch & we gave them fork & knife lessons at dinner. Paul, the diner's owner, knew their story and gave all eight of the youth their dinners for free. It was a rather surreal experience but my Reuben & fries--and A & W root beer float--were amazing.

Afterward we walked around the Forbidden City & Tienanmen Square grounds for a while--even at night it is really impressive. AJ & I plan to got here on our own maybe next weekend, when we are brave enough to try the subway and have no work commitments.

Anyway enough for now-
Ayden and Angelina, Grammy & Papa miss you very much. Ayden--Bear said he loved the "big brick wall" and he wanted me to send you his picture there & at the cool place called Tienanmen Square we visited after dinner. Angelina, tomorrow after church we are going to visit the silk market and look for a special birthday present for you!

Oh, by the way, one of the girls provided the title for my message--when we were almost to the top of the first tower, she said(in excellent English): " Doctor Melody--the wall is broken. It's not great--it is a bad wall." Funny stuff--but the same girl asked me, on the way up, if I believe in God and in "Jesu" his son. As I said before--I am very impressed with these students. Their contrasts sort of remind me of the country in general.

Love to all, and I hope to write once a week or so--I am much busier than AJ with classes and training and curriculum development, but I have to say I am really enjoying all of it.  Life is good. Check out the website at www.abridgeforchildren.org if you want to meet our kids! Sadly, we can't access it here--but I hope you can see how amazing they are.