Dear Mrs. Glinka,

1st day (Friday, 6-10-2005)
This is my first day at China. On the airplane I didn’t throw up. In the morning, I woke up by some fireworks I did not see them but my mom did. I got picked up by 6 people. They were 3 grandmas and 2 grandpas and my uncle.

2nd day (Saturday, 6-11-2005)
I had a lot of fun! We went to a restaurant that had a big fat guy in the front of the restaurant. He had a belly button in the front of it and we would throw money in it. It was fun!
P.S. I threw in two (balls) all by myself.(smiling face)

3rd day (Sunday, 6-12-205)
Today was my cousin’s last day! She is very nice. Her name is Shelley. She is a great piano player just like you! She is going back to school that’s why she is leaving. I really like her. (sad face)

4th day (Mon., 6-13-2005)
I rode on a big bus (double deck) to go sight seeing and we went on a boat to Tiger Hill (Hu Qiu). There is an old Pagoda on the top of the hill which is over 1,000 years old. The Pagoda is tilted more than the Pisa tower. Here is a little rhyme with English and Chinese that I made up. It goes like this: Pisa bi sai (means competition) chi (eat) pizza. There is something called smelly tofu (chou dou fu). My mom really wants to eat it. She said it smells bad but tastes good. We warned her not to eat it. If she dares so she can’t open her mouth. So she didn’t eat it. (smiling face)

5th day (Tue., 6-14-2005)
We went to a park near by. It was so hot that we poured water on our heads. I finally go to sleep long enough (at night). We got to go exercising and we shared our ice cream. Then while we were going to go to sleep, my uncle named Dongdong showed us his muscle bone. He can do that because every time he finishes his dinner he goes exercising and push ups 20 times that’s why he is so strong.

6th day (Wed., 6-15-205)
We went to the Lions Grove (Shi Zi Lin) with Joanna and Christina. This garden is famous for those broken rocks. Do you know why these rocks are broken? These rocks are originally from a deep lake. Years after years, the waves in the lake pushed the rocks and made the holes. Now these rocks are moved into the garden, specially arranged to mountains. So we can climb in and out of the mountains just like the fish swimming through the rocks.Joanna, Erik and my Dad went circles but my Mom still could not get us. There was a big stone boat in the lake, we went on it but id didn’t sail. After that we got key chains (souvenirs): I picked a polar bear, Erik picked a panda bear, Joanna picked a cheetah and Christina picked a moose.

7th day (Thurs, 6-16-2005)
We went to a bookstore. We bought an Aesop’s Fable book (Yi Suo Yu Yan). We read three of them over there. My brother got a maze book. We also went to a store with a lot of stuff. We got an Animal Game and a Chinese brush pen. I played the Animal Game with my Grandpa and my uncle and learned how to play it better.

8th day (Fri., 6-17-2005)
We went to a sand box and played for a long time. Then we played the Animal Game with my Grandpa and I won him!!! In the afternoon, we went to Hangzhou by a van. When we got there we rushed to see the eye doctor because my eyes were itchy. The eye doctor said my eyes were infected so I will have to use three different kind of eye drops for three or two days. I hope I feel better.

9th day (Sat., 6-18-2005)
We went to a mountain and ate lunch in country side with my Dad’s friends. We also went to a Tea Museum. I caught a dragonfly there. After we ate our breakfast, we got two gold fish from a market. During our nap, my Mom’s Chinese teacher came to give my Mom some Chinese Riddles book (mi yu shu). After our nap, we rode our bikes from last year (my grandpa bought for us).I used to have four wheels but now I know how to ride two wheels. My brother knows how to too. He knows how to turn now he used to need a lot of help.

10th day (Sun. 6-19-2005)
We celebrated my Grandpa’s birthday today. While waiting too long for picking up the cake in the morning for our breakfast, Erik said something really funny: “Mom, hurry up, your son is hungry to death!!!” We all laughed so loud about it. The cake is yummy for tummy. My Grandpa asked me to do a math to find out how many days is he older than my Grandma. It is hard and I got it with my Grandma’s help.

We went to a park near the famous West Lake (Xi Hu). There is lotus in the water. It smells good. Erik and I found a fountain, we got ourselves soaked and played for a long time. After that, we saw fish and my grandpa tried to catch one but he only got crackers. Then we saw someone with a net and he caught one for us then he saw another one, he tried to catch it but he fell in the water instead. That night, the fish fell on the floor (from the fish tank and dead), Erik is sad.

11th day (Mon. 6-20-2005)
I played the Animal Game with my Mom and I won her. We rode our bikes in the afternoon. I am good at turning around.

We went on the Broken Bridge (Duan Qiao). There is a fairy tale that goes with it. Here is how it goes: There once a man walking, he met a beautiful girl so he walked with her. He began to fall in love with her and she began to fall in love with him. So they married. One day the woman said: “Once a year, I have to do something by myself so you have to promise not to look at me.” So she went inside her room. So the man was waiting but he was so curious so he decided to look so he opened the door and was shocked: His wife became a snake and the snake said “Now the light came in and you did not keep your promise so now I have to stay snake forever.” So she cried and she was crawling away and the man is following the girl until they get to the Broken Bridge and her tears were so much that it covered the bridge so the man could not cross. The End.

12th day (Tue. 6-21-2005)
We took pictures for my parents’ 10th Anniversary. We wore (Chinese) traditional clothes. When we show you some of our pictures later, you might think my Mom looks a little different. When that was over, my Dad had to go on a business trip for two days. Then we went on a walk with my grandparents and I had a bloody nose.

13th day (Wed. 6-22-2005)
We went to a fair park but every ride thing is closed (because weekday) that we could only do three games. So we went to buy fish. We got a little blue fish that we named ---speedy. Then we got a puffer fish name Puffer. Then we got two goldfish. One is named White and the other is Goldie. Then we got a black fish name Blacky and the last one a Hermit Crab named Hermit. Then three of the fish died (right away).

14th day (Thurs. 6-23-2005)
We went exercising in the morning with my grandpa then we ate lunch. After that we went on a train to Shanghai. We bought a toy just like a Top (tuo luo) but its more cooler. You first rip it and hold it then you can put it on string or your finger, your head and on a blue things top. This is what the blue thing looks like (a bell shape).

15th day (Fri. 6-24-2005)
We went to my Mom’s American friend’s house to play. They are learning Chinese. In the afternoon, I ate 5 pieces of pizza. Then we went to the Aquarium. There was cool fish like a hammerhead shark. There was also a colorful reef and when we were going down the elevator, there were fish all around and including a black swan. There was a tube with a moving thing so we don’t have to walk. There was also fish around us. After that we went to buy a toy. On our way up , we got a free gift card and I got a pearl and a top made out of plastic pieces. My brother got a shark key chain but only a keychain, if you pull it, the bloody man on the keychain of the shark will move its tail and eat the man.

16th day (Sat. 6-25-2005)
In the morning, my Grandma 4 gave me and my brother a crab to play with. We went outside to play for a while and my Grandma 5 came to see us. Then all my other Grandmas (my Mom has 8 aunties) came and one of my Grandma’s daughter came too. After we had our nap, our uncle Dongdong came to see us from Suzhou. Me and my Grandpa came to see our new house but when we got there my uncle and my Dad were already coming down. So we went back home. Then my Dad and my uncle ate dinner because my uncle had to leave then all my other Grandmas had to leave too.

17th day (Sun. 6-26-2005)
We went to Xu NaiNai’s house to play. She used to take care of Erik when he was a baby. We played there for a long time. One of her grandson’s name was Andrew and the other one is Ian. Ian showed me a magic trick and I figured it out. After that my uncle TaoTao and aunt came to pick us up. It is fun to play with them. After we ate our dinner, we went back to Hangzhou. Erik really misses his aunty.

18th day (Mon. 6-27-2005)
We went to the West Lake again with my Grandma and Grandpa. We tried to catch fish and shrimp but we couldn’t catch any fish or shrimp. We only caught snails. After that we went to KFC to eat lunch. We went to eat our dinner with another uncle. Then we went to see my friend Jerry’s Grandma 3. They gave us a shirt. We played darts there and Erik won me once.

19th day (Tue. 6-28-2005)
In the afternoon I rode my bike with Erik. I played badminton with a little girl in my Grandpa’s building. When I got the ball, I hit it up on somebody’s house. So we played somewhere else. That night me and my Grandpa made up stories and questions. Here’s one for you: There are 10 birds on the ground. One man shot one bird. How many are left? Answer ___________. I will tell you more stories when I come to your house. They are very good.

20th day (Wed. 6-29-2005)
In the morning, we took some passport pictures. Then we ate lunch with my Mom’s best friend and my friends. Her son’s name is Conan and her daughter’s name is Lily. She is very nice. When we were eating, thunder came! When my Mom came back she brought her 10th Anniversary pictures back. We will show you some of our pictures.

21st day (Thurs. 6-30-2005)
We are leaving China today. My Mom cried a lot again.

We went on the airplane to go to Honolulu. When we got to Tokyo, we have 6 hours to play so we went to a Temple to play. We went inside it, we saw lots of turtles in a pond. When we got back to the airport, we played at a Children’s play room. We played computer.

22nd day (Fri. 7-1-2005)
When we got to Honolulu (Hawaii), we were so tired. We took a big nap. After that we went to the beach. We played for a long time. After that we ate pizza for dinner. We went shopping after our dinner. We saw a lady drawing pictures like this (coconut tree). We got one with our names. We will show you. Before that we saw a guy that was like a tin man. He had a hat that was made of tin foil. If you put money there, he will move but he won’t talk.

23rd day (Sat. 7-2-2005)
We rode a van to go snorkeling but I did not want to go because my eyes are still red. So me and Erik played sand. When me and Erik went in the water, we went on the sand we rolled so the sand could stick on us. Then we went in the water and did it over and over. After that I went in the sand while Erik is in the water. I made a sand blanket.

24th day (Sun. 7-3-2005)
In the morning, we went on a submarine. We saw a lot of different kinds of fish. My Dad said he saw a turtle but we didn’t see one. My brother said he saw an octopus, but I think he was joking. After that we went hiking we saw people jumping from a high cliff to dead water. If you have a cut in your hand or a split, you could die, the guide said.

25th day (Mon. 7-4-2005)
In the morning, we rode an Air Mattress in ocean. We rode on it for a long time. After that we went back to take a bath. After that, we took a walk and ate tempura for lunch. After that we ate ice cream and went back to the airport. We had to wait for a long time because the air conditioner on the airplane was broken. We finally got back to Boston home.

Love, Ethan Zou