ni hao

CHINA. if you haven't been. go. i fell in love. the people are kind. the buildings are unbelieveable. the food is interesting. and the history is fascinating. here are a few highlights from the trip.

the great wall. it was so surreal standing on a piece of history built in the 5th century bc.


it was also surreal kissing sexy italian men on a wall built by chinese men.


if you get embarrassed by a little sweat stain...you might not want to climb the great wall. it is hot. and humid. and your sweat stain will not be little.




no one thought i could make it to the top...

i showed them. too bad i was so out of breath i couldn't yell, "booyah."


welcome to the forbidden city.



built in the early 1400's, the city served as the imperial palace for 24 of china's emperors and their families from the ming dynasty to the qing dynasty.





the city was enormous. with 980 surviving buildings, the palace covers over 2.3 million square feet.





i was on duty for a bit. just trying to help out.

and add a little excitement into his life. he wasn't amused. but i was.


mooners. watch where you step - babies don't wear diapers. but they do have these nifty pants with a slit down the middle. good thing i was switched at birth and made it to a land with diapers.


and good thing kimya isn't wearing one of these pants...it could have been messy.

yes, i felt like a perv taking these pictures, but i couldn't help myself.


ok. so i was a perv one more time. when it's hot, roll your shirt up. it's what all the really fit chinese men do. personally, i think they're just trying to show off.



ridin' dirty - beijing is also known as the bicycle city. anyone that knows me, knows i love a good bike ride. you could rent a bike for 10 yuan a day - about $1.50. it was a little steep, but hey, i was on vacation. however, i learned very quickly that my beach cruiser skills weren't going to cut it in this place. pedestrian's position on the beijing food chain ranks somewhere between cockroaches and street rats.



yes. all of the 1.3 billion people in china have their own wheels.



quack. peking duck. a must in beijing.





snack street - i love snacks. sometimes i'd rather eat snacks all day than meals. so, when i heard beijing had a snack street, i was there.



no one told me the best seller had a stinger.





in the mood for some silk worm?



star fish?



what about some seahorse?



one of the vendors picked up this skinny stick and started poking it at me laughing. it looked like a snake..until i noticed his strategic placement of the stick - below his belt. guess what it was -



when in china, do as the chinese do...kara-yoke anyone?



i couldn't have asked for a better group of people to share this experience with. yes, they couldn't sing as well as me, but i am the asian one. karaoke is in my blood.







dreams really do come true -

yes, a smooch from mikey was on the top of my list when i left for beijing...



and thanks to this sign...



it happened.



sometimes in life we think we know what we want...until we find something better.

exhibit a -


sorry mikey, but ryan lochte has my heart.

zài jiàn for now china.

and the best part of my trip

finally meeting my real father.

please still think i'm awesome

i am the second oldest of seven. the youngest two are girls - maddie (12) and jess (10). they love me. worship might be more appropriate. yes, this may sound a bit presumptuous, but it's the honest truth. direct quote from the 10 year old - "if i'm not perfect like sarah when i grow up, then i don't ever want to grow up." maddie has a picture of me, and only me, on her school notebook. i know, they are young and naive and obviously don't get out much, but i plan to keep it that way...if it's not too late -

i've been home in ca for a few weeks before i take off on a few adventures and start life as a grown up. it's been really tough trying to manage my busy schedule, but somehow i do it. my day usually begins around 10. eat some delish fresh ca fruit for breakfast and head out for some major work...on my tan. the nights are just as strenuous - entertain old friends, watch and critique all the latest movies, eat lots of chocolate malted crunch (the best most delicious ice cream created), and sometimes i even have to watch a little team called the dodgers throw a ball around. i know. how do i do it.

the other day i took a break from the tanning job and came inside to grab a snack. jess came into the kitchen and sat down next to me with her hands neatly crossed. "sarah" she said, "i dont really know how to put this. (long dramatic pause) i think you need to get a life." im not sure who got to them, but i will get to the bottom of it. for now, i've made them both repeat, "sarah is the best" 10 times, every night before bed. if needed i will resort to blackmail with this photo of maddie and the threat of telling jake canton that jess has a crush on him.

crusin'

matching 'wirthlin family vacation' sweatshirts. check.

stylish fanny packs to carry souvenirs/new samples for rock collection. check check. 



box of spider man band-aids for when the cool kids beat us up for wearing matching sweatshirts and fanny packs. check. check. check.



if global warming doesn't melt the glaciers we will. alaska here we come.

back to my roots

i may love anything with rice and meals that end with a cookie revealing my future. peace signs are my pose of choice in photographs. and i was on the "math counts" team in junior high. but no, despite the years of questioning and the above mentioned facts, i am not chinese.

however, on the eighth of august i get to visit the incredible people of china. george washington is taking twenty five business students to watch the 2008 olympic games in beijing, china, and i am a part of the lucky group.

here are are just a few things i'm looking forward to -

reading this piece of delish lit on the 12 hour plane ride over

a great wall

yummy noodles

the raddest building ever

making peace signs with my peeps

michael phelps shirtless (and in my hotel bed)

usa v. spain

a forbidden city

and of course, cheering on my homeland

peace out dudes

no, ok. i haven't.

for five months i answered the phone with this simple reply, "tiger woods foundation, this is sarah." i sat at my desk diligently working and occasionally looking up to glance at this picture, my boss.



he was pointing at me. his gesture stern, yet loving. telling to me work harder. be the best i could be. i yearned for the day i would shake those strong hands. my supervisor would say, "at the tournament, sarah. you will meet him there."



he was wrong. all of the headlines rubbed it in - tiger out for the rest of the season. tiger will not attend his tournament. tiger woods has season ending knee-surgery. to say i was disappointed would be a gross understatement. i contemplated quiting and taking the picture with me, but i couldn't let him down.



the tourney started today and it is going to be a good one. yes, for the rest of my life i will have to say i worked for the tiger woods foundation, and no, i never met him. but how many people can say that?