Team 161, Kunming, June 25

By Tim

Thought for the Day: According to Confucius, he who would secure the good of others has already secured his own

Photo for the Day: Rachel, our beautiful star of today, celebrated her 14th birthday in China.

Today is gray and cool. It would be nice to see the sun more, but the cool temperatures are a nice change from what I and many of my teammates would be enduring in Chicago and other parts of America.

Breakfast ended with another Yunnan cultural lecture from Hu Di. We learned among other things, “Three Yunnan mosquitos make a plate”, that Rachel, just 14 today, would be considered an “old lady” in some parts of the province, “Grannies can climb mountains faster than monkeys,” Buddhist monks can engage in dating, and in a certain minority group the men pack their women lunch and send them off to work while they tend the home front.

On the health and safety area, newly arrived Rhonda decided to get some medical imput today while Josh’s stomach is back in line and Dixie joined us for dinner and is feeling better.

This afternoon, Martin and YoYo plus Leon lectured the teacher group on their experience as Chinese in America, and the story of an emigrant's journey from Europe to America.

We enjoyed a group dinner at the Western style Che Che Restaurant. The group was ready for a western food fix as steak, pizza, and omelets seemed to be the favorites. In fact, Josh had two dinners.

The highlight of the night was a surprising 14th birthday party for Rachel featuring a beautiful birthday cake, a pyrotechnic Happy Birthday music machine, a light up leí and a laminated birthday card with all the volunteers’ pictures.