The Dodger's Game

For tonight's field trip we went to a baseball game, the Dodger's against Nationals. It was a really crowded stadium, and I can see lots of different people wearing Dodger's T-shirts. Our seats were at almost the top of the stadium, so we could have a good view of the whole field. I can smell all kinds of food, especially snacks like cracker jacks and peanuts. During the game, we were all really excited about our team, I can hear lots of cheering and clapping, and even screaming. At the eighth inn, a Taiwanese pitcher came up, and all the Taiwanese students went crazy. We were so anxious to see a player from our own country participate in the game. Although he only pitched a few balls, we were still so happy to see him on the field. After the game there was an amazing firework display. All the bright colors like white, silver, gold, blue, red and green danced in the night sky. Everyone were so thrilled and touched to see such a magical moment. It was really romantic. The game tonight was really exciting, even though we didn't win, we still had a great time being a part of the greatest past time for Americans- baseball.

Gene Autry Museum

It was a hot and dry day when we went to Gene Autry Museum, a museum about the old west. Most of us dressed in cowboy or cowgirl outfits, like plaid shirts with jeans or dresses. The moment we walked in the museum, I had a really weird feeling, everything was so old-fashion. The architecture looked really ancient, and the smell of dirt rushed into my nose. All the buildings were made from stone, which is really different and gives us a unique feeling. I can hear the crowds, but also I can hear the rivers flowing and the cool breeze puffing though our hair. During the morning, we spent time participating in a tour around the museum. Our tour guide was really professional, she told us a lot about the history, clothes, tools and lifestyle. It really gave me a whole new perspective about cowboys and the old west. After lunch, we walked around the place and spend some time at the souvenirs shops. It was a really wonderful day. The part I loved most about the museum were all the drawings and sculptures. They were proof for the amazing culture and civilization from the past. The part I didn't like was the food, because it was too expensive and we had to wait in line for a long time. The museums are a little different from museums in Taiwan. We don't usually have a big plaza or garden in a museum, and it's really nice to join all the fun activities in the museum. We had a tremendous time.

Fun in Disneyland

     We are here at the entrance of Disneyland! I can see lots and lots of families and friends going in and out, and I can feel the joyful atmosphere surrounding us. Each of us is dying to go in this magical land and start our tremendous journey. In the morning, we participated in a leadership program planned by disney. Our leader Courtney told us about some interesting facts and stories about Walt Disney, and taught us what it takes to become a great leader. Also we had fun activities and got to take rides without waiting in line. It was such a precious time we spent having fun and learning about leadership with such a great leader.
     Then we split up into groups, starting our real adventure. Our group had a tipical American meal first: fast food. We had fun trying different kinds of soft drinks, and the weirdest of all was a blue-colored drink that looks pretty limpid. We had no idea what that was made of, and it tasted really funny. Then, we started rushing from Tomorrowland to Mickey's Toontown, from Adventureland to Frontierland, riding every ride that comes into view and taking as many photos as we can. We wanted to make sure that we did everything worth doing and preserved all of the fabulous moments during our voyage. To take the most rides instead of wasting time while waiting in line, we decided to take fastpasses and run all over the place and get on as many rides we can. The ride we waited for the longest was Indiana Jones Adventure. It was tiring to wait for like an hour just to get on this one single ride, but it was definitely worth it!
     The highlights of the night were the amazing fireworks. Everyone gathered near the castle and waited in silence. I can see all of their excited faces and them desperately waiting for the fireworks to dazzle the night. As the show goes on, I could hear them breath with wonder. Every one of us was shocked by this fantastic and breath-taking moments.
     We all have dreams, big or small, difficult to achieve or doesn't fit in with others. Right now, I'm reminded about the beautiful dreams I had before I looked at what others think and gave up, and that I still have hope. This is the most important thing that I've learned during my special day in Disneyland.

Ontario Mills

     Today is the day I have been waiting for. It's the opportunity for us to spend all the money we can on the things we never had a chance to buy. We are at Ontario Mills ready to shop till we drop! First we took a small stop at Best Buy, a place to get electronic products. It was a really spacious store full of interesting and the latest things, like iphones, cameras, computers...etc waiting for us to discover. Although buying all of this amazing stuff sounds really tempting, I couldn't afford most of it.
     Then we had lunch at the mall. It was pretty much an American style meal: Burger King or pizza. It was pretty different from the food from Taiwan. It's more salty and much bigger than the fast food back home. Also, we always have lots of sauce in burgers in Taiwan, but they don't in America. After eating, we went to our first shop and the shop I have always wanted to go in: Forever Twenty-one. You can tell that it is a very elegant and designed store just by standing in front of it. The clothes in it were so nice that every girl would wish this was their own closets. Something special about it is that there are people servicing everywhere, even by the dressing rooms. And the cashiers here are so nice and friendly, they would chat with us and ask about our stay in the US. This seldom happens in Taiwan which is another part I like about America.
     After shopping for a few hours and walking around the enormous mall, it was time to have dinner. We went to a special restaurant called Dave and Busters. The special part about it is that using a card, we can play all kinds of games inside, such as basketball, skiball, driving, hockey. We can also use the tickets that we earned to exchange gifts. The restaurant was packed with teenagers and kids doing their best to enjoy the games and food. This was a really long and tiring day, but I'm thrilled to buy all the things that I wanted and to visit the stores I dreamed to go. Today is really a dream come true.

My Fantastic Partners in Class

     For my research paper, I have two partners to cooperate with, Meme and Michael. We are doing a research about religions in school. They are both very hard-working and doing a great job during this project. Meme is my roommate and is always willing to spend extra time to do the work that was left behind. And Michael always has a sharp mind and create new ideas. We are such a great combination in this project, and I´m really looking forward to finishing this together. It´s like we´re starting to get the whole picture, and we´re trying to finish the puzzle step by step. Somehow I´m just so excited about the time when we look at the whole project and think about the time, the effort we spent on it. I hope we can do our best, get this project done on time. Even though it might not be perfect, I´m still going to remember this precious work experience we had.

Water games

     It was a super hot and dry day in campus and everyone looks like they're sunstroke. That's why the interns decided to start water games!! At first we threw water balls and played "Capture the flag". Then we played a very exciting game.Each of us has to put a bottle on our head and let our teammate pour water in it with a cup. There were lots of small holes in the bottles so soon everyone got wet. Suddenly, the boys started to splash water on everyone, and we started splashing and pouring to each other. And this was when we got REALLY wet. It was a lot of fun, and it was the perfect thing to do on a hot Sunday afternoon.

The Getty Genter and Concert

     It was a beautiful and sunny day when we went on a field trip to The Getty Center which was on a hill. The museum is built by a very wealth man named J. Paul, who was an artistic collector. In his last years, he spent billions of dollars to build an art museum to exhibit lots of world-famous art works and sculptures. What really interests me is that all of the marble used to make architecture there was sent directly from Italy. Looking from these magnificent works of art, I can feel the art and history atmosphere at once, it's really impressive.

     All of the works of art in the museum look gorgeous, but among all, the irises drawn by Van Gogh is the most famous. The part that really took my breath away was the collection of what the French King Louis Fourteenth left behind. Each decoration, each clock, each table, each cabinet is unique. This is indeed the palace that every girl dreams to live in. During free time, we laid on the lawn and enjoyed the warm sunshine. It was really relaxing. After dinner, we went to a concert. The band was called "Best Coast". It was so crowded that we can hardly see the stage. Even though we didn't know the songs they sang, but we still had a lot of fun dancing to the music. It was a really great experience to be in such a beautiful place and we all had a fantastic night.

Hollywood!!

     For today's field trip we are going to Madame Tussauds and sightsee around Hollywood. Our first stop is Madame Tussauds, a celebrity waxwork museum. The first statue we saw was Leonardo De Capo, it looks so much like a real person standing in front of me. We started off at the third floor and took pictures with Lady Gaga, Britney Spears, Madonna, Selena Gomez, Zac Efron, Angelina Jolie and lots of the other famous young celebrities. The second and first floor was not as fun, cause the statues there are a bit older which I have no idea who they are. But even though I don't know their names and how they succeeded in show business, it was still lots of fun taking pictures with with them. After visiting the Madame Tussauds, we grabbed a quick dinner at Mc Donalds, then started hunting for souvenirs. The stores sell pretty much the same things, and everything is so expensive, so I didn't buy many things. Walking along the way, there are many streets artists beside dressed up as different characters, like Spiderman, Cinderella, Harry Potter etc...... The one I thought was the most alike was a man who dressed up like Michael Jackson, he was so cool!! We also went to a Chinese theater.

 There are lots of hand and foot prints printed personally by lots of celebrities. At last, we went to  a store called Hard Rock. Inside there are all kinds  of cool stuff like clothes, hats, accessories, guitars. I love all the thing there but unfortunately all of them are not very cheap. Still, I bought a bracelet and a necklace. It was a really fabulous trip and everyone had a tremendous time.

A Nice Day at the Park

     Today is fourth of July, a special day for Americans to celebrate their independence. In the afternoon, we started our trip to the park. Walking in the park, I can feel the warm sunshine and the cool breeze. I can feel the relaxing atmosphere here. Everyone is chilling and enjoying this very moment. We started out by playing basketball. It was pretty tough for us to play under the bright sun, but we were totally into the game and getting lots of exercise. Later, we sat on the grass, chatting and singing, it was really relaxing and comfortable. At night, there was an amazing firework show. All of a sudden, the lights all went out, then the sky is lit up by all kinds of fireworks. It kind of represents the joy in our hearts experiencing this magical moment.It was a fantastic trip we took.