Hello! From Erica the CBYX Scholarship Recipient

Guten Tag!

Ich heiBe Erica Ma, und Ich spreche nicht gut Deutsch.

Well, as I have mentioned in some of my earlier posts: I AM GOING TO GERMANY FOR ANY ENTIRE YEAR!!!!! I am going to Germany via a program called the Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange. The company FLAG chose me to become a recipient, as they are in charge of the Southwest region of the United States. They chose 50 wonderful recipients this year, all of whom I had the pleasure of meeting during the on-site orientation in Michigan.
You can find out more information through this link: http://www.usagermanyscholarship.org/
So far, I have gone through three phases after receiving the scholarship:

(1) UTTER SHOCK: I couldn't believe I was going to Germany. I started to go on German stores to do all my online "window" shopping, etc. I even began to read my news in German, only to find out I couldn't understand 99.99% of what was written.

Then I moved on to (2) IDLENESS: The excitement slightly wore off as I had to take a bunch of vaccination shots and wait for final plans about my stay in Germany. I still am very excited about going to Germany, but the anticipation for more information about my host family, the part of Germany I will be living in is killing me!!! But, patience is a virtue that will help me get through the year living with a completely different family. I try not to think about the whole process, and I just hope that I wasn't too picky as I was filling out the forms for compatibility.

After my "idleness" stage I moved on to (3) OH NO phase. This mainly has to do with my mom's worrying. I know my mom cares very much about my safety in Germany, but some of the things she worries about are over the top. For example, she keeps telling me if I don't do my chores, I will be sent to court in Germany. I have a feeling this is only to get me to do more chores at home, and I really hope this is the most of her worries and mine too.

Anyways we officially have 25 more days before our group of awesome kiddies leave for Germany. We will be staying at a small village called Hedersleben, where our main focus will be language learning!

I still can't believe I have this amazing chance to go to Germany. I really thank all those who are making it happen, from my parents to the FLAG staff. Hopefully the awesome people in Germany have an easy time finding a host family for me!

Bis Später!

Erica the Argonaut

Hello! From Erica the Pseudo-Glendalian/Pasadenian

Motivation to my Madness:

My life in Walnut can be summarized into one word: immutable. The town in which I grew up is basically quaint and quiet, but this benefit doesn't come without its costs. The City of Walnut is basically boring. You cannot find a fun place to go that isn't driving distance. Furthermore, the places that does sound fun, such as the local "hang out" plaza and of course the library have been so often visited that we no longer rush towards these places after school.

Growing up in Los Angles County means poor transportation. A car is needed to get to anywhere important because we have all naturally associated the public transits as a local hangout for lunatics and druggies. This very limited view drove many of us Walnutians away from pursuing our dreams of LA-living and kept us safe within the confines of our hometown: Walnut. 

Where my Madness brought me: 

1. Pasadena 

2. Glendale Galleria and Americana

Pasadena:

Pasadena is definitely no stranger to me, but I have yet to find all its greatest treasures and secrets. I used to come here every Saturday when my sister took art class at the Pasadena Art Center College of Design. Right after Chinese school, we would rush over to Pasadena, and while my sister was in class, I would spend the entire afternoon huddled in the young adults section of the Pasadena Library, happily reading and hiding from my parents who were coercing me to finish my Chinese school homework. On better days, we would walk around downtown Pasadena and go drink Jamba Juice. After my sister was done with class, we would go to Arcadia and shop at Whole Foods and eat at dim sum. A few years later, I started taking art classes there too. My parents would spend the entire morning on those Saturdays jogging around the Rose Bowl Stadium and looking at the quaint houses in the area. 

Now, let me first warn you: This was my first "alone" trip through the Metrolink/MetroRail system. I spent the entire yesterday planning this trip, researching about the railways and different routes. Although I was extremely befuddled by and tired out from the research, I found that it would probably be great practice for my future travels (especially to Germany, where public transportation is key). Later, I would find out that one Metrolink ticket can actually be used for every single Metro transit and other cities' public transit other than the Metro Silverline. 

Anyways...back to the main story. It was just after Senior Breakfast, when we headed back to my house to prepare for the trip. We found that it was already too late to catch any of the morning trains since Senior "Breakfast" lasted till "brunch" time. We caught the 1:47 train to Union Station at the Covina Metrolink Station. From Union Station, we took the Gold Line North towards Pasadena. It was a new experience since I rarely travelled on the Metrorails. Let me just admit that I was severely creeped out by "youth" on the bus because they came in a sizes of piercings and tattoos. 

After getting off at Memorial Park, we decided to head towards the Pasadena City Hall. There was a wedding at the City Hall, and my friends and I awkwardly walked past the celebration toward its courtyard. It was really nicely designed and fit the whole Californian-Spanish-Desert architecture. 

Memorial Park Station

Pasadena City Hall

Apparently, May 24, 2013 was a great day for everyone in the Los Angeles Area because the sun was shining, the sky was blue, and it wasn't too hot. My friends and I enjoyed shopping on Colorado Ave. and later taking the bus to the Glendale Galleria to continue our shopping "exercise" and enjoy the beautiful scenes of Los Angeles night life.

Glendale:

My experiences in Glendale are much more limited than my little experience in Pasadena. My family and I have only recently discovered the treasures of the bustling city of Glendale, from its Whole Foods to the great restaurants, such as Portos and its Las Vegas-styled buffet. 

Anyways...I felt that going to Glendale was definitely the highlight of the trip. We spent most of our shopping time looking for matching t-shirts we could wear to graduation night at Disneyland. which is a completely different story. In closing our night, we went to the Americana, a place we have wanted to go since...ummm...FOREVER. I promise you IT IS WORTH IT. Maybe not for shopping but for a little meal under a patio or just to see a lively "American" night life scene.

The Americana at Brand.

I have to admit: I didn't think I would actually EVER finish this post. I have stalled for such a long time, but I hope that I can continue with the motivation that has now overcome me to continue to write and post about my travelling. 

See ya VERY SOON, 

Erica the Argonaut.