Typhoons, Steelers Game and Cards

Thursday afternoon and evening the area of Hong Kong was under a a Level 3 Typhoon Warning. Essentially that means that it was really windy, probably going to rain and the waves would be really choppy. Obviously, that means that a bunch of exchange students should go down towards the water to watch the waves. Sumana, Ben and I went down to sit on a ledge, near the boat ramp that overlooks the sea and the rocks. When we first got there we were walking by the stone ledge when a wave hit against the side and splashed over onto the concrete that we were standing on. It caught us by surprise but was definitely really cool. We got up onto the ledge and the waves were a little choppy but the water level was a good 7 feet below us and the waves weren't too violent so we decided that it would be safe enough to sit and watch. It was really windy but really awesome to see the waves in that type of weather. I definitely have never been on the shore that close to any type of stormy weather or typhoon like winds so personally, I thought it was absolutely amazing.

I was talking to a couple other international students and exchange students today and I think you would be surprised by the number of people that were actually wishing the typhoon would hit so that they could experience what it would be like because many of us have never been any type of situation like that. I am not going to lie, a little part of me wanted the typhoon to come a little bit closer to Hong Kong.

After about an hour, Ben, Sumana and I called it a night, caught a crab, showed it to a friend of ours and then dispersed to our halls. I went to sleep pretty early so that I could get up and watch the Steelers take on the Titans, early Friday morning. At first, I couldn't get any of the online streams to work and I was watching it on ESPN Gamecast but I was really, really disappointed and frustrated so I tried to stream it one more time and it worked! I mean, it was definitely freezing alot through the game, but it was better than watching the plays on Gamecast. It was an intense game and as usual, the Steelers took it to the last second and then overtime. Definitely a nail-biter to the finish but we pulled out a win and I was thoroughly ecstatic. I don't think I am going to be able to watch any more games in their entirety until December which is really, really depressing for me (which I am sure many of you know). Oh well, I am sure I'll try and catch bits and pieces of games as much as possible.

After the game, I ended up showering and doing homework and then going to an orientation for my Living Learning Community, iVillage. This community is for students interested in learning more about other cultures though meeting people from those areas as well as participating in different activities. Definitely a perfect fit for me. I have met a bunch of people that have gone to International Schools and thus have an IB education. Awesome. Common ground for everyone. We ended up talking about different activities that we all want to do during the year and then dispersed.

Soon after, Richard (Sweden), Vinny, Ben, Sunil (Texas), Sumana and I played a card game called dukhad that one of Sumana's friends from back home taught her and then a couple rounds of Rummy. Definitely good fun and good people.

That brings me to plans for tomorrow. We are going to Macau! I am super excited. Macau is a former Portuguese colony that is now a Chinese SAR region. It takes about 30ish minutes to get to the Ferry terminal and then about an hour to an hour and a half to get to Macau by boat (about 20-30 USD one way). Apparently, we are leaving around 8:45 from campus and staying until after the fireworks (around 9, I would think). So excited. I will make sure to post pictures.

Oh, and then Sunday I will be waking up bright and early to go with some fellow OSU students down to Wan Chai to watch the OSU-USC Game with some OSU Alums. This is going to be a pretty great weekend. :)

Have a good weekend and GO BUCKEYES!