Happy Easter, everyone! With all the stress of packing and planning swirling around us, it can be quite easy to forget to take a moment and thank God for the opportunity to go on such a fantastic journey. We are unfathomably blessed.

True to my tendencies of procrastination, I left my packing to the very last minute. My room is currently filled to the brim with piles of clothes, toiletries, and other “necessities”, more than half of which I’ll probably end up leaving behind due to a realization that we’re really only spending about a week abroad.
Practice yesterday was extremely productive. Everyone, from staff to parents to students, worked very hard to prepare for this trip. I wasn’t even able to take many photos because there was so much that needed to be done. There were tubs of uniforms that needed to be prepared, last minute logistics that had to be figured out, and, of course, "shcool" t-shirts that needed to be exchanged.

I wasn't able to spend much time watching the actual band practice, but the little I did showed that we've improved a lot since our practice on Thursday. Mercury News came and snapped a few photos that made it on the front page of the local news section. A few of my neighbors actually commented on how amazing they thought this experience was. 

The only thing that's standing between us and Beijing now is a long day of flying. I certainly won't fib and say that it'll be a day of sunshine and rainbows, but it's a pretty fair price to pay for the chance to go on this sort of adventure. I'll see you all at 9pm sharp! Happy traveling!