I had a wonderful breakfast today for only RMB6.00 = RM3.00. I have not had such a full breakfast for ages and certainly nothing can top a RMB6.00 breakfast that consisted of two 包, one large bowl of porridge with meat and 皮 蛋, preserved vegetables and an egg. The best thing is that this restaurant is right behind my accommodation. However, I had to takeaway one of the 包 as I was too full and had it for my lunch.

I took bus no. 826 to church, which is located at KeXueYuan South Road, Haidian District. We (Doreen & I) arrived to church early and had a walk around the area. I was extremely glad that Doreen agreed to attend church with me. I hope she enjoyed the service as much as I did. There are a few services at BICF Zhong Guan Cun, namely the 9.00am & 11.00am English Service. There are also other services such as the Korean, Mandarin, and Indonesian Services. Many of the young adults choose to attend the 11.00am service as most of us enjoy our beauty sleep. However, the 9.00am service definitely has more people and it seems to be more lively. I may try to attend the earlier service if I can wake up. Even today I was struggling to get up and felt a little sleepy during service. Thank goodness I managed to stay awake.

The worship was good but not as lively as I imagined. I suppose it must have been because there were less people at the 11.00am service. The message by Pastor Mark Blair was on the book of Ecclesiastes and about how we search for hope in things we find pleasurable such as shopping, alcohol, money etc. He also emphasized that we need for hope to be fulfilled in permanence, which is through our Lord Jesus Christ and the fact that "the sign of your possessions is that God is in your life." I felt that was particularly apt since it spoke to me that riches and wealth are but temporal and superficial. I have been struggling with this issue as I have often wanted a high-flying job that can fund my shopping sprees, expensive holidays and a posh living space. However, recently I have been pondering if that is really what God has in mind for me? And if truly that is what I want? My dad told me to identify my big rocks and I have been praying about that since my purpose in life needs to be aligned to my big rocks. I truly believe that God shall pave the way for me in identifying my big rocks and the bigger picture in my life. I shall be praying in earnest.

Coincidentally I was supposed to meet up with a friend of a friend of a friend. I know you are probably wondering what I mean? Well, I know a friend, Justin, who was studying at Beijing Language & Cultural University (BLCU) from Feb-June 09 and he in turn had a friend, Chris, who was studying at BNU. So, he forwarded me Chris' facebook and email to me. I emailed Chris about BNU and asked him for advice regarding the language course. Now, Chris has a friend, Rex, a Kiwi who still studies Mandarin at BNU and forwarded me Rex's mobile number. Therefore, I was supposed to meet up with Rex later on today after the church service. However, God certainly had other plans for us. We bumped into each other at church. How coincidental! I was introducing myself along with the other newcomers and Rex somehow realised that this was the Julia he was supposed to meet up with. I have to say perfect timing!

Rex is an extremely friendly guy and his Mandarin is amazing. He can read more characters than I can! I definitely have a lot to learn from him and I told him that from now on, he shall be my 学长. However, we have the tendency to speak English while together. Maybe it might not be such a bad thing since we can both ensure that our English will not deteriorate. Either way I have Doreen, the other Malaysians and my Chinese friends to converse with. Rex and I went to the Chinese equivalent of Walmart after church and did a bit of shopping as I needed to buy a few more items such as body lotion and bath towels. Beijing's supermarkets are filled to the brim with people and now I understand their population worries. Chinese people do seem extra friendly to the 老 外 (foreigners) and I suppose I have not quite immersed myself in the culture as they can spot my foreign accent. My Malaysian friends have commented that when I speak Mandarin, there is a English twang to it. Hmm...all those years in England! I wonder when I can pass myself off as a Chinese native? I am certainly too optimistic but optimism is not necessarily a bad thing, is it?