Nice to meet you (in Chinese)...

So this will be super short, but I wanted to share with everyone that I officially have a Chinese name, and Laura does too.

This is my name, its yang li. Pronounced like yong lee. The first part is my "family name" and it means Italian poplar tree, which is what our city, Siyang, is famous for. Then li is part of my mom's name, which is Mary or ma li in Chinese. So I'm named for her, and it also means jasmine flower.

Lauras name is yang lu. Pronounced like yong loo. Her family name is the same, which means that we are "sisters", and her first name means the morning dew, which is very beautiful to the Chinese.

We are so happy with our names and are practicing writing them, which isn't going so well, but we're trying. I like that our family name comes from the city we live in, too, because the school and our students and friends are essentially our big family while we're here. Also, our first names are personal and beautiful. So, yay! I'm feeling a little more at home every day, a temporary home, but at least somewhat comfortable. Not to mention, with this new name, I think I feel a second tattoo coming on when I get back to the States... ;)