I was chosen to be in ISTA (International School Theater Association) out of 60 auditioned students. Our ensemble (about 20 people from my school) made a funny piece about walls. My part was to be Romeo in Romeo and Juliet. I tried to go over the wall but kept on falling over. It was hilarious. We worked on the 10 minute piece for two months every other school day for 2 ½ hours. I felt very proud of the piece.
On the day of the trip I anticipated so much I thought I was going to burst. Finally, we got on the plane at 8:30 pm. We arrived in Singapore at 11:00 pm for a 2 hour layover. We had a chance to do some shopping, but we were all soooo tired. After 12 hours of flying and in airports, we arrived in Beijing. My first feeling was brrrrr! It was freezing and I was in a short, topical outfit. We got on a bus excitedly and went to the school that was hosting the festival. Nobody got more than 5 hours of sleep for two days and we were all tired.
When we arrived at the school we had a chance to take a relaxing shower and eat good old non-airline food (even though it tasted horrible). That day we went to our host families. I was stuck with a boastful guy who thinks he is a leader because he can insult people. He was my roommate (not my host, of course). My hosts were sooo nice. They were Korean and spoke little English, but they were great. We did acting 12 hours a day and learned a lot. I learned about stage fighting and clowning.
I also went to the Great Wall. It was so steep we had to climb to get up a step. Each step was three feet high and ¼ foot long. The Great Wall of China is so big. It is phenomenal how the ancient Chinese built it. I also got a gameboy game, three hand painted, beautiful Chinese wall paintings, three laser pens, a bracelet (not for me, for Mallory) and a hand-crafted Chinese fan. All for less than $25! If I didn’t bargain it would’ve been $200. Wow!
Overall, it was a great experience. Everyone was sooo sad when we got on the plane to go back to Jakarta. Some people were even crying. The ISTA festival was great and I hope to do it next year. It was one of the best non-religious things that I have done.
Millers in Shanghai
