Take A Leap China Part 1 & 2!!

These two videos highlight our travel to China over 10 days during the Holidays.  It also features friends we were able to interview.   Take A Leap to China!!

PART 1: Intro; First Trip Abroad; Why China?

PART 2: Living Expenses; Interesting Experiences

Additional videos from China will be posted in late Spring.  Yes, there's more!! Pandas, The Great Wall, dancing, etc.

Pictures from China

Forbidden City in Beijing, China.

Summer Palace (Built 1750) in Beijing, China. Supposed to have served as a
Summer Resort for Empress Dowager Cixi.
Frozen lake below.

Nǐ hǎo/Hello,

It's been two weeks since we have been back. Below are some of the many pictures from our trip to China. Enjoy!!!

A fish with it's head seprated
from it's body. We did not eat the head.

Sharee posing with snow in the background,
outside a Beijing hotel.

Rhonda, still all smiles after a 12.5hrs plane ride
 from Los Angeles, CA to Beijing.

Chinese Culture: Longevity. Always together.
Male (left w/ball under paw) &
Female (right w/baby under paw)

Sharee in a cave in Shanghai, China.

Rhonda posing with Life size replicas
of the Terra Cotta Soldiers.

Two pandas in Chengdu, China.

Sharee & a fellow traveler with the crowded
train station in the background. 

Xiè xiè/Thank you,

Rhonda W.

Squaters: Women's toliets in China,
on the floor.  Remember to bring tissue.

Ni Hao! & Xie Xie!

Ni Hao (pronounced nee how) is a common phrase in China. In Chinese Mandarin it means Hello.  It can be spoken anytime of the day and once said, can spark interesting conversations. None of which we completely understood.  Xie Xie (pronounced Shi-e Shi-e) is also a common phrase.  In Chinese Mandarin it means Thank You.

The Chinese language is very complex. Especially when there are similar words with different meanings depending on the tone that is used.  Take the word ma.  Depending on tone it can mean mother, horse, hemp, or scold.  Say it the wrong way, and you may have called your mother a horse!!

There is also differences in the language depending on the region that you live.  The Chinese language spoken in Shanghai is vastly different than the language spoken in Northern or Southern China.  Chinese Mandarin differs from Chinese Cantonese.  People who know Cantonese understand Mandarin, but people who know Mandarin don't understand Cantonese.  It's enough to make your head spin, but we were always safe with Ni Hao & Xie Xie!

We had a great time in China and will post in the coming weeks tons of pictures, full descriptions of our time there, and the second webisode of Take A Leap by mid-February.  We will also share a story about a chance meeting that came at the tail end of our trip than will truly shape the direction of our future.  As for now, we are still recuperating and adjusting to normal life and getting back into the groove of work.  Yet, we couldn't resist sharing these exhilarating pictures of us atop The Great Wall in Beijing. It was -5 Celsius and we were COLD!! It was in the record books as one of the coldest days in almost 50 years. Just our luck!!

Sharee & Rhonda

Rhonda

Sharee

Celebrating New Year's in China!!

We are heading to China after Christmas, and the excitement is building.  Our list of expat interviewees are growing by the day, including teachers, writers, and business professionals. We will spend the first few days in Beijing and begin the New Year in Shanghai before moving on to the smaller villages of Chengdu and X'ian.  Some of the ventures we will explore include visiting the Temple of Heaven, Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, the Summer Palace, the Great Wall, the Oriental Pearl TV Tower, the Chengdu Giant Panda Research Center, and the site of the Terracotta Army.

The weather during our visit will be in the low to mid-30s as a high, and in the teens for lows in Beijing.  Shanghai fares a little better with temperatures in the mid-to-upper 40s as a high, and low-to-mid 30s as a low.

Has anyone visited China in the winter months?  What was your experience like?

Take A Leap Logo

We officially have a Take A Leap logo. We want to personally thank former magazine Art Director Errol Alger and Graphic Designer Allen Johnson for collaborating on the logo. We will be using it as much as we can to market the Take A Leap Webseries.

We have until September 1st to raise $5,500. We recently added a new perk of 2 XL Black Girls Travel T-shirts for a donation of $50, plus the $20 donation level perks.

www.indiegogo.com/takealeap

Rhonda W.

Happy 4th of July! Take A Leap is 4 Months Away Until Our Adventure Begins

We Connected Productions, LLC are EXCITED as we are 4 Months away until we begin our Adventure to Italy in November and China in December. Find out how you can support Take A Leap by going to: www.indiegogo.com/takealeap Enjoy your 4th. Rhonda W.

Speak Up!!

Today is Rhonda and my birthday! We've been responding through a slew of Facebook msgs, tweets, emails, and text messages of well wishes.  But only a few well wishes in person.  It made me think of how we've been promoting our new project, Take A Leap. We tend to promote with emails, tweets, and Facebook. Very little by word of mouth. So as we head into a busy weekend that includes flying to Detroit to attend the Glory Reelz Christian Film Festival and then back Sunday to attend our dad's church service and celebrate Mother's Day with our mom, we've both made vows as a part of our birthday wish.  We need to open our mouths and speak up.

Speak up about what we've accomplished in filmmaking. Speak up about the DVDs we are selling. Speak up about our new project, Take A Leap. Speak up about the boy we like. So, I snuck the last one in there, but it served as a point. In speaking up, we are formulating relationships.  We are getting people to trust us, and we them.  Relationships are reciprocal. It's a give and take.  In selling a DVD, we take in $7 and viewers are given a 4 short stories to watch. We take that $7, and give a portion back to God. The viewers take the DVD and share with others. A relationship has developed, and the circle of trust has begun.  Makes sense! Well it does in my mind.

Anyways, the same can be true about speaking up about Take A Leap. Instead of talking about the money , speak more to what we want to experience. We want to experience the life of an entrepreneur with the "power" to create and shape our careers. We want to travel not only for cultural sake, but also with a purpose of sharing inspirational stories of African-American expats not often heard.  For that reason we have narrowed our international abroad locations to Rome, Italy; Florence, Italy; and Shanghai/Beijing, China for our pilot, second, and third episodes.  We'll take some time in Spring/Summer 2013 to promote the three shows in NYC and LA.

These are the experiences we want to share with people not the dollar signs. When we talk to people about Take A Leap, we're developing a relationship with people who are also trying to find their calling in life. Many people  "dream" about a new job, new home, or a new relationship, but fail to speak their "dream" into existence. So I say, shout it to the universe. To anyone that bears to listen.  From day 1 we've been told that our lives are purposeful, and the only life to live is the one we're destined to live. The more we speak up, the more likely it'll catch on, and the support that we'll have will be tremendous. We can't stay quiet any longer!!

Sharee

Take A Leap Facebook Page

Take A Leap has a Facebook Page. Check us out at www.facebook.com/WCPTakeALeap

Spread The Word!

 Currently seeking to interview African-Americans who live abroad in Rome, Italy; Florence, Italy; Shanghai, China; and Beijing, China.



Upcoming Trips: 
Tuscany (Rome & Florence Italy) November 1-10, 2012 Collette Vacations via Midlands Technical College Continuing Education Department

China (Shanghai & Beijing) December 27, 2012-January 6, 2013 Friendly Planet