ILSSO: Monday, January 5, 2009

Hello from California!

Before heading to China, our group gathered in San Francisco for a day and a half. We arrived yesterday at about 11:30 am. We then had the day to ourselves to explore the city. It was really neat! Three of my teammates and I took the BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit) to Union Square and then walked to Fisherman's Wharf, which took us nearly an hour! We had a great time shopping at little stores and taking in the awesome views. We then went to see the sea lions on Pier 39 and ate supper at an outside restaurant. (You can't do that in Minnesota at this time of year!) After spending five hours downtown we rode the trolley back to Union Square.

We spent today in an orientation session for our trip to China. Altogether there are 25 boys, 25 girls and 5 chaperones on the trip. We learned about customs, culture, history, food and laid out our expectations for the trip. I think I am most excited to visit a dairy farm while we are over there. We leave San Francisco at 11:00 tomorrow morning and arrive in China around 3:00 in the afternoon the next day. (the 7th)

Hopefully I will have the opportunity to write nearly every day to update you on my adventures.

Caitlin

ILSSO

On January 4-16, 2009, I will be traveling with four other Minnesota FFA State Officers to China for the International Leadership Seminar for State Officers. Justin Krell, Pete Thome, Cindy Young, Katie Zenk and I will be among 50 State FFA Officers from around the United States on the tour. We will be visiting Beijing, Xian, Shanghai and Suzhou. The trip's main focus is agriculture and will include tours of the China Agricultural University, cattle farms, greenhouses, dairy farms, the Suzhou Silk Institute and much more. We will also be touring the Great Wall of China, the Bird's Nest Olympic Stadium and the American Embassy among many other historical and cultural visits.

International travel is an awesome opportunity for anyone to pursue, especially if you are involved in agriculture! Chinese agriculture is growing rapidly, which is why this trip will be such a great experience.

If you are interested in following my group's adventures while we are in China, feel free to check out the State Officers' blogs. Just go to the State FFA website, www.ffa.umn.edu, and click on the "State Officers" tab. You can also go to the National FFA website, www.ffa.org, and look for the "ILSSO 09" blog.

Thank you for your support and encouragement as I travel overseas!

Stationed by the ear of corn,

Caitlin Kasper

Fall was busy with FFA events!

I have not had much time to blog, but I have decided to update it before I go on the International Leadership Seminar for State Officers to China.

In November, Pete and I visited the AFSA, NE Metro, School of Environmental Studies FFA Chapters. We shared FFA opportunities with FFA members, agriculture students and officer teams. We also went to Rush City and North Branch FFA Chapters at the beginning of December. It was great to visit with members and advisors to find out what materials and information they needed to be successful. We wish all the best to chapters as they plan their spring FFA events.

I also had the opportunity to attend the CHS New Leaders Conference. I went to Minneapolis on Tuesday, December 2 to help with registration and attend the opening banquet. It was interesting to meet young farmers from other states and learn about the important issues that their industries are facing. I was also glad to help out CHS as they are a major sponsor of FFA. Thank you!

Caitlin