I can't believe that the Benise China tour is halfway over! I spent Christmas Day at the Great Wall of China filming shots for the music video for Kashmir. Unfortunately it was so freezing cold that my hands were practically drying out and chapping in front of my eyes and my violin strings wouldn't stay tightened if my life depended on it, but we got some great footage anyway!!!

So far the tour has performed in Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Beijing, and Chongqing and the audiences have been fantastic. We have a day off tomorrow and then resume our run here in Chengdu for a three night engagement. This is where the really bad quake happened in 2008 so it's great to see how much recovery has taken place. It gives me hope for places like Haiti, Chile, and Japan which similarly suffered devastating quakes in 2010 and 2011.

I have to admit that I am not good at touristing or taking lots of pictures because I'm more into immersing myself in the culture and language, so I'm happier actually exploring the cities, making friends, meeting fans, and speaking and learning as much Mandarin as I can because one day I hope to bring my StringPhoenix concerts here.

Musically, the Benise show has evolved a lot since the World Tour started in October. I've even changed up my solo number in the show, where I play an original violin/guitar bolero called Encantado with my tourmate Gilberto Gonzalez. I took a traditional Chinese folk song and incorporated the melodies over the chords of Encantado. I wasn't sure how it would go over but the combination of the Spanish and Chinese love songs really surprised the audiences and it's great to reach these people even though the spoken language barrier is so strong.

All in all, I am so blessed and grateful to be here. My life has changed so much in the past year and even though it started with some major ups and downs, this experience on tour this yea and especially my time here in China has been so beautiful and I cannot wait to come back.