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Riley Fitzgerald of the Divine Dance Center in Southwest Roanoke County shares these photos from a recent competition. (See this July 20 post for a list of the awards that Divine Dancers won.)

You can view them in the slideshow above or in this gallery format, which offers captions.

Either way, the dancers you'll see include Sarah Wilkie, Abbie Hoback and Courtney Boyd of Salem.

Here's more details on Annie Lin's trip to China.

"The third day we went to The Temple of Heaven. The total of 3800,000 square meters. It was the royal temple used by th e emperors of Qing dynasty to "worship the heaven" and "pray the heaven".

In my pictures there is The Imperial Vault of Heaven built in 1530. First named the Hall for Appeasing Gods. Hall of Prayer for good Harvest built in 1420 during the right of Ming emperor Yongle. The original hall has rectangular in shape and was first named the Great Hall for sacrificial Rituals used to worship both Earth and Heaven.

The rule is that you are not allowed to take any pictures from inside of the buildings.

The next stop was "The Great Wall". The Great Wall of China was built over 2,000 years ago, by Qin Shi Huangdi, the first emperor of China during the Qin Dynasty. In Chinese the wall is called "Wan-Li Qang-Qeng" which means 10,000-L long wall.

The Great Wall can be seen from Earth Orbit, but, contrary to legend, is not visible from the Mon, according to astronauts Neil Armstrong, Jim Loveil, and Jim Irwin.

We didn't climb to the end of the top, but "The Great Wall" was one of my favorite place in Beijing. Jerry and I wore "I climbed to The Great Wall" T-shirts. I have a Chinese hat and with Mao Zedong's handbag, but I am not a Red Guards or Communist either."

To see all of Annie's photos', click HERE.

MORE ON ANNIE LIN'S TRIP:
* July 30: Photos: Annie Lin's second day in China
* July 30: Photos from Annie Lin's trip to China
* July 30: More photos from Annie Lin's trip to Taiwan
* July 28: Photos from Annie Lin's trip to Taiwan

Do you have photos from your summer vacation? You can share at news@sosalem.com

Ah, nothing says summer festival like the mist truck! Unless maybe it's the fireman's foam.

There was plenty of both last weekend at Touch-A-Truck at Green Hill Park, where kids got a chance to clamber over all manner of vehicles.

And we have plenty of photos, too. You'll find some in this week's print edition of So Salem -- and then more, actually a lot more right here online. We've got four different photo galleries from the event. Here's a link to get you started.

Those aren't the only online extras we have, of course. Here's an easy guide to the rest:

* Photos from Salem After Five
* Photo of Fellowship Community Church campers
* Photos from Vacation Bible School at First United Methodist Church
* More photos about the long-lost class ring found at Roanoke College
* Another photo of the Chitwoods at the Salem Fair
* More photos from Laura Tucker at the Salem Fair
* More photos from Lemonaid

AND IN SPORTS . . .
* Salem’s state tennis champs honored
* Photos of Richard Morgan being named Bluefield College coach
* More photos from the All Comers meet at Roanoke College
* More photos of the Scrappers softball team
* More photos of the Dixie Boys All Stars

So how can you get your news and photos in So Salem? Easy! You can share at news@sosalem.com.

For more information on us -- and how to advertise and reach more than 90 percent of the households in Salem and western Roanoke County -- see below:

Read more »

The Krystal on Wildwood Road will turn into a Dairy Queen. Business writer Jenny Boone has details on her retail blog, The Storefront. So, what do you think? You can leave your comments below.

"The second day, we went to "The National Centre for the Performing Arts". The building outside looks just like a boiled egg.

Then we were in "The National Palace Museum". We have visual feast of 5,000 years of traditional Chinese art, with a rich concentration of architecture and artifacts from the Ming and Qing imperial courts."To see all of Annie's photos', click HERE.

MORE ON ANNIE LIN'S TRIP:
* July 30: Photos from Annie Lin's trip to China
* July 30: More photos from Annie Lin's trip to Taiwan
* July 28: Photos from Annie Lin's trip to Taiwan

Do you have photos from your summer vacation? You can share at news@sosalem.com

Sandra and Kevin Connolly of Salem sent us this photo of Ruthie and Alena playing at their grandparents house with their cousin, Jacob, who was visiting from Dayton, Ohio.

Do you have any cute photos that you would like to submit? If so, send them to news@sosalem.com.

Salem resident and local student Zachary Harth has successfully completed the Freedom Alliance Military Leadership Academy. The Academy is a unique summer camp based on the curriculum of the U.S. Army. In its ninth year, the Academy introduces cadets to positive role models, teaches them leadership skills, and tests their resolve through rigorous mental and physical challenges.

"We are very excited that Zachary decided to take the challenge presented by the Academy," stated Freedom Alliance president Tom Kilgannon. "Not just anyone has the skills, fortitude, and excellent physical fitness required to make it through this intense program. We commend him on a job well done and we are certain that he will continue to do great things in the future."

The Academy has positively impacted the lives of over 800 students by infusing them with a sense of patriotism and a great respect for the military. Graduates go on to become better leaders in their school, career, and community.

The two-week Academy couples an intense leadership training environment with challenging and educational experiences like a tour of the Aviation Logistics School and simulators at Fort Eustis, a Leadership Reaction Course, and land navigation and fire team tactics. These exercises help instill in the cadets the core values of the Academy - Selfless Service, Courage, Teamwork, Integrity, Dependability, Responsibility, and Respect. The cadets also visit historical sites, such as the monuments in Washington, D.C., to maximize lessons on selfless service and celebrating America’s achievements.

Submitted by Alan Moore

National College in Salem has named the following students from Salem to the Dean’s List for the Spring term. To make the dean’s list, a student have have a minimum grade point average of 3.5 out of a possible 4.0:
Patricia Alls, Sherri Blake, Rebekah Carroll, Derek Grochowski, Diana Hall, Tammy Jenkins, Danielle Jennings, Connie King, Jessica Long, Ashley Merritt, Jenny Paulhus-Sowell, Ethel Rhodes, Jeremy Seitz, Michelle Wade, Myra Whitley

The Roanoke Valley Volkswagen Club presents its 2009 car show on Saturday, August 15, at Tanglewood Mall from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. The show will include street rods, trucks, motorcycles, antique cars, race cars and tuners. A portion of the proceeds from this show will benefit the Virginia Museum of Transportation, Inc. Auto Gallery.

For more information, please visit the club website at www.rvvwc.com. There you will be able to download a car show flyer and registration form.

Submitted by David Montgomery

School days are here again. Students across Roanoke County will be returning to school August 24 and they need our help! First of all, Roanoke County Public Schools and Q-99 say "Thank You!" to all who were a part of our Pack the Bus campaign last year. Because of you, many students received the school supplies they needed to start the school year with success.

Our students need your help again this year, and if we all give a little, these students will receive a lot. Here’s how you can help. Join Roanoke County Public Schools and Q-99 on August 12 from 11:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. at the Bonsack Wal-Mart, or from 4:00 p.m. -7:00 p.m. at the Hunting Hills (Route 220) Wal-Mart. We will be accepting your donations of back to school supplies and/or monetary donations for students in need.

ALL funds and items collected will go to benefit the students. Some of the supplies we need include: backpacks, glue sticks, notebooks, 3-ring binders, crayons, colored pencils, notebook paper (college and wide-ruled), pens, pencils, highlighters, rulers, folders, scissors, and construction paper.