Cultural Education Trip to China

My school is in the process of integrating a more international curriculum. We have received a grant, which will allow us to send a faculty member abroad. China has been chosen to be the first country and culture to be studied.
The goals of the trip abroad are:

increase understanding of Chinese culture and language
nurture understanding and respect between teachers and foreign teachers
plan joint projects
inspire teachers to create a new global curriculum

I am one of the lucky teachers to be going on this trip. A main priority for me is to bring a cultural experience to our students while I am on the trip and connect them somehow on a personal level. I want to include blogging, video conference and podcasting.

I have many questions regarding what I need to take into consideration in China what I might not be aware of, like for example blogger being blocked or not having internet access readily available or…. I would appreciate any comment or tip regarding the technology situation I might encounter in China from anyone in the bloggersphere.

Here are some ideas on how I want to involve my students on this trip:

Have students bring in or purchase a Beanie Babie, Build-a-Bear, or something to serve as a school mascot. This mascot will accompany me on the trip. Have pictures/videos taken with the mascot being in famous places being visited on the trip. Create a video with the mascot’s experiences. Upload to blog for students to follow along the trip daily.
Create a soundseeing podcast during the trip
Set up video conferencing (via Skype) between students/teachers and China
Teach an English lesson to Chinese students to show our kids that they are interested in our language and culture as well. Students will be able to compare what they learn in Spanish/Chinese/German with Chinese classroom.
Create digital story (with MS Photostory) about trip outline, typical school day in China, food, landmarks, cities, music, language, etc.