Colin Snell, Beijing, Jinan and Shanghai, 2017

Arrival

The plane touched down at Beijing international airport to an overwhelming wave of humidity and heat. We were greeted outside the terminal by row of endless taxi cab drivers, all who wanted our foreign business. The plane ride had been extremely exhausting and I felt the fatigue of jet lag as we drove down the highway into downtown Beijing. The first night we stayed at the Swissotel, a pleasant treat to our travel worn bodies. But we were in Beijing! So that night our group went out and walked the street and eventually found a restaurant that boasted Beijing's staple dish, Beijing Roasted Duck. The meal was delicious and filled with foods I had never tried, like lotus flower root. After dinner we returned to the hotel and I promptly collapsed in my bed.

Arrived at the Swissotel

Beijing

The next morning we arrived early at  the Beijing No. 4 campus. The campus was quiet because most of the students were finishing their exams that morning. After waiting for a few minuted our host students began to arrived. My student introduced himself as Liu-Zhao Yu, but he said I could call him Jonas. Another student whispered over to tell me that Jonas was head of the Model UN club at their school. Jonas was a lighthearted funny guy who everyone seemed to look up to. I was glad to have him as a host.

 

With Host Students at Beijing No. 4 Campus

Jonas and his father picked up his little brother, Peter, and took us home afterward. As soon as I placed my bags in my room they rushed me off to have lunch. After a meet of delicious dumplings Jonas told his parents he would take me to go see sights. We went to the nearest subway station and set off to meet Matthew and his host student to see The Forbidden City. The Forbidden City was an awe inspiring piece of Chinese architecture and serene beauty. Hordes of tourist from all around China and the world packed through the gates.

Matthew and I infront of beloved Mao

Afterwards we went to a market district. I was amazed by the sheer quantity of shops with keepers all shouting to advertise their products. Matthew and I bought small trinkets to bring back home. Jonas and Matthew's host then treated us to a cart ride as we visited various temples and historical landmarks in the neighborhood. Over the next five days my host and I repeated this routine: we would wake up in the morning to a breakfast of fried bread and hot mild accompanied by a hard boiled tea egg. After breakfast we set off to see the sights. We visited The Beijing Capital Museum which hosted a replica of a giant bronze bell built for an Emperor. The museum also boasted a large collection of buddhist figurines and tablets.

Ancient Buddha Stone Carving

We visited the famous Temple of Heaven, home to beautifully constructed temple, which Jonas explained to me were used by the emperor to offer up ceremonial sacrifices to the gods. The next day my entire host family drove me down to a town called Simao. Simao is an ancient town at the base of an extremely famous section of the Great Wall. That night we toured the town and its garment production house and distillery. When we traveled to the top of the Great Wall, it was very dark and we were only allowed on certain sections. Still, the sheer magnitude and feat of construction upon daunting mountain sloped amazed me. On my final day in Beijing my family took me to Yanqi lake. The lake/amusement park was actually used for Oktoberfest, which I thought was very interesting. The next day I packed my things and set of for Nanzhan Train Station.

The Temple of Heaven

My host family and I at Yanqi Lake

Jonas and I at the top of Simao Great Wall

Jinan

We stepped off of the bullet train in Jinan and were immediately greeted by our first host families. My host student Frank, was very shy at first but soon warmed up to me. The train ride had been exhausting and they took me home immediately to let me sleep. The next morning we had a meeting at Jinan Middle School with all of the students that would be hosting us in the coming days and the Principal of their school. We introduced ourselves to everyone and were taken on a tour of the school afterwards. Following the tour, Frank and some of his friends took me to lunch. The food was Sichuan cuisine, which means spice and heat. By the end of the meal my mouth was burning and my eyes watering, but it was extremely tasty nonetheless. Over the next day Frank showed me the aspects of Jinan he loved, which turned out to be the historical museum parts, mixed in with some exciting pickup basketball. At the end of our second day Frank handed me over to my second exchange student, Zi-long zhang. 

Zi-long was a lot like me in that he enjoyed sports and running around with friends. While the other host students spoke some english, Zi-long spoke none and subsequently forced me to greatly improve my speaking and listening. Zi-long and his best friend took me out every night to show me fun places to go for kids our age. While other students had shown me sites, I was grateful to have an insight to how Chinese teenages spent free time. Zi-long took me to eat crazy street food, constantly joked around, and took me to walk on the beach of the famous Yellow River. I grew extremely close with him and enjoyed our couple of days together.

My third exchange student, John, was also very nice. John was extremely passionate about basketball, so at night we would go to the park to play pickup with other people. I had an awesome time and got to use my chinese to introduce myself and communicate in the games. In the days John took me to see the Jinan library and visit malls with his girlfriend. 

Our group at Jinan Middle School

Zi-long Zhan and I walking along the Yellow River

Saying Goodbye to our Jinan Hosts

Shanghai

When we stepped off of the five hour train ride in Shanghai, the warm coastal air almost put me to sleep. I was greeted by my host Lannie, a Student at the WLSA Fudan university International high school, and her cousin Heidey, a student studying english in Shanghai. The next morning we set off to a small primary school called Shanghai Jiading Juyuan Liuli Xiao xue. The school is for the kids of migrant workers whose parents work in the main part of the city. At the school we greeted the the small children and taught them to make small straw baskets, although they were soon the ones teaching us. We also taught them American songs like 'Hokey Pokey' and 'Row Your Boat'. Afterwords we went outside to teach them games like 'Duck Duck Goose'. Laughter permeated the air and we all had an awesome time.

My prodigy weaving her straw basket

Our group outside after some intense Duck Duck Goose

The next couple of days in Shanghai consisted of sightseeing. We visited a famous Confucian temple were the Imperial Test was given to scholars and witnessed the stressful situations that caused many of them to cheat. But perhaps my favorite portion of Shanghai was visiting the "Bottle Opener" building, the second highest building in shanghai. At the top we could see the entire city and I could finally comprehend the sheer size of Shanghai. That night we met MBA alum Miles Curry for a dinner of Goat Kebabs. Milkes was finishing up an internship he had received to work at WLSA for the summer and I was intrigued to hear about his experience and what he thought of living in Shanghai. Our final night we started with some showstopping Karaoke wear John curry and I sung our hearts out to the amazement of our hosts. Lastly, we took the iconic Shanghai harbor cruise and got to see the city all aglow. It was a sight that I will never forget.

View from Shanghai Harbor

Final Thoughts

My trip to China this summer was one of, if not the most valuable experiences of my life. I was able to immerse myself in a culture completely foreign to ours and absorb the food, music, and sights. I was accompanied by generous hosts who not only provided me with a place to sleep and eat, but also helped me improve my listening and speaking skills. I made great friends across the globe that I am sure I will keep for a life time. All of these benefits would not have been possible without the generosity of the Wilson family and the coordinating and organizing of Mrs. Zhang. I want to thank them both.