Alvin Zhang, Chinese, 2015

Alvin Zhang: China

Touring Beijing

My time in China was amazing. After sitting in a cramped plane seat for over twelve hours, I finally landed into Beijing.  I was very excited to be able to visit Beijing for the first time, but I was also very nervous as well. When I landed, we first toured around the scenic areas near Beijing #4. I felt the liveliness of the city. Soon after this brief introduction to the city, I went back to my host family's house.  

Beijing Life

The Forbidden City

The Great Wall of China

For the next week or so, I toured around Beijing #4 with my host. The schools in China are so much different than the ones in the US. One big difference is that the students don't have to move from the classrooms to go to class. Rather, the teachers come to the respective classrooms. Another big thing was that I felt was different was the amount of people that each classroom had. Each classroom had at least thirty or more students. That's more than double the amount of student in each classroom at MBA. I also felt that the school work was a lot more than the amount we have in the US. The schedules at Beijing #4 was also different than the ones we have at MBA. Many students stayed after school until ten for night study at school. Besides going to Beijing #4, I also toured around Beijing. I went to many places that were famous in Beijing, such as Tienanmen Square, the Forbidden City, and of course the Great Wall of China. The Great Wall was so much bigger than I had imagined. Many areas had steps so steep that it was like climbing a wall. I also had the pleasure to visit the Olympic park in Beijing as well as the National Museum of China.  

Beihai Park: right around the corner from Beijing #4

Beijing Roast Duck

Tienanmen Square

Bird Nest in the Olympic Park

Shanghai Life:

Downtown Shanghai

Soon after a week in Beijing, I boarded a bullet train and was in Shanghai after five hours. My host student in Shanghai was in the final week of finals. The student lived about an hour away from his school so we decided to stay in the dorms. The dorms, though small, was pretty cozy. The morning after I arrived, however, the streets were completely flooded. The water was at least about six inches deep, with some some areas reaching up to my knees. It was pretty amusing to see the reactions of several students. While I was in Shanghai, I was able to go into the Shanghai country side. I was also able to visit downtown during my stay. Shortly after, I had to leave for Beijing to return to America. We all said our goodbyes and with that our trip to China ended.

Thoughts and Thanks:

I had a great time in China this summer. This experience helped me fully realize the depth of Chinese culture and allowed me to be fully immersed in it. I most definitely feel that this experience has improved my Chinese a lot. I would like to especially thank the Wilson family. Without the Wilson family, none of this would have been possible. I would also like to thank Mrs. Zhang for coordinating this wonderful trip. This is one trip that I will never forget.