[FINAL POST of 2015 Exchange] Making Our Way Downtown

(Abby)

Last week, we four travelers decided to take a day off from school and venture back to Hefang Street. Because we went at a bright and early 8 am, the road was void of shoppers and most of the stores were still closed. It was nice to get this perspective of the usually bustling shopping mecca because we got to see the magic of the shopkeepers walking past us in the morning sunlight and step up to their storefronts to open their doors to another day of big sales. I did enjoy seeing the gradual escalation of people and movement during the first hour we were there. Every time you turned your head, more people would appear in every direction.

Halfway through our adventures down the street, a mass of lime green and white uniforms that turned out to be a group of school children surged the crowds and soon made up half the population on Hefang Street. I was not only shocked at the fact that a school would take a group of middle schoolers to this street, but also that these kids were all walking around unsupervised. These kids were also not the most courteous beings on this earth and I had to push my way through several packs of them because they were unresponsive to my various pleas of “excuse me”.

Return of the Duck Tongue

 (Nik)

Today Abby's family planned our activities: we would ride horses and then pick and dry Longjing tea. The day was beautiful; sunny with thin wispy clouds and not too hot.

When I was told I would be riding horses, here's what I imagined. Driving to an idyllic country village, saddling a wild horse in a colorful, well crafted saddle, and taking off after a trail guide for a half hour ride through nature. After driving out into the suburbs, we came to the elite-sounding Hangzhou Equestrian Club, where a dispute over where to park delayed us a good half hour. Ola's dad then took us to a nearby restaurant for refreshments: fruit, tea, and tea derived snacks. The group made the acquaintance with the owner's nine-year old son who charmed us so much we invited him to ride the horses with us. Also in attendance was Ola's brother's lady friend from last weekend.

Hospitality and Harmony

(Lindsay)

Last summer, in preparation for two months in China, I took an online course through Primary Source on Chinese history and culture. One segment of the course was on traditional music and it directed students to several websites, including a YouTube video of a pipa concert. The pipa is a 4-stringed instrument that looks something like an elongated and shallow mandolin and sounds a little like a dulcimer. You wouldn’t think that you could get much virtuosity out of four strings, but the concert in the video was a fancy-dress affair featuring the pipa with a full orchestra of traditional Chinese instruments to back it up, and I was amazed by the pipa’s range and swept away by the beauty of its music. On my list of experiences I hoped for in coming to China, a pipa concert moved into first place. 

"Tranquil" Suzhou

(Ola)

On our last Saturday in Hangzhou, we adventured to see the gorgeous gardens of Suzhou. When we hopped into the van and heard that it would be a three hour drive each way, we almost hopped out. We suffered through the long sojourn and arrived at the Humble Administrator's Garden. Out of the 200+ gardens in Suzhou, this is one of the most famous. It took 16 years to build and is called the best example of Chinese private gardens.

Alas, it was anything but private. Out of all the places we've been in China, I think it's safe to say that this one was the most populated. There was also more foreigners than we had seen in any other place. Our guide informed us that the garden was once closed off to the public. I can definitely see why, considering the scenery and atmosphere were affected by the hoards.

"Actually, that's Duck Tongue"

(Nik) 

This past Sunday was a return to the feel our our traveling days; sunlit hours jam-packed with activities, long walks, and of course, a lunch of mammoth proportions. Our families planned three activities for us: first, a nature walk through a nature preserve , followed by a visit to a panda enclosure and a harvest of bamboo roots.

While Xixi Wetlands (from last weekend) is a conservation project like the wetlands we visited this Sunday, this swamp's aims are a bit more scientific. The park includes an endangered species, the crested ibis, protected areas ostensibly for them to nest in, and a facility to breed them. Xixi, with it's picturesque traditional town and nice adjacent hotel, is a conservation project that focuses perhaps more strongly on the integration of the human and the wild into a fun, luxurious, money-making operation in comparison to this one, where the few buildings are viewing platforms and a museum of taxidermy specimens of swamp wildlife. This swamp did, however, have another jolly oyster vendor offering an unknown number of pearls for ¥150, and many older folks selling various forms of organic matter both alive and dead that they caught or picked. Many vendors sold turtles, some as a meal, some young ones for children's pets. Ola's host family purchased two baby turtles, one of their young son, and one for their son's female friend who tagged along with us. The turtles, suspended from the children's hands in red mesh bags, seemed mildly alarmed but calmed down dramatically when released on a tea table in the lunch place (more on this later).

Cursed by Suitcase Ladies

(Ola)

After our day off on Monday, we arrived at school only to find that no one even glanced at us.The Swiss had come and we were old news. We expected the group of Swiss exchange students to be about our size. However, when we saw the size of the lunch buffet we knew that was not the case. All of a sudden, 20 kids walked in. We were hoping to make some new pals but apart from Pablo and David who were later amazed by our tai chi skills, no one else was feeling friendly

Something we've noticed with both the Swiss and the Chinese is that they will wear the same outfit for several days. When we first noticed this with our tour guides, we assumed they were staying at hotels and didn't want to pack a lot. Upon arriving at Hanggao, we realized that it was not uncommon to wear the same shirt two or three days in a row. Although surprising, it is understandable considering that the kids' daily activities which consist of homework, do not cause them to sweat at all. While traveling, Abby, Nik and I have realized that you don't always have to look super glamorous and it's okay. A majority of students here could care less about their hair or their outfit and they all seem to be content and accepted.

Clip Joint

(Abby)

Our third Saturday in Hangzhou was dedicated to visiting the old water town, Wuzhen. Now, I thought that this place was going to be a real town where we observe how the inhabitants go about their daily lives. I was proved wrong, however, when we arrived at an amusement park gate. Wuzhen is a town that was built over 1,000 years ago, but was made into a tourist attraction recently. Although it's not what I originally expected, the overall experience there was very fun, especially seeing all of the breathtaking scenery along the rivers and flower fields. There were also many specialty shops, which were pretty much the main attraction of the park. Each one was dedicated to something different and ranged from woodcarving to delicately packaged tea bags. We also witnessed a wedding ceremony (a staged one) that happened on one of the rivers. Many boats manned by people dressed in orange glided down the river while gongs were sounded to attract everyone’s attention. Everyone in the town knew that a newlywed couple was gliding down the river.

Tomb Sweeping Day

(Lindsay)

“Tomb Sweeping” is the festival when the Chinese honor their ancestors. Known as Qingming, the holiday is observed with a day off—this year on April 5th—to visit cemeteries. Traditionally, the Chinese bury their more recently deceased loved ones next to their ancestors, and the roads are clogged on this day with relatives journeying to visit their hometown cemeteries in order to pay homage. In the past, people have burned incense, money and paper houses as part of this ritual remembrance, and now entrepreneurs are offering paper models of iPhones and USBs as well so that people can keep their ancestors up to date with the latest technology. And if you can’t make it to your home town to visit your ancestors’ actual graves, there are now online memorial sites that you can visit all day every day. Another alternative is to hire a “proxy tomb-sweeper” to care for your ancestors with a three-minute visit, costing 100¥ ($16.00).

A Little Frazzled but not Bamboozled by a Breeze

(Lindsay)

Bamboo has to be one of the most useful of plants. It is far more pliable and has greater tensile strength than steel. Besides being an ornamental grass, it is an effective hedgerow. On Chinese rivers, lengths of bamboo are tied together to make rafts. It is sliced into strips that are used to weave baskets, and wider strips that are used to make straps from which to carry the baskets. It is lashed together to form fences, scaffolding, even entire buildings. Bamboo shoots are a delicacy in Chinese cuisine. You can carve bamboo into flutes and figurines, it is woven into steamers for cooking and it can be cut into 10-inch lengths and hollowed out to make tea caddies.

Shipping Off to Boston

(Ola)

Just as we were getting into the swing of things, we were introduced to new host families. We moved in after the Sakura festival on Sunday and have loved getting to know them. Maggie and Ivy, Abby and my host sisters, both live in the dorms at school but moved back home for two weeks to host us. Unfortunately, I am no longer able to bike to and from school as Ivy lives 40 minutes away from the school, across the Qiantang river.

Bubbling (Many Exclamation Points)

(Nik)

This past weekend the good folks at Hanggao had a lot on their plate: on Saturday, While we enjoyed the Xixi wetlands and their river pearls, the school was administering several sections of the Gaokao, or college entrance exam, and on Sunday, the student-run Sakura was to be held. Wode Tian! (My heavens)

Shakespearean Cues?

(Lindsay)

But old folks, many feign as they were dead;

Unwieldy, slow, heavy and pale as lead.

Juliet in Romeo and Juliet, Act 2, Scene 5

Though it is highly unlikely that the Chinese government takes its cues from Shakespeare, in China women must retire at the age of 55, and the theory behind this mandate is that women who are 55 and older tire easily. Really? Walk through any public square in China and you will find more than enough evidence to easily debunk such a cockamamie idea. Everywhere there are women lined up in rows, dancing to music either played by live musicians or blasted from boom boxes. And they aren’t just dancing; they’re moving and grooving. Some of them even put John Travolta to shame.

Hair Salon

(Lindsay)

Yesterday, in the evening, I went to get my hair cut at the local hair salon. When I held my forefinger and thumb a half inch apart to indicate how much I wanted taken off, it seems the stylist took me to mean that was how long I wanted my hair. Holy Eisenhower! Nevertheless, my hair will grow, and the experience was yet another adventure. I had heard there was a salon on an alley just off one of the lanes of the silk market, and I might have missed it but for the old fashioned barber’s pole outside the door. Inside, customers occupied each of the two chairs in front of mirrors, and beneath the mirrors were all the clipping and combing paraphernalia you’d find anywhere.

Mastering Mahjong

(Abby)

Hello readers! Because our days are becoming more or less the same structurally, most of the blogs from now on will be about our thoughts on cultural happenings here in China rather than retellings of our adventures. We will have some more adventures, however, so stay tuned for those stories! If you do like tales of adventure and can’t wait for the ones to come, click the “next page” button located at the bottom of the blog homepage to scroll back to the blogs about our days of travel!

Saved by the Bell!

(Ola)

Dear readers, it has recently come to my attention that Ms. Alighieri and Ms. Viz have been encouraging their students to read our blogs and comment. Although the blog itself is blocked in China (why?!?), we receive email notifications informing us of your contributions. We are all very glad to hear from you and greatly appreciate you taking the time to read about our activities. Life at Hanggao is fun but if you'd like to hear about slightly more raucous and exciting adventures, we would highly recommend that you also check out older blog posts from the month when we were traveling. There, you shall find tales regarding "The Time I Flooded the Bathroom while Showering" (<-- this actually occurred more than once) as well as "The Time I Yakked in The Tour Van."

The Classroom

(Lindsay)

Rows of perfectly behaved, thoroughly attentive students ready to soak up anything you teach? That is a myth. As in many classes at DS, here at Hangzhou there are some students who are true scholars, many who want to learn and therefore apply themselves and one or two who cannot wait for the period to end. The classes are large—each numbers about 50 students—and it takes some time for everyone to settle down. One class took a little longer to start today, because at the beginning of this particular period, the school piped music into the classrooms to signal a time for the students to rest their eyes. I heard the music in classrooms down the hall, and as soon as it began, a girl in the class I was to teach jumped up to switch the music on in our classroom as well. Students took off their glasses and massaged their eyes in a uniform manner that clearly had been taught to them. I could tell that the music was about to end when they all opened their eyes, put their glasses back on and straightened in their seats. Some things in Hangzhou High School are still lockstep, but I am told that discipline is much more relaxed here now than it once was, and I believe it.

The Romantic Star Ferry Part Deux

(Nik)

Today was jam-packed; we visited a temple, wandered in the tea, and had our first views of West Lake. We started early, around 8 in the morning, to meet Rose, an English teacher here at Hanggao, friend of the Exchange, and universally renowned fashionista, our effervescent tour guide, Bobby, and Ezra, a young female student Lindsay invited to join us.

Dinner and a Show in Hangzhou

(Abby)

We're starting to get into a rhythm here in Hangzhou. Nik, Ola and I have completed a five-day school week with our host families, with whom we’ve become more or less comfortable living. I’ve become close to my host sister, Rich, because of her straightforward personality and her superb English skills. While her, as well as her classmate’s, English skills are great, they sometimes make it a hard to practice my Chinese because these students are so eager to practice their English with a native speaker. I’m learning to balance using English with them in return for Chinese lessons in return. My host parents are also using more Chinese with me by telling me what certain words mean in Chinglish, which I appreciate very much.

Duck!

(Lindsay)

On Sunday, Steven Fang, a student who came to DS last year, and his mother took me out for lunch. Not just any lunch, it was Peking Duck, such a delicacy that you want to stretch the repast for as long as possible to enjoy every bit. And it wasn’t just the duck; it was a performance and a class. A chef came in with the duck to carve it into even slices and then taught us the proper way to place the duck slices, along with onion, hoisin sauce, and cucumber onto a very thin pancake, about six inches in diameter, and wrap the whole into a roll to be eaten in two bites. This process is repeated until the duck is gone, and between pancakes you sample other dishes, such as the sweet Osmanthus soup, a crab and doufu ragout and several vegetables. We were in our own dining room in Yi Jia Xian, a high-end restaurant on Baochu Road here in Hangzhou. Our little salon had an anteroom, to which Steven returned from time to time to search the cupboard for whatever was needed, be it more serving spoons, bowls or napkins. The atmosphere was a hard-to-achieve and wonderful combination of elegance and coziness, an ambiance that requires time and subtlety. Subtlety was, it turned out, the order of the day.

Hangzhou Happenings

(Ola)

Now that we've been in Hangzhou for a few days, we are starting to get our bearings. In the mornings, I bike to school with my host sister. Although the roads are slightly calmer than those in Beijing or Xi'an, it's not by a lot. On our first day of biking, I faced what I thought was an immediate death at least 8 times during a 25 minute ride. I've come to realize that a public bus will never actually hit you, it will just pass you by a few centimeters. As for walking, the best method is to stick with the locals. What I usually do is I wait till I see a group of young adults and I just fall in step with them. There have been times when opposed to covertly following a couple across the street, I consider just linking arms with them or hopping on someone's back and being carried across.

We're Cheerleaders Now.

(Nik)

I woke up very excited for school. My host mother had set out an early morning banquet of dumplings, fruits, and soft-boiled eggs to fuel the academic pursuits she assumed would lay head for Charlie (my host bro) and me. While I'm sure Charlie had a feichang intellectual day, my education took a rather different direction.

Switching Gears

(Lindsay)

“There are a number of teachers here at Hangzhou who can forecast the weather by touching the walls of the school.” With this, William, the teacher who will be traveling to Dover in May, ran his hand along the tiles of the corridor wall, then turned to show me his wet palm. Sure enough, last night it poured. Buckets. And thundered with lightning and hail. This morning, everything was wet, inside and out. The corridors of the school buildings are arcades, open to the elements, and the floors everywhere are mopped regularly to clean away the dirt tracked in from the street. Since arriving in Hangzhou I’ve been told by many that this is the rainy season and that I should be ready for a downpour at any time. So far, it has rained heavily only at night, and I’ve been able to ride my bike to school each morning. I am getting accustomed to the dampness; fond of it actually, for the way it seems to bring out the songbirds.

A Big Welcome from Hangzhou

(Abby)

Today started off with a bang when my water bottle rolled off of the top bunk of the night train and woke everyone up at 7 am. Our 15-hour overnight train ride was coming to an end and we were going to arrive in Hangzhou in an hour and forty minutes. Despite the limited space and luggage, all of us managed to put ourselves together quite nicely, if I do say so myself.

At the train station, three teachers from Hangzhou High School met and took us to the school. The taxi ride through the city was amazing. I honestly didn’t expect Hangzhou to be as nice as it really is. New buildings and many types of trees are everywhere and the city itself has a safe and interesting atmosphere. As we drove up to the school, a sign was posted on their electronic screen welcoming “the friends of Dover-Sherborn High School”. Our homestay siblings met us next with beautiful flowers at the front steps. My host sisters names are Rich, my host sibling for the first two weeks, and Maggie, my second.

Bye Bye Beijing

(Ola)

We woke up with some mixed feelings today. It’s our last day in Beijing, which means our last day of traveling. The traveling portion of this exchange has been amazing and although we’d like to continue, we’re also very tired and are looking forward to settling down. After getting used to constantly traveling, we’ll now have to get used to living with host families we’ve never met before and attending Hangzhou High School.

How to Use a Small Child As a Weapon

(Nik)

It was a busy day to say the least: the Great Wall, a Cloisonné factory, the Ming Sacred Way, and a Gongfu performance. Kelly got us moving bright and early to drive for about one and a half hours to Mutianyu, a popular place to climb the wall.

As walls go, the Great Wall is pretty great. At its greatest length, it was about 10,000 kilometers long, and stretches from the Pacific Ocean north of Beijing and out across the parched northern plains. National walls were first constructed in quantity during the Warring States period in the 300s BC, and after Qinshihuang unified China, he linked up some previously-build walls to form the first stage of the Great Wall to halt nomads who were raiding food from Northern and Western farmers. It was further expanded by the Han and Ming Emperors.

Different Strokes

(Lindsay)

At first I thought the music was piped throughout the grounds, but as we walked along the open-air Long Corridor of Beijing’s Summer Palace, the tune became louder and more distinct, a drum, definitely, a saxophone and an erhu, and many voices in unison. It was about 9:00 in the morning. Who practices at 9:00 on a Saturday morning? I asked Kelly, our guide. “Come see,” she said, and we left the corridor, ascended some granite stairs around a bend of bushes and there they were, hundreds of older men and women, holding music or clustered around music stands, singing. Not just singing, but joyously singing a folk tune about Beijing. Their enthusiasm was overflowing. Many threw their hands in the air in motion with the music, and one woman even danced, while clutching a piece of embroidered green cloth in each hand to emphasize the festive nature of the song. They all finished the first song with a flourish and began another, this time one about swallows. I asked Kelly if this was a holiday. No, it was not a holiday. Did they just sing on weekends? No. “They come here every day. They are retired. They just come here to sing.”

Clear Skies in Beijing

(Abby)

Stepping off the overnight train from Xi’an, I was immediately surprised how clear the Beijing air was. I was expecting my lungs to be corroding from smoggy air the second we all exited the car, yet I didn’t detect anything out of the ordinary. There’re all these articles and people telling stories about how bad the pollution is here, but I have yet to really see it. The air in Xi’an was much worse because dust from the Loess Plateau blew down upon the city, making the air very dry and grainy. I know the pollution gets very bad, but I think this time of year is very good for China’s air and weather because there has been sun almost every day we are traveling and no smog.

Cultural Occurences

(Ola)

Although Ms. Li’s blog post was very comprehensive, she forgot to mention a very important part of our day. Last night, for the first time ever, we went karaoke-ing. Karaoke is an extremely popular activity in China, enjoyed by all different types of people. All around the city, there are huge multi-story buildings housing dozens of karaoke rooms that you can rent for a few hours. We went with our guide Alicia and her two friends and were led to a low-lighted room with couches and a screen where you pick out what songs you want to sing.

Then and Now

(Lindsay)

Today we visited Pangliu village and its school, about 45 minutes from Xi’an. Richard is from Pangliu, and on our way there, he told us a bit about China during the time of his growing up. Back in the 1960’s, Richard had passed all of his exams and begun university, but all of his plans were interrupted with the Cultural Revolution, when he was sent back to the village to work in the fields as a peasant along with everyone else. Fortunately, the village needed teachers, and he was singled out. (All of the families in the village were large. Richard himself was one of six boys.) He was given a monthly allowance of 4 yuan (about 65 cents) for teaching, which was in addition to the work subsidy given to all villagers. The men in Richard’s village earned 43 cents a day, and the women earned about 30 cents. Back then villages sold their produce to the government with each harvest, twice a year, for whatever the government was willing to pay. Then payment was allotted according to the work points an individual had earned.

When in Xi’an . . .

(Lindsay)

It might seem more than a little counter-intuitive to seek to relieve pain by taking on more pain, but when I mentioned to Richard, the gentleman who arranges the China Exchange tour from the Chinese end, that I was considering acupuncture to try to cure what’s known as a “frozen shoulder,” he pointed out that there is a government hospital directly across from our hotel here in Xi’an. So it was that I started my day, on Sunday no less, having needles stuck into both my shoulder and just above my wrist.

Consensual Massage

(Nik)

After sampling the Ramada's collection of breakfast pastries, Alisha arrived to take us out to the Banpo Culture Museum and the terra cotta warriors.

The Banpo were a civilization that lived near Xi'an about 6000 years ago and are claimed by the Han Chinese to be their ancestors. The Banpo developed a comparatively sophisticated society, developing a written system of symbols, creating jewelry out of bone and rock, and developing pottery as their keystone industry. The Banpo pots are earthen and nicely decorated with etched patterns and were used for collecting and storing food and water, however pottery was important enough that some pots were made as coffins for children.

Extreme Biking

(Abby)

We had a late start today. Our new hotel, The Ramada, had a wide variety of choices at its breakfast buffet, ranging from fried noodles to roasted potatoes advertised as “potatoes sun”. We even had real cream for our coffees! We indulged ourselves until we had to meet our new, smiley tour guide, Alicia, and our mild-mannered driver, Tian.

A New Day, A New City

(Ola)

If you’ve been keeping up with the blogs and read Ms. Li’s latest, I’m sure you know all about the dancing that occurs in public squares at night. Well, Abby, Nik, and I woke up very tired today due to staying out late and bustin’ a move with the locals of Lijiang. You readers may not be aware of this, but ABBA’s hit song “Dancing Queen,” although written before our time, was actually about us.

Have It Your Way

(Lindsay)

If you look at American fast food as a sixty-year experiment, international in scope, China’s countryside would be the control group. While fast food in the U.S. was born and has grown up with the interstate system, China’s inter-province system is still in its infancy, and thus, there have been no arteries to clog. Pardon the pun. What you find instead, and only at great intervals as you travel, are little roadside shops with refrigerated cases out front. In the cases are a wide variety of lettuces, goose eggs, chicken eggs, beans, peas, lotus root, doufu, chickens whole and in pieces, chopped up pork mixed with spices, whole chunks of pork, beef, sausage, salted fish and various animal organs. The proprietor always comes forward with her order form as soon as you step up to the case. Depending on how many of you there are, you select several dishes and specify how you would like them cooked—with or without garlic, spicy or not spicy—and then you find a table, sit down and order your drink. Within minutes the food begins to arrive, piping hot, and perfectly cooked. The locals don’t need a new-fangled word such as “locavore” here; they’ve never been anything else.

Square Dance

(Nik)

It was another picturesque morning at the Old Theater Inn, and unfortunately it would be our last. None of us could decide what we would miss most: the beautiful scenery and accommodation, or the sumptuous breakfast of toast, fried eggs, and apple slices. We said heartfelt goodbyes to the family running the inn as they helped us with our bags, and piled into the bus so Mr. He could whisk us away to Lijiang.

A Breakfast Fit for Emperors

(Abby)

Today, we woke up to one of the best breakfasts we all have had since our entering China. This Old Theatre Inn really knows how to provide superb service to its guests. Ola, Mr. and Mrs. Li, and I had a hearty “Hiker’s Breakfast” consisting of French toast, an egg, fruit, and excellent coffee. Nik had the “Hearty Breakfast” consisting of toast, eggs, fruit, and tea. The bread was very hearty and the French toast itself was rich and decadent. We will all be ordering this meal again tomorrow morning before our departure to Lijiang.

The Not-so Perilous Train Ride

(Ola)

Well folks, I'm alive. Contrary to what I had imagined, the overnight train ride we took from Kunming to Dali went off without a hitch. After reading The Namesake a couple of months ago, I had conjured up a bunch of worst-case scenarios and at the beginning, was not entirely thrilled about this experience. But, when we got to the train station, Abby and I were too absorbed in some deep heart to heart conversations with Ms. Li for me to think about what could go wrong.

Doufu and Unusual Methods of Osmosis

(Lindsay)

Imagine that Evel Knievel offers you a ride . . . across the Grand Canyon. If you can picture this, you are close to imagining what it's like to be a passenger in Mr. Wong's van. Mr. Wong has been our driver from Kunming up into the mountains around Yuanyang and Jianshui, and today, back to Kunming. He is a pro. He can pass a tour bus going around a bend with, let's say, a tuktuk and two trucks coming the other way, and absolutely no margin for error between the van and a very steep drop, without breaking a sweat. (Don't try this at home.) But Mr. Wong is not alone. Pros are a dime a dozen here in China. They all have nerves of Bessemer-processed steel.

Putting the "Shui" (water) in Jianshui

(Nik)

It was incredible. It was miraculous. It was likely freeze-dried, but at this point we didn't care. It was coffee, strong and black, the best we've had in a hotel so far. The Yunti Hotel has charms and faults like any establishment, however the coffee was enough to make the trek into the mountains worthwhile. We would descend later that day, and our high altitude buffet breakfast was more than a decent sendoff.

Yuangyuan

(Abby)

Today started with a wake up call at 5:30 am and an excursion at 6 am to see the sunrise. Jackie, our youthful tour guide, took us all up to a local mountain to a viewing platform overlooking hundreds of clear rice terraces. The rice growing season has yet to start, so it is an optimal time to view these spectacular creations. While walking through the entrance, we as a group were surprised to see that this viewing of a natural phenomenon cost money whereas that wouldn’t necessarily happen in the States. I must say, however, the view from this platform was rather spectacular in my opinion. This platform zigzagged down the side of the mountain and was packed with people, many who arrived well before our later arrival of 6:30 for a 7:30 sunrise. The beauty of the sun peaking over the misty mountains did not disappoint and after we all took many Instagram-worthy pictures of this lovely sight, we returned to the hotel to freshen up, aka nap until lunch.

Yangshuo Market Carnival

(Lindsay Li)

West Street in Yangshuo is a cross between a carnival and a market. Most likely it is a market on days other than the New Year celebration, but we were there during the festivities, and we were swept into the undertow of pedestrian traffic as soon as we entered from the main drag. The only way to visit a shop was to plan well in advance and begin to edge through the constant current of humans towards the bank, hoping for an eddy right in front of the target boutique or cart. Thousands of pen and ink prints, silk scarves, toys, fried tofu, steamed cakes, carved knickknacks, tea, candy, knockoffs galore, ocarinas, minority handicrafts, sandalwood combs, combs made of horn, combs made of bone and more toys. Noises from all directions: people singing along with boomboxes, toy jets with blinking LED lights screaming high into the air overhead and swooping back to almost slam into second-story windows only to shoot straight up into the air once again and soar away, the pounding of men with large wooden mallets making something like peanut butter, children laughing and squealing and the people in the shops calling out after us lower and lower prices trying to hit on the one that would bring us back to buy. Arlen and I did buy every now and then, but Abby, Ola and Nick? They single-handedly balanced the Chinese budget.

Last Day in Yangshuo

(Ola)

On our last day in Yangshuo, we woke up early and went to go see the Reed Flute Cave. The enormous cave is spectacularly lit up to showcase different formations. Our tour guide, Summer, explained what the different stalagmites and stalactites represented. For example, one part of the cave looked like a sun rising up over a lion. We were all in awe of the caves vastness and natural beauty. After visiting the cave, we went to Fubo Hill, named for General Fubo. As we walked through, we saw hundreds of Buddhas engraved in the side of the hill. There were many different renditions which depicted how the image of the Buddha changed over time. Then, we climbed up to the top of the hill to get a nice view of the whole city.

Star Ferry and Hong Kong Island

(Nik Dombrowski)

After a restless night (I awoke twice, the first time due to an unknown Jamaican number calling my cell phone) and with breakfast shoveled down, Ola, Abby, and I walked down from the hotel to the Star Ferry pier, which is the most famous and convenient method of transportation from Kowloon, where we are staying, to the actual island of Hong Kong and our destination that morning, Man Mo Temple. Despite Mrs. Viz’s reports of how romantic the ferry is supposed to be, the many couples on board seemed unaffected. 

Guilin and Yangshuo (or ... Risk of Death by Moped!)

(Abby O'Reilly)

Ola, Nik, Mr. and Mrs. Li and I arrived to Mainland China in the rural city of Guilin. Getting off the plane, I noticed all the beautiful mountains China’s landscape is typically associated with. We learned later from our tour guide, Summer, that these mountains are made of limestone, which thousands of years of rain have melted away, giving them their characteristically steep and rounded shape. The city also didn’t have any very tall buildings and was very dark at night.

Ni Hao from Hong Kong!

(Ola Szymanska)

Ni hao from Hong Kong! Our China adventure started with a 6:00 AM flight to San Francisco, where we had a three hour layover before a 14 hour flight, during which I developed a cold. When we finally arrived, we were astonished by the majestical HK skyline. Needless to say, we’ve been quite tired and jet-lagged yet have been trying to make the most of our few days here.

[FIRST POST of 2015 Exchange] Logan Airport Sendoff!

Narrowly avoiding flight cancellation due to Boston's seemingly never-ending snow, the 2015 China Exchange Group departed Logan Airport on time, very early on February 17.  This year's group (pictured below, L to R) consists of D-S High School teacher Lindsay Li and seniors Nik Dombrowski, Ola Szymanska and Abby O'Reilly.  Ms. Li's husband Arlen will accompany the group until it arrives at Hangzhou High School.