Final reflections from Lauren

Blog Post

So I know I'm really late with this post but it's whatever I guess. 

I had a lot of fun on this trip. I met some really cool people, had some unexpected surprises, and learned to deal with things I never thought I would have to deal with. Having all this fun makes going home a little easier. I feel well rounded,two weeks well spent. But this raises a question. Life does not stop after this. It will continue for years and we have yet to stop learning. So what will happen to the memories we made on this trip? Will it disappear amongst the streams of traffic in our heads? Will we become people with only one story to tell? Maybe. I'm not sure how the brain works but I do know what I will remember. So much happened on this trip and I wish I could remember everything but that's not the way things work.

Years from now, when I am old and looking back on life I won't remember how many steps I climbed on Mount Tai, I'll remember dancing with the boy in the souvenir shop. I won't remember all the restaurants, I'll remember Ms.Fortuna paying people to eat strange things or the jokes about the Airport Buffet. I won't remember all the markets we went to, I'll remember Esmeralda getting 3/4 of the band ( I'm still salty about that).  I won't remember all the hotels, but I'll remember jamming with Sher, chilling with Robbie and laughing with Hunter. 

With all this in mind, I've come to realize why I actually came to China. Its not for the places we've seen like Forbidden City, the  Big Goose Pagoda, or Zibo. No, I came to get out of my comfort zone. I came to use squat toilets, take late night flights, sleep on rocks,adjust my eating schedule, and live among people who like to realese bodily air/fluids in public, have no sense of personal space, and disregard no smoking signs.

I'm going to miss China but it is time for me to go home. The stay was limited, but my memories of this time are not                        --Lauren Jones

from Bryn

March 22

Today on March 22nd I climbed Mountain Tai. Two words "nah cuz". On the way to the mountain it was overwhelming. I was filled with excitement and terror. First off that mountain was enormous. That mountain, in the words of Zaria, was so high that we could be touching Jesus' feet. We got on the bus and it took us half way up the mountain. That ride was fast, shaky, and maybe dangerous. However we got beautiful videos and pictures. Once we got to the start we had two options take the cable car or walk the mountain. I chose to walk the mountain, big mistake.

The mountain was made of all stairs, steep stairs, which made it worse. There was about 2000 stairs. Trying to get up those stairs I almost died. That was the moment I realized I was not in shape. I was having trouble getting up the stairs,staying hydrated, and watching my mouth. Marissa, Amy, and I all went at the same pace and kept motivating each other. We finally got to the top. We were screaming "we accomplished something." 

After about 15 minutes our helper, Jenny came and said "you didn't reach the top yet." We all began to moan and yell. But we continued to walk to the top. Even though it was tiring it was all worth it because of the view. We went to several temples were people were praying and showing their appreciation. We began to make wishes and throwing money into these pots, I'm not sure what the pots were for but they made it difficult. We also realized ball is not life for some of us. We learned how the monks would pray, and we also got to see their temples and the monks, themselves. The temple was beyond beautiful, the painting and architecture. The decorations were wonderful. The in scents were a bit too much though, it was hard to breathe. 

When coming back we took a cable car back down, that was the time of our lives. The seniors kept screaming, and we were singing to every song Zaria played. It was a fun 10 minutes, until we had to get off. To get off we needed to run of the cable car. With that we were about to break our ankles and we weren't even playing basketball. But overall the day at Mount Tai was an amazing experience. If you have the chance to go to China, go climb Mount Tai.

from Kiara

Today we went to visit Chairman Mao’s memorial, and it was very interesting while being a bit overwhelming. Mao Zedong was China's first Chairman of the Central Politburo of the Communist Party of China. The memorial was extremely large and could hold more than 500,000 people all at once. That alone amazed me, because I didn't expect so many people to be there. Everyone seemed so full of joy, just happy to be in the presence of Chairman Mao. Smiling, bowing, taking photos, and going to visit his preserved body. All I could do was stare at the large population in silence. That's when it hit me. When I was a freshman taking Chinese History I hadn't had the same opinion, especially after reading Red Scarf Girl by JiLi Jiang. This was a memoir about JiLi’s experience during the Chinese Cultural Revolution which was a very dark history for China, caused by Chairman Mao. Mao Zedong is seen as a great leader and loved by many. On the other hand, he is seen as terrible because of some of the things that China had to endure during his time of power. So it's almost like you have to pick a side, and to many Westerner’s he isn't viewed as the greatest. In China there have been plenty of “Oba Mao” T-shirts and I just couldn't make the connection between the two very different leaders, but they could. This was all very interesting to me. Lastly, I found out that Mao died on the date of my birthday, and the year my mother was born.

After, we quickly moved to the Forbidden City. The Forbidden City was the Chinese imperial palace from the Ming dynasty to the end of the Qing dynasty. This was the Emperor's home for about 500 years, but is now a museum and is the most visited museum in the world. This palace is the largest thing that I've ever laid eyes on. I couldn't believe it. The Emperor’s palace had over 90 buildings and over 300 concubines living in their own spaces. There was so much detail in the buildings and everything was so carefully made. The amount of space was just ridiculous, and I could sense the loneliness of the concubines that were living there. Almost in exile, because the Emperor wasn't always interested in all of them; he had favorites. While I was trying to take pictures of the Emperor's office, so many people were eager and pushing just to get a photo. It was a very hard to stand firmly. This palace alone showed how hard working these servants were. The hard work, loyalty, and detail was very much noticed.  

from Shayla

Today I was reminded of the fact that different people have different perspectives. The portrait of Mao Zedong hanging up in the square was interesting to me. I already knew a bit of background on China's history related to Mao and the Cultural Revolution so it was kind of surprising to me to see first hand how proud most Chinese people are of him. After hearing the teachers and the tour guide talking and taking time to reflect I realized that the reason they're so proud of him has to do a lot with perspective. To Chinese people Mao was the leader who revived and united the country. But to me and other Americans he is highlighted more as a flawed yet very powerful leader, who often used his power to the extreme. Recognizing this contrast was very eye opening and definitely added to my experience . Tiananmen square in general was interesting. I liked how although we were walking through there was much more deeper significance to it than just walking or than just being in a town square. In the same place we were standing there were people who stood there many years ago in order to protest and stand up for their opinions and rights. That's incredible and thought provoking. I could almost picture the students and people all organized together in that same place. It reminded me to be conscious of where I am and the history that constantly lies around us. It was also another instance that highlighted perspective. Most Americans view the subduing of the protests as unjust whereas some Chinese see it as necessary. 

The forbidden city definitely portrayed an emphasis on the power of the Chinese, their position in society, and their lengthy history. The expanse of the "city" itself shows how grand and dramatic the lifestyles of those who were in power were. It was another place where I could almost imagine what life was like many years ago. Overall I had a very valuable experience in China. I could take away something from each place that we went to whether it be the markets, the temples, the forbidden city, tiananmen square, or any of the other incredible places that we visited. 

from Kendra

Zibo Crowds

In my experience in Zibo, I realized how China really does have a large population. The way that the Chinese transport themselves such as in little scooters. I saw thousands of them threw out the day in Zibo. I even rode one with my host girl Diane, in which we went home to get lunch in. It's truly crazy how many of these you see on just one street and not only one person riding on it but kids on the backseat, and sometimes items as well. The most people I've seen on just one scooter is 3, a women and her 2 kids. With no helmet on nor seat belts as well. Not only do I find that crazy, but the way they are on the rode as cars too. They cross the street as if there is no signs nor lights to stop. It looks dangerous and you notice how many people the city holds that these scooters are everywhere. Parked at the airport, schools, outside restaurants and stores. At least 20 outside a store and 100 at the school in Zibo of the students. It's incredible how many people there are in China. 

Update from Teryn

China is the most economically stable country in the world and everyone knows that. However, what most people don't know is that their fashion sense is one of the best in the world as well. In the two weeks that I have been in China, I have seen more fashion trends than I ever did in America. Some of the outfits range from calm, cool, and casual to straight out Lady Gaga. The people in China have a similar taste to our own: ombré hair, ripped jeans, bomber jackets, and popular sneakers like Adidas and Nikes. They also have unique trends like purple hair, long trench coats, platform sneakers, and shorts with leggings. Some people dress traditionally and still sell silk shirts and dresses and some people dress more modern with skinny jeans and wear Louis Vuitton or MCM. For the most part, their trends are rather interesting.

One unique thing you'll see is people wear a variety of different clothes, that don't seem to fit the setting. For example, while we were climbing Mountain Taishan and riding bikes on the City Wall, there were women with tight jeans, high heels, designer bags, and full faces of makeup. While it was raining and felt like less than 50 degrees, there were people with shorts and sandals. Lastly, while we were in school some kids actually wore regular clothes instead of their uniforms. I figure that this represents how they try to show their personality whenever and wherever possible.

The citizens of China are not afraid to express themselves through their clothing. In America, a lot of our fashion choices are similar to one another and we all tend to look alike. After visiting China, I noticed that no matter where you are the fashion choices are always different! I was rather shocked when I saw how modern their sense of style was despite their long history of strictly traditional practices. There was a time in Chinese history where women weren't allowed to wear anything but their traditional long robes. Therefore, it is satisfying to see how the fashion industry has taken over and inspires people to show who they are and what they like through articles of clothing. They also inspire people like myself to be different and give my wardrobe an update as well!

Update from Imane

Before leaving America, my emotions treaded between excitement and confusion. Little did I know these emotions would soon transform and enter the boundaries of bewilderment and cautionary. As the plane took off a part of me understood that the new country I would be traveling to would behold new experiences and most of all change. But I would not expect to have my comfortability stripped and my guard up.

Being a senior, I spent my four years wondering what an excursion to China would be like. Students who traveled to and returned from China often depicted vivid images of beautiful castle like mansions and monstrous buildings in which the most famous emperors resided in, leaving nothing for my imagination to play with. In my subconscious, China would be full of color and gorgeous temples in which I would find a deeper meaning to life in. And for lack of better judgement I believed in this.

The first night in Beijing I was amazed by the bright buildings and speeding cars that filled streets at a stroke past midnight. As we drove to the hotel, I perceived China as a " Chinese New York City". The second night, after being placed in an entirely new families home in Zibo, my perception of China changed dramatically. With the roaming scruffy dogs, old men with rotting teeth, fruit stands that laid low on the ground, horrible smelling squat toilets, rock hard beds and the crevice that was considered a shower, I was astounded at what was hidden from me. The stories that I were previously told, reflected nothing like what I was experiencing. Letting reality replace my imagination, I had to compel myself to understand that China was much more and sometimes much less than what I had expected.

 

Although China is nothing like what I had expected I am grateful for the once in a lifetime experience to encounter so many different parts of one country. I have learned that judging a city by its appearance does not always appropriately gauge experience. And although my imagination and reality are different, somehow my reality is priceless.