GIEU CHINA 2009

June 26-28th: Final Days in China

2009-06-29T05:51:00.000-07:00

We spent our last few days in China packing, sleeping, shopping, and hanging our with our newly made friends in China. We had no more work, classes or tours, and most students branched off to relax in their own way.

Our only offical events were our two going-away parties.

On Friday, Tianjin Normal University gave us an offical Closing Ceremony to celebrate the conclusion of our partnership.

First, officals from TNU and UM gave a few speeches.

Next, some U of M and TNU did some performances.

And of course, we taught the Chinese officals the Cha Cha Slide and the Cupid Shuffle.

In turn, TNU presented us with farewell gifts...beautiful group photographs and adorable plush panda bears!

On Sunday evening, we had our own private going away party.

We celebrated with cake and pizza (a often craved food over the past month)

We gave gifts to each other, and viewed some of our favorite pictures and memories.

Finally, we shared some GIEU love, and said our goodbyes.

We will be heading to the airport in the morning.

See you back in the States!

June 25th: Volunteering in Beijing

2009-06-29T05:45:00.001-07:00

On Thursday, we returned to Beijing to spend the day volunteering with a non-profit organization. Simply getting there was an adventure. We had to take taxis, trains and buses to make our way back, but it was worth it!

We volunteered with Three Primary Colors--an arts and crafts workshop for individuals with mental and learning disabilities. Just like our project in China,3 Primary Colors focuses on connecting with different types of people with different background through the universial language of art.

The workshop is one branch of Beijing Hui Ling - a non-profit dedicated to helping both children and adults with both physical and mental disabilities. Because non-profits are still new and few in China, we were particularly excited at the opprtunity to lend our time and help to this one.

In the morning, we participated in their daily arts and crafts, making cards, paintings and bracelets.

After sharing a delicious lunch of egg rolls and dumplings, the trainees showed us some of their skills, including sports, playing musical instruments, and using Chinese yo-yos. We got to try the yo-yos as well!

Next, the trainees set up a performance for us. They sang and danced, played musical instruments, recited poetry, and performed skits.

Some of the performances required audience participation.

Although some of us were shy at first, we soon found ourselves having a great time dancing, giggling and jumping around with the trainnees. We played London Bridges, and even did a little Macarena!

Three Primary Colors and Beijing Hui Ling focuses on teaching their trainees life skills and the ability to earn their own income. They sell the cards and bracelets that are made during the arts and crafts workshops at fundraisers; the wonderful home-cooked meal was prepared by trainees; and trainees also receive compensation for their performances and demostrations.

Although we went to Hui Ling with the intent to help the trainees, in the end we were the ones who learned more. We had a great time, and several of us hope to come back and do longer term internships in the future.

June 24th: Finding Europe in China

2009-06-29T05:41:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday we learned more about the historical significance of Tianjin. About one hundred years ago, during the Opium Wars, European and American concessions were created in Tianjin. Because of this, Tianjin has much historical significance. Recent efforts have been made to restore these areas so that domestic and international travelers can see what the concessions were once like.

In the morning, we walked around "Italy town".

The architecture was so European that it was hard to believe that we were still in China!

In the afternoon, we took a tour inside one of the European houses that was restored with the furniture of the period. Afterward, we got a tour of the entire concession district, by horse-drawn carriage!

June 23rd: The Tanggu District

2009-06-29T05:38:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday and Wednesday, we went to several locations around Tianjin to learn more about the social, cultural and historial background of this area.

On Tuesday, we went to the Tanggu district. This ocean-side neighborhood used to be very rural only a few years ago. However, since the Olympics, a lot of time and money has been spent on making Tanggu a world class port. Buildings have shot up overnight, and with them have come lots of new businesses and jobs. We got a tour of the central business district from our bus.

Next, we hung out at the boardwalk area along the water. There, we watched the boats come in and checked out the wares of the local seaside street vendors.

Afterward, we walked inland to one of Tanggu's largest shopping areas to practice our barginning skills before grabbing a bit to eat at a dim sum restaurant and heading back to our hotel.

June 20th & 21st: The Weekend!

2009-06-26T12:37:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, we divided into teams and had a photo scavenger hunt about Chinese culture around Beijing. Tasks included: participating in an outdoor group activity with Chinese people, purchasing something using at least 4 words of Mandarin, a picture of the "best balancing act", and lots of other assignments. The winning pictures will be posted on the blog shortly.

On Sunday, we had a long day of R & R. We started out in the morning with a cruise of the Hai river.

From the boat, we got a great view of all the different neighborhoods of Tianjin.

Afterward, we had an afternoon full of shopping for souvenirs at several traditional Chinese areas.

One of the favorites was "Cultural street", a very old neighborhood where the city of Tianjin first started.

One of the most popular items was tea sets! Nearly eveyone bought one by the end of the day. We've all bought so much stuff that now we are going to have to buy new lugguage!

June 17th & 19th: College of Primary Education

2009-06-24T13:08:00.000-07:00

On Wednesday and Friday we visited the College of Primary Education.

Wednesday morning we broke into small groups and audited different classes. Many of the students had just returned from practicing teaching primary school for three weeks, so we got to hear many stories, and even see some video of the primary schools.

Next, we took a course for ourselves! They arranged for us to take an intro to Mandarin language course at the College. It was hard work. Even though the professor went easy on us, we were struggling to pronounce the tones correctly. However, we learned lots of useful information, such as how to order food at a restaurant in Chinese!

In the afternoon, we got to teach English classes using our own modules. We taught them to play hang-man, charades and Uno-- all while giving them an opportunity to practice their English.

Uno has become so popular among the students that we have visited, that several of the teachers went and bought decks online!

We finished our day with a cooking class at the restaurant at our hotel! We learned how to fold dumplings!

We also had a dumpling folding contest. The chef blew everyone else out of the water with the record of 7 seconds!

On Friday, we returned to the College of Primary Education for more auditing, group discussions and teaching English.

In the afternoon we had another party. They taught us how to make some Chinese pottery and how to do a few Chinese magic tricks.

In turn, we performed the Cha Cha slide and taught them the Cupid shuffle, as well as another dance that our students choreographed for this project.

This was our last day teaching at TNU. However, we have some busy days ahead, working with other organizations and learning some more about Tianjin.

June 18th: TNU College of Chinese Language and Literature

2009-06-21T11:35:00.000-07:00

On Thursday we visited several classes at Tianjin Normal University for students who wanted to teach Chinese as a second language. It was a fun and neat opportunity to talk with students skilled at communicating across cultures, while giving them a chance to interact with their future clientele.

In the morning, the TNU students were eagerly awaiting our arrival. While we were simply planning on engaging in some small group discussions, they had a whole program ready for us! They split us unto 4 classrooms, and had separate programs planned for each room!

They prepared many performances, showing off their talents for singing, dancing, performing opera, acting, playing musical instruments and performing traditional Chinese activities such as watercolor and Chinese yo-yo.

We also got a chance to interact with them by playing some traditional Chinese games, as well as some universial ones.

Then, they asked us to share some of our American activities and personal talents with them. Luckily, this is what our program is all about, and our students were more than ready. We did several dance performances, and taught them games like "musical chairs", as well as how to sing and dance the "Cupid shuffle".

We completed our day with our second visit to English Corner, where we met up with some familar faces from last week, and engaged in some discussions with students who were eager to practice their English with native English speakers.

June 15th & 16th: TNU College of the Arts

2009-06-18T10:47:00.000-07:00

On Monday, we visited Tiajin Normal University's College of the Arts. In the morning, we broke into small groups and learned about different Chinese arts, including trying our hand at traditional Chinese instruments and traditional Chinese dances.

After lunch, we started rehearsal.

The college had prepared many performances for us, and asked us to prepare some performances for them. Our team decided to sing Seasons of Love from Rent, and to dance the Cha Cha slide.

It was a great success! Everyone was very impressed, and one of the administrators from TNU even asked if we could teach the Cha Cha Slide to the teachers next week!

We were blown away by the TNU students performances. They did everything! Eighteen performances included classical music, traditional and folk dancing, Chinese and western Opera, and much more!

We had a great time!

Afterwards, we celebrated at a classic Korean restaurant, where we ate from sizzling iron woks, while sitting on the floor at very low tables.

On Tuesday, we were invited back to the College of art for one of their graduation concerts on Western Opera.

In the coming days, we will be visiting the TNU College of Primary Education..

June 13th & 14th: The Weekend!!

2009-06-16T12:29:00.000-07:00

After a hard week of work, we got to relax a bit over the weekend.

On Saturday morning, we met with a group of 17 Tianjin Normal University students who will be traveling to Cambridge in July for a 4 week English program. We played some games, and participated in some intercultural activities.

In the afternoon, we had professionals from a Peking Opera troupe come to paint our faces and teach us a little about Chinese Opera. It was quite a process! The face "masks" in Chinese opera are all painted on, and some of them take a long time to complete.

Some costumes included hair pieces!

We all enjoyed playing dress up and learning so much about the behind the scenes aspect of the Peking Opera.

On Sunday, we all got (our first) much needed day off. Most of us chose to spent it
either relaxing at the hotel, or shopping for goodies to take home!

June 15th: Day Two at Yaohua School.

2009-06-16T12:26:00.000-07:00

Friday was our second day at Yaohua school. We had a full day teaching our modules to more middle school and high school students. We also had an opportunity to talk to students interested in going to the USA for college and were able to answer some of their questions.

We could tell you more, but pictures are worth a thousand words!

Our day ended with a very nice closing ceremony by the officials of the school, during which our site leaders and students were given parting gifts (chopstick sets and traditional Chinese fans) and were invited back anytime. The dean of the school urged our students to consider becoming English teachers at Yaohua in the future.

June 11th: Learning about Chinese Culture

2009-06-13T14:07:00.000-07:00

Today we took a break from teaching to learn more about Chinese culture.

In the morning, we had a Tai chi class, taught by a tai chi Master. Tai chi is a
traditional Chinese Kong Fu art form. The movements are slow, and they seemed
simple--until we tried doing them!

In the afternoon, we had a more formal calligraphy lesson with an expert artist. It was
so complicated! There are many different forms and styles of writing, and the same words
can look very different. We also learned that holding the brush and making the strokes
correctly is very important, and very challenging.

In the evening, we attended "English Corner", a club that meets on a "corner" of the TNU
campus to practice their English speaking skills. We were a smashing hit! Everyone was
eager to talk with native English speakers, and our students really got a chance to teach
and communicate. We made many friends, and they begged us to come back next week!

June 10th: Day 1 at Yaohua School

2009-06-13T13:58:00.000-07:00

Today we started our work with the Middle and High school students at Yaohua school. This
is one of our main purposes for coming to China, and we were eager to try out our lesson
plans and modules.

We were officially welcomed by the principle of the school, and several school officials,
who gave us a presentation on Yaohua school, and exchange programs in Tianjin.

Afterwards, we broke into groups and audited different classes, including art, chemistry,
labor skills, and music. In some of the classes, we also got to interact with the
students and assist in teaching.

We also got a chance to watch and participate in their morning exercises.

Next, it was our turn to learn a little about Chinese culture. The school set up special
classes for us to learn Chinese paper cutting, conversational Chinese, and Chinese
calligraphy.

In the afternoon, we got to try out our own classes--teaching English through the arts.
We taught arts and crafts, music and lyrics, dance and movement, and theatre and games to
several groups of 7th, 8th, and 11th graders.

After a long, exhausting, but successful day, we ended back to TNU for some R&R. We will
be returning to Yaohua on Friday.

June 8th & 9th: First Days in Tianjin

2009-06-13T13:51:00.000-07:00

We headed out early on the 8th, and 2 hours later we stepped off of our bus and onto the
campus of Tianjin Normal University (TNU). We moved into our new home for the next three
weeks--the 9th floor of international hotel on campus. Many international students live
at the hotel, and we have met many people from all over the world. The hotel as a
restaurant, clothes washing machine, and a small store.

In the afternoon, the university welcomed us with a formal Opening Ceremony, where we
were greeted by the Deans of several of the colleges at TNU. Afterwards we went to dinner
with some of the officials and representatives of the university.

On June 9th, we got our first taste of interacting in Chinese classrooms.

TNU invited us to meet with two of their classes. Our students really hit it off! We
ended up staying later than we had planned, and some TNU students even cut class to
continue our conversations!

We also used this time to get some feedback on our modules that we would be presenting to
middle and high school students in the following days. They were very enthusiastic! We
taught them Uno, some American songs and some Western dance moves, including the Cupid
Shuffle!

Afterwards, we took a group photo before saying our farewells.

June 7th: Final Sights in Beijing

2009-06-09T09:55:00.000-07:00

The last day of our Beijing tour was optional. Some of us opted to spend the day exploring Beijing on our own, or simply catching up on some much needed sleep at the hotel. The rest of us set off on a busy day of sightseeing.

First stop was the temple of Heaven. Beijing has four temples-one to the north, south, east, and west (the temples of earth, heaven, sun and moon). The temple of Heaven is said to be the most beautiful.

Next, we visited the new National Theatre. Finished only last year, the theatre is very impressive—a great dome built inside a pond, with water running over the glass ceiling of the lower floors.

Afterwards, we relaxed for a while at the famous Lao She Teahouse, where we listened to some traditional Chinese music.

We finished the day with a tour of the Hutong—the traditional neighborhoods and houses of Chinese. We were even invited into one of the households!

We celebrated our last evening in Beijing at a café in a popular area of the Hutong, before heading back to the hotel to pack!

June 6th : The Forbidden City and Chinese Acrobats

2009-06-09T09:51:00.000-07:00

We woke early to head to one of the most famous sights in Beijing: The Forbidden City. The Forbidden City is the site of the original Palace in Beijing, where the emperor and other royalty lived and ruled. It’s called the forbidden city because people were forbidden to enter. Indeed, the royal grounds are surrounded by many levels of gates and walls.

On the way to the City, we walked through Tian’anmen Square, the largest and one of the most famous public squares in the world. Then we walked through Tian’anmen Gate, and into the City.

It was a rainy morning, and we all quickly bought umbrellas. However, we still managed to get quite wet!

Although we had planned an afternoon full of hiking hills and exploring parks, the rainy weather made us opt for an afternoon inside, napping and shopping.
In the evening, we went out to watch a show of Chinese acrobats. The equivalent of the Western circus, only much more like circ de soleil than anything else, the acrobats had us spell bound as they performed amazing balancing acts and impressive feats of flexibility.

June 5th: Palaces and Opera

2009-06-09T09:47:00.001-07:00

Today we started out by heading to the Old Summer Palace Ruins. This huge old estate once held elaborate parks, gardens, buildings and palaces designed by Italian architects in the Baroque style. However, most of the palace was destroyed during the Opium wars and are still in ruins. The only surviving structure is a stone labyrinth, where contests to reach it to the central dome were held during festivals. We all made it to the middle!

After our morning outing, we headed to McDonalds to satisfy our homesick cravings for American junk-food.

Then, we went to the (new) Summer Palace—a huge and beautiful palace grounds still in excellent condition.

At the Summer Palace we took a boat ride to a replica of Suzhou (a small city near Shanghai, known as “the Venice of the East”).

This very traditional Chinese sight held lots of opportunities, including the chance to learn Chinese instruments, and dress up in traditional Chinese clothing.

We finished our day with a trip to the Peking Opera!
Our show consisted of three classic scenes from three different Operas: Autumn River, Goddess tossing Flowers, and White Snake. These scenes demonstrated examples of the different elements of Opera: singing, acting, dancing, and martial arts.

June 4th: The Great Wall

2009-06-05T11:08:00.001-07:00

Today we got up early and headed out of Beijing for the two hour drive to the Great Wall of China. Although we had all heard about the Great Wall before, it was still hard to believe our eyes. Larger than life, and stretching as far as the eye could see, the Great Wall is truly a sight to behold. We were eager to get on our way. The entrance that we took had two sections. An easy section (packed with tourists) and a more difficult section. We decided to challenge ourselves and headed for the hard section. We started out strong, but some sections were so steep that we were tempted to crawl on all fours!

After the Great Wall, we went to one of the Ming’s Tombs, where an emperor and two empresses are buried. Although over 600 years old, it has only been opened for public viewing since the 1950s and is one of only two tombs from the Ming Dynasty available for visitors.

Next, we paid a visit to a Beijing Tea House to learn about the traditional tea ceremony, and a tea tasting. The tea was so good that many of us bought some to take home!

We finished out the day with a dinner of Peking duck at one of Beijing’s oldest and most famous restaurants. Authentic Peking duck can only be found in Beijing, and is by far the most famous cultural food of the area.

Tomorrow, we will be attending a Peking Opera!

June 3rd – Fragrant Hills

2009-06-05T11:00:00.000-07:00

Today, we took our bus for a 40 minute ride north of downtown Beijing to an area that is called “Fragrant Hills”, named after one of the tall hills in the area that is thought to look like an incense burner.

Our first stop was the Fragrant Hills Botanical Garden, where we saw many types of Chinese plants. We especially liked their rose garden.

Next, we set out to climb Fragrant Hill. It was quite a trek! The steep climb to the top usually takes over 2 hours, but motivated by time constraints, some of us made it in only 1 hour! Others of us opted to take the chair lift to the top.

Our final tourist stop was Badachu (“eight great sites”).

This beautiful park is home to 8 different attractions. Perhaps the most famous of which is Ling-guang temple. This Buddhist temple grounds includes several beautiful buildings, and a 13 story pagoda that is said to hold one of Buddha’s teeth!

We finished up the day by going to one of Beijing’s best Hot Pot restaurants. “Hot Pot” is a Chinese cooking style in which each person has their own small stove and cooking pot set up in front of them, and then platters of raw food is set out, and everyone cooks their own dish. It’s like Chinese fondue, and Beijing is very famous for it. Although hesitant at first, it quickly became everyone’s favorite meal.

June 2nd: Olympic Sites and Ancient Temples

2009-06-03T18:48:00.000-07:00

Today we woke up early to start our first full day of experiencing Beijing. We had breakfast in the hotel lobby and then boarded our bus, accompanied by Jenny and Jennifer, two young teachers from Tianjin University who will be sharing our trip with us.

Our first stop was to Olympic Village—the site of the 2008 Olympics. We went to the BIRD’S NEST where the opening ceremony was held, and took pictures with the mascots.

We were surprised to learn that people also wanted to take pictures of us! The Olympic site is a popular domestic tourist destination, and many Chinese people from far off villages were in town. Some of them had never seen foreigners before! We felt like celebrities! Everyone wanted to take pictures with us to show their friends back home.

We also visited the Water cube. The bubble-like building that held the water sports during the Games.

In the afternoon, we went to a Lama Temple—the largest Tibetan Buddhist temple outside of Tibet!

There, we saw some Tibetan monks, and were contemplating whether it would be appropriate to ask them for a photo, when one of them came up to us and asked US for a photo!

Finally, we finished our day by going to Confucius Temple before heading back for some rest.

We have busy days ahead of us: Temples, Tombs, and Great Walls!

GREETINGS FROM BEIJING

2009-06-01T08:21:00.000-07:00

Hi all! We are happy to report that ALL of the students and site leaders have now arrived in Beijing, safe and sound.

We have had some interesting cultural adventures already.

Due to the global issue of swine flu, we all got our temperatures taken upon arrival at the airport. China is taking precautions to ensure that no cases of swine flu enter the country. Happily, all of our team, as well as everyone else on our planes, were in good health.

We quickly headed to the A.C. Embassy Hotel. The hotel is very nice. It is located in the very safe neighborhood, near all of the embassies in downtown Beijing.

The hotel has all the western amenities we could ask for: western bathrooms and toiletries, air conditioning, tvs, internet, mini refrigerators and a free breakfast buffet!

The last group of students arrived this evening. Just in time for our first banquet!

Although we didn’t always recognize the food we were served, everything tasted great!

Everyone is still jet lagged, so we decided to turn in for an early night.

Our first full day of the program starts tomorrow with a tour of the sites from the 2008 Olympics.

Stay tuned!

China here we come!

2009-05-28T11:57:00.000-07:00

Our trip has finally arrived!

Here is our ROUGH itinerary for family and friends who will be following along through our blog!

May 30-June 1st: Students and Faculty will arrive in Beijing

June 2nd-June 9th: We will be staying at the A. C. Embassy Hotel in Beijing, while going on cultural tours, including the Great Wall, the Forbidden City, and the Beijing Opera

June 9th: We will leave Beijing for Tianjin, where we will be hosted by Tianjin Normal University.

June 10th-20th: We will teach our curriculum to students in China.

June 20-28: More cultural tours and day trips, both in Tianjin and Beijing.

June 28: Completion of the program.

Preparation for our trip

2009-05-28T11:29:00.000-07:00

During the last semester, we have attended many team meetings to help prepare us for our trip.

During these meetings, we have learned a lot about China, as well as each other. We got to learn a little bit of Mandarin, thanks to our Chinese Language Learning Team, and we learned about contemporary issues in China thanks to the Center for Chinese Studies.

We have also learned about the arts and culture of China. Austin even got some practice performing a Chinese Opera with the former dean of an Opera School who came to visit us from China!

We spent a lot of time preparing our Communication Through the Arts curriculum that we will be teaching the children of China. During one of our final team meetings, students presented their learning modules to UM site leaders and visitors from China for feedback and approval.

Both the faculty and the Chinese visitors were very impressed by the creativity, innovation and hard work that our students have put into this project, and the presentations were met with rave reviews!

We've worked hard, and now we are finally ready to go!

In the next few days, we will be packing up, and heading to Beijing!