Day 11:
Guilin is a city of lights at night. It lit up much like Las Vegas is which was awfully strange to see as we arrived. We are staying in a 5 star hotel but I think the hotel received its rating sometime back in the 1960’s because the décor in the rooms is very dated. The beds are also the hardest/ firmest we have experienced – we might as well be sleeping on the floor! Many of the kids were itching to get to the gym at the hotel and do a work out or hit the pool.
Today was an easier day. After breakfast we went for a drive to the River “Li” for a cruise to see the local mountains. They are not very high but the reminded most of us of the sky mountains in the movie Avatar. It was an absolutely beautiful journey down the river for about 1.5 hrs. On the boat there was a bottle of snake wine that was a centerpiece at the counter. Many of the kids took a picture with it as it actually had about 7 snakes in it. It smelled like gasoline and that was with the lid on!
Have I mentioned yet that my group is on “C” bus? “C” bus is the best bus. We have John Lewis, Mrs. Roberts, myself, and a great group of kids on the bus. My chaperone group named themselves the “A” team because they feel they are the best group as well. We even have hand signals and a song worked out. The kids on our bus have been great and we have had random “dance parties” where the kids decide to sing and dance when a fun song comes on the radio. This has been a repeated theme and has really set the tone for our experience.
In the afternoon we went to a Tea factory where we learned about the traditional way to pick, dry, and prepare teas from the osmanthus plant. We had a lesson on how to pick the different types of tea and then the kids were let loose to see who could pick the most of a certain type of tea in a give time. Nicole Langmuir and I worked together to try and get a respectable amount while Nik Ottenbreit decided at the last minute of the competition that he would just grab handfuls of twigs, leaves and whatever else he could get his hands on in order to try and win. When our host guide came around she just laughed and his basket and refused to take it from him!
**** I guess due to the 3 days we lost with my backpack being missing I will have catch up with the write up on my plane ride back to Canada. I should have some performance pictures from Mr. Royer soon and will include those. ****
**** Important – Please remember that you are not picking up your kids from the airport but rather from Argyle on Saturday. We should be arriving around 12:30 if we clear customs efficiently and there are no flight delays. See you soon! ****
Friday, March 19, 2010
Day 10
Today we got to visit a Terracotta Figurine Factory. It was quite interesting to see what the method that was used to create the statues and figurines. The figurine range in size from a couple inches high to full life size replicas
Later in the day we went to the see the actual Terracotta Warriors. The first relics were discovered on a private farm when the owner was attempting to dig a well in 1976. Mr. Wu was actually present at the location to talk to or take a picture with! The enormity of the first building was amazing. Not only are there many figures lined up in a marching formation but they also have an on going restoration for pieces that are broken……almost like putting fossils back together.
The figures were originally colored but once unearthed the paint oxidizes within a couple of minutes and the color fades away. James told me that some years ago a famous Frenchman who was a “body artist” actually came dressed as one of the figures and climbed over the rail to stand amongst the army. The security and police actually could not find him for a couple of minutes because his body art was so accurate and he stood absolutely still! The Chinese authorities arrested him but ended up letting him go because they even saw the humour in it.
After that we were off to the airport to catch our flight to Guilin. The kids have really become traveling pros. Some of them have bought a few too many souvenirs at this point which is challenging our luggage weight restrictions but other than that they move through the airport quite efficiently for such a large group.
Later in the day we went to the see the actual Terracotta Warriors. The first relics were discovered on a private farm when the owner was attempting to dig a well in 1976. Mr. Wu was actually present at the location to talk to or take a picture with! The enormity of the first building was amazing. Not only are there many figures lined up in a marching formation but they also have an on going restoration for pieces that are broken……almost like putting fossils back together.
The figures were originally colored but once unearthed the paint oxidizes within a couple of minutes and the color fades away. James told me that some years ago a famous Frenchman who was a “body artist” actually came dressed as one of the figures and climbed over the rail to stand amongst the army. The security and police actually could not find him for a couple of minutes because his body art was so accurate and he stood absolutely still! The Chinese authorities arrested him but ended up letting him go because they even saw the humour in it.
After that we were off to the airport to catch our flight to Guilin. The kids have really become traveling pros. Some of them have bought a few too many souvenirs at this point which is challenging our luggage weight restrictions but other than that they move through the airport quite efficiently for such a large group.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
Day 8 and 9
Day 8:
Today was primarily a travel day although after we checked in to our hotel we got to go and see the Ancient City Wall. This is a wall that is about 40 feet high, 50 feet across, and 13.5 km in long (in the shape of a large square). It was used to protect the ancient city of Xi’an from invaders. The kids got to walk around the top of it for an hour and a half and see the sights of the city. Many kids chose to rent bicycles for 20 yuan (rmb) and many of them managed to ride around the entire wall in approx 1 hr. Mr. Royer had some issues with the size of his bike and a rather uncomfortable seat and some of kids had a bike with chain problems which actually made them late to get back on the bus.
Today was primarily a travel day although after we checked in to our hotel we got to go and see the Ancient City Wall. This is a wall that is about 40 feet high, 50 feet across, and 13.5 km in long (in the shape of a large square). It was used to protect the ancient city of Xi’an from invaders. The kids got to walk around the top of it for an hour and a half and see the sights of the city. Many kids chose to rent bicycles for 20 yuan (rmb) and many of them managed to ride around the entire wall in approx 1 hr. Mr. Royer had some issues with the size of his bike and a rather uncomfortable seat and some of kids had a bike with chain problems which actually made them late to get back on the bus.
At dinner tonight we were told about an opportunity to see the WWF Panda rescue reserve and opted to take the kids there tomorrow rather than a walking tour of the city. Tomorrow is a busy day because we have our busiest concert so far and it will be a rather long day.
Day 9:
Xi’an is not nearly as big as Beijing but still feels quite crowded in parts. Beijing has a population of 17 million while Xi’an only has 7 million people. When we told our tour guide that our Vancouver area only had 2 million or so she sort of chuckled. I forgot to mention that as we came in to go to our hotel yesterday we drove by the shopping district and there is one “walking street” sort of like what Robson Street looked like during the Olympics……just think 10 times as busy! It was an absolute sea of people.
It is interesting to see kids grow and come out of their shells a bit while we are away….the “Mark”s in particular. Mark Tallman is having a blast and somehow manages to wedge himself into every photo that is taken! He also bought one of those Panda hats but Torri tugged on it to get his attention and tore a chunk right off!
Mark Dunn is a karaoke guru! We did a singing game on our bus once or twice and he completely changes when you put a mic in his hand. He gets quite a swagger about him when singing and has blessed us with a Rick Astley tune and a Burt Bacarat number. Speaking of singing, we have had many solo and group songs performed on bus ‘C’ since we have been touring…….even Erin Namgung has shared a song with us.
Our third performance was held at Xijing University. We performed for a crowd of 2000 + students and the kids sounded great. Once again I was thrown into some M.C. duties but at least I had 3 others to help me. I got stuck up there for about 5 minutes one time and the 3 other M.C.’s read from their script each……..and I had no idea when my turn was supposed to be!
This was a challenging performance to say the least. The sound engineers did not really know how to blend the piano sound with the choir and many people were talking throughout the entire evening of music. Audience etiquette at this theatre was not what we were used to and it was quite distracting but the kids rose above it. There were 5 Chinese instrumentalists who performed for us at the end of the evening and this time they had special effects! Moving lights, a bubble machine, and even snow fell from the ceiling on stage! This sure brought some laughter as we have never seen anything like it. The Chinese artists received the same amount of audience noise as we did so at least we know it was nothing personal!
**** side note **** What a surprise it was to many when the had to go and use the washroom only to find a 12 ft by 15 ft bay window facing the courtyard as the main feature of the room. There were no stalls per se and many kids ended up just waiting. More unique features that we aren’t quite used to! ****
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Day 6
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
Day 6:
Well, I have gotten my days confused. Our Day 1 and 2 is actually combined as Departure day and Day 1. We had to cram 20hrs of travel into two of our days due flying across the date line. Either way……I am blogging everything in the order in which it has happened for us.
I forgot to mention that while we were waiting in the lobby the other night, I look across and see a familiar face. Mr. John Trepp, the now retired choir director from Magee Secondary was casually strolling across the lobby until we noticed one another. I did my practicum at Magee and worked with John. We have stayed in touch over the years and I guess it is a small world after all! It turns out that John was here as part of a tour that Killarney Secondary (Vancouver) was on with Tianjiao.
Both Mr. O and I graduated from Killarney, however there were a few years in between our grad ceremonies. Bryan Knapp, in his final year as Band Teacher at Killarney, was my own Band teacher. He was in China for the second time and brought John along for the experience. I guess music really does bring people closer together.
Today we started off the day with a tour of the Cloisonné Museum. This is a factory/museum where traditional Chinese pottery is made. It is a very delicate art where the workers first form a vase or vessel, then take small pieces of copper wire and bend them to create some lovely art work. They then affix these hundreds of pieces to the vase to create a scene. They then color in each section with an eyedropper while utilizing dozens of water and powder mixtures. After they reach the desired look they fire the piece in a very large kiln. Once the colors have set they spend a good amount of time polishing the vessel until it reaches and acceptable smoothness and luster.
Next we had lunch and then it was off to the Chinese Conservatory of Music for our second performance. The new theater was absolutely stunning and reminded many of us of the Chan Centre at UBC (maybe 2/3 the size). As the students were getting warmed up and/or vocalizing we were informed that there was no M.C. for the evening and so I was called upon to read the program notes. My very first Chinese audience! Unfortunately my Mandarin is not what it should be so our tour guides Penny and Jerry stepped up for translation duties and we had a tandem announcing gig for the evening.
The students played and sang very well and the President and the Dean of the Conservatory were in attendance. It was great for the kids to be able to play on such a beautiful stage and where proper room acoustics could do their sound justice. We were treated to some amazing performances by 3 traditional Chinese instrumentalists to round out the concert. Later the music teachers, Mr. Lewis and Mr. Peake got to have a meal with their Chinese counterparts and the Chinese Musicians and we received many fine compliments about the students’ performance.
There were some interesting and new food choices presented to the staff at this dinner. We were exposed to dishes featuring jellyfish, sea ginseng, frog soup, turtle soup, duck liver, and traditional Beijing Duck. I’m probably forgetting one or two items but what a neat experience.
It is nice to see that the students have become fairly comfortable with all that is going on and have done well with the unique adaptations that we have had to make. There have been new foods at every meal, the touring lifestyle with busy Beijing traffic to contend with, and amazingly diverse washroom cleanliness standards. All the chaperones are very proud of how well the kids are doing.
Day 7:
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
Well, I have gotten my days confused. Our Day 1 and 2 is actually combined as Departure day and Day 1. We had to cram 20hrs of travel into two of our days due flying across the date line. Either way……I am blogging everything in the order in which it has happened for us.
I forgot to mention that while we were waiting in the lobby the other night, I look across and see a familiar face. Mr. John Trepp, the now retired choir director from Magee Secondary was casually strolling across the lobby until we noticed one another. I did my practicum at Magee and worked with John. We have stayed in touch over the years and I guess it is a small world after all! It turns out that John was here as part of a tour that Killarney Secondary (Vancouver) was on with Tianjiao.
Both Mr. O and I graduated from Killarney, however there were a few years in between our grad ceremonies. Bryan Knapp, in his final year as Band Teacher at Killarney, was my own Band teacher. He was in China for the second time and brought John along for the experience. I guess music really does bring people closer together.
Today we started off the day with a tour of the Cloisonné Museum. This is a factory/museum where traditional Chinese pottery is made. It is a very delicate art where the workers first form a vase or vessel, then take small pieces of copper wire and bend them to create some lovely art work. They then affix these hundreds of pieces to the vase to create a scene. They then color in each section with an eyedropper while utilizing dozens of water and powder mixtures. After they reach the desired look they fire the piece in a very large kiln. Once the colors have set they spend a good amount of time polishing the vessel until it reaches and acceptable smoothness and luster.
Next we had lunch and then it was off to the Chinese Conservatory of Music for our second performance. The new theater was absolutely stunning and reminded many of us of the Chan Centre at UBC (maybe 2/3 the size). As the students were getting warmed up and/or vocalizing we were informed that there was no M.C. for the evening and so I was called upon to read the program notes. My very first Chinese audience! Unfortunately my Mandarin is not what it should be so our tour guides Penny and Jerry stepped up for translation duties and we had a tandem announcing gig for the evening.
The students played and sang very well and the President and the Dean of the Conservatory were in attendance. It was great for the kids to be able to play on such a beautiful stage and where proper room acoustics could do their sound justice. We were treated to some amazing performances by 3 traditional Chinese instrumentalists to round out the concert. Later the music teachers, Mr. Lewis and Mr. Peake got to have a meal with their Chinese counterparts and the Chinese Musicians and we received many fine compliments about the students’ performance.
There were some interesting and new food choices presented to the staff at this dinner. We were exposed to dishes featuring jellyfish, sea ginseng, frog soup, turtle soup, duck liver, and traditional Beijing Duck. I’m probably forgetting one or two items but what a neat experience.
It is nice to see that the students have become fairly comfortable with all that is going on and have done well with the unique adaptations that we have had to make. There have been new foods at every meal, the touring lifestyle with busy Beijing traffic to contend with, and amazingly diverse washroom cleanliness standards. All the chaperones are very proud of how well the kids are doing.
Day 7:
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
Today was a more relaxing day finally. We had the option to choose our activities for the day and decided to visit the Summer Palace. This was the resident of the Empress for most of the year and had a beautiful “birthday cake” like palace up on the hill overlooking a lake. In fact, I believe this was the same man made lake that the freshwater pearls came from. The Summer Palace features a stunning view over looking much of the city.
Later we decided to return to the Hutong area that we visited the other day for another opportunity to look around. There were some streets nearby that had some more modern shops for kids to do some shopping in and there was a Vendor Mall that some of the kids went to so that they could by some wares. Strangely enough, one of the biggest highlights was the Starbucks that the kids rushed to at the perimeter of the Hutongs. I guess they were really in need of a Frappucino. Mrs. Roberts, Mr. Lewis, Penny ( the tour guide from bus “C”…..the best bus ) and myself all went for a rice noodle soup lunch. Penny said that this type of specific noodle was a very popular dish in that area.
Speaking of tour guides…….on bus “C” we were very fortunate to have Penny with us. She is a very kind person who the kids took to immediately and she not only taught us a lot but really enjoyed the music we performed. She even got into the spirit of the music and organized some music games and singing while on longer bus rides to help keep the kids occupied. Many of the kids even insisted on getting pictures with her and giving her a departing hug. We will miss you very much Penny. Thanks for everything!
Off to Xi’an tomorrow……..4:30 am wake up call….Ugh!
Later we decided to return to the Hutong area that we visited the other day for another opportunity to look around. There were some streets nearby that had some more modern shops for kids to do some shopping in and there was a Vendor Mall that some of the kids went to so that they could by some wares. Strangely enough, one of the biggest highlights was the Starbucks that the kids rushed to at the perimeter of the Hutongs. I guess they were really in need of a Frappucino. Mrs. Roberts, Mr. Lewis, Penny ( the tour guide from bus “C”…..the best bus ) and myself all went for a rice noodle soup lunch. Penny said that this type of specific noodle was a very popular dish in that area.
Speaking of tour guides…….on bus “C” we were very fortunate to have Penny with us. She is a very kind person who the kids took to immediately and she not only taught us a lot but really enjoyed the music we performed. She even got into the spirit of the music and organized some music games and singing while on longer bus rides to help keep the kids occupied. Many of the kids even insisted on getting pictures with her and giving her a departing hug. We will miss you very much Penny. Thanks for everything!
Off to Xi’an tomorrow……..4:30 am wake up call….Ugh!
Monday, March 15, 2010
All,
Here is Chad's (Mr. Smith) update on the China Trip. I understand that pictures are coming but they have some issues around internet access etc. Anyhow enjoy the update.
Jim
Day 2;
Breakfast sausages are not the same in China. They look like wieners but have the consistency of bratwurst. Not what I expected when I opened the warmer. Coffee cream is non-existent.
Each of our rooms has a slot on the wall beside the light switch where you can put your room key card. This also allows you to control the lights. What I didn’t realize was that if you take the room key out, the lights only stay on for 4 minutes after you leave the room. Oops…….sorry Mr. Peake!
I don’t think I mentioned that it was snowing when we landed in Beijing. There was about an inch of snow on the ground when we arrived and overnight we gained another inch or so. The snow gradually melted throughout the day although it did make navigating some of the steps in the Forbidden City a touch tricky.
In the morning we took a trip to a Jade factory to see how jade jewelry and statues are made. We learned how to test if the jade is of high quality or not and also how to recognize fake jade from the real jade. A number of kids picked up some trinkets for family and friends.
Next we were off to the Great Wall for a performance and for the opportunity to climb a section of the wall. The weather had turned on us a bit by the time we arrived and we were setting up in -7 Celsius and very gusty winds.
The kids did a pretty amazing job considering the conditions! We had to unthaw some Tubas with hot water repeatedly as the valves were frozen shut. We also had to clip our music to our stands in order for it not to blow away! (That didn’t work) The highlights were surely when a couple of sheets of Ning’s music flew off into the hillside in the middle of a song and he had to play by memory. The chaperones (affectionately known as the ‘green jacket brigade’) rushed into action and became human music stands so that more music didn’t leave with the wind!
The choir danced the whole time in order to keep warm and sang bravely for as long as they could before we all got a bit too cold. Great job! After the concert we went back to the buses and had lunch before tackling the wall. Most of the kids went at least half of the way up and Mrs. Mulder, Ms. Reid, and myself went all the way to the top with the other half. Many of the steps are of irregular height and were partially covered with snow. If we though climbing the 5000 + steps were difficult, it was nothing compared to trying to descend. We held the rail the whole time and took our time so we didn’t end up sliding all the way down on our butts. What a beautiful view from the top!
For dinner we were treated to “Beijing Duck” (what used to be known at Peking Duck). The kids did a great job and were quite exited to try it. A number of kids were surprised to see the head of the duck presented on the plate. I guess this is to ensure you received a complete bird for your meal. *** weak stomach warning *** One of the kids ate some of the brain and another one of our girls (she will remain unnamed) ate the eyeballs. I guess these are a delicacy. In an effort to “one up” each other, one of the boys ate a full ladle full of the julienne ginger from our ginger soup………he was definitely feeling it later!
Day 3
I can’t recall if I mentioned how many street vendors we run into. Almost every time our bus pulls up somewhere there is someone offering us fake Rolex watches or other trinkets. There are some very cute/ strange Panda hats that are being peddled. Many of the kids have purchased these or other animal hats in order to fulfill their official tourist role. Stephen, Ning, and Mark T. were some of the first to lead the pack.
We woke up this morning and went down to our courtyard to have a Taiji lesson. Unfortunately our Taiji master who was to meet with us had a minor fender bender in the chaotic morning traffic. He had to wait for the police to arrive on scene so rather than waiting James, the owner of the Tianjiao Education group filled in and was great! All the kids and staff took to learning the first few moves and truly enjoyed this unique way to start the morning.
After our breakfast it was off to a Pearl Shop to learn about the local freshwater pearl and how they are turned into such beautiful jewelry and decorative items. We also learned that the Empress affectionately known as the “Dragon Lady” actually ingested ground pearl powder in an effort to improve her health and complexion.
Next we were off to the Hutong area. This is an older area where the old style of courtyard dwellings has been preserved within the city. The families have small homes and share a courtyard, kitchen and bathroom between four to six units. We all got into groups of two and jumped on a bicycle powered rickshaw for a ride through the alleys of the Hutongs on the way to our lunch.
My group of 10 students got to meet Mrs. Fong and have her prepare lunch for us. It was quite amazing to see how small her place was. Just a two room apartment and she and her husband raised two daughters there. Mrs. Fong made an amazing 8 dish lunch for us and so far this has been the best food we have had on our trip!
We then went to the Capital Museum to see some of the amazing artifacts that come from the country. One of the neatest features was a timeline of western history and their discoveries in comparison with Chinese history and all of their important inventions and cultural advances.
After dinner we were off to see an acrobatic show featuring high school aged students. These students study acrobatics in a manner similar to how we offer “Academies” for students to specialize in a given focus area. We saw some amazing feats of juggling, tumbling, ‘slack wire’ walking, contortionism, and much more. Many jaws were agape with the feats we witnessed and the students definitely came away with an understanding of what can be achieved when you fully apply yourself to a given practice. Back to the hotel and time to sleep.
**** As I mentioned before I am not able to personally access our blog website at all from China and as a result I am emailing Mr.Galpin to have the site updated on our behalf. Since we had the missing backpack issue, I am about 3 days behind in attempting to write the blog. We have also had an issue with spotty internet at our first hotel so uploading pictures has been pretty much impossible due to the file uploads timing out. As soon as our technology catches up we will have those first couple images up. ****
Here is Chad's (Mr. Smith) update on the China Trip. I understand that pictures are coming but they have some issues around internet access etc. Anyhow enjoy the update.
Jim
Day 2;
Breakfast sausages are not the same in China. They look like wieners but have the consistency of bratwurst. Not what I expected when I opened the warmer. Coffee cream is non-existent.
Each of our rooms has a slot on the wall beside the light switch where you can put your room key card. This also allows you to control the lights. What I didn’t realize was that if you take the room key out, the lights only stay on for 4 minutes after you leave the room. Oops…….sorry Mr. Peake!
I don’t think I mentioned that it was snowing when we landed in Beijing. There was about an inch of snow on the ground when we arrived and overnight we gained another inch or so. The snow gradually melted throughout the day although it did make navigating some of the steps in the Forbidden City a touch tricky.
In the morning we took a trip to a Jade factory to see how jade jewelry and statues are made. We learned how to test if the jade is of high quality or not and also how to recognize fake jade from the real jade. A number of kids picked up some trinkets for family and friends.
Next we were off to the Great Wall for a performance and for the opportunity to climb a section of the wall. The weather had turned on us a bit by the time we arrived and we were setting up in -7 Celsius and very gusty winds.
The kids did a pretty amazing job considering the conditions! We had to unthaw some Tubas with hot water repeatedly as the valves were frozen shut. We also had to clip our music to our stands in order for it not to blow away! (That didn’t work) The highlights were surely when a couple of sheets of Ning’s music flew off into the hillside in the middle of a song and he had to play by memory. The chaperones (affectionately known as the ‘green jacket brigade’) rushed into action and became human music stands so that more music didn’t leave with the wind!
The choir danced the whole time in order to keep warm and sang bravely for as long as they could before we all got a bit too cold. Great job! After the concert we went back to the buses and had lunch before tackling the wall. Most of the kids went at least half of the way up and Mrs. Mulder, Ms. Reid, and myself went all the way to the top with the other half. Many of the steps are of irregular height and were partially covered with snow. If we though climbing the 5000 + steps were difficult, it was nothing compared to trying to descend. We held the rail the whole time and took our time so we didn’t end up sliding all the way down on our butts. What a beautiful view from the top!
For dinner we were treated to “Beijing Duck” (what used to be known at Peking Duck). The kids did a great job and were quite exited to try it. A number of kids were surprised to see the head of the duck presented on the plate. I guess this is to ensure you received a complete bird for your meal. *** weak stomach warning *** One of the kids ate some of the brain and another one of our girls (she will remain unnamed) ate the eyeballs. I guess these are a delicacy. In an effort to “one up” each other, one of the boys ate a full ladle full of the julienne ginger from our ginger soup………he was definitely feeling it later!
Day 3
I can’t recall if I mentioned how many street vendors we run into. Almost every time our bus pulls up somewhere there is someone offering us fake Rolex watches or other trinkets. There are some very cute/ strange Panda hats that are being peddled. Many of the kids have purchased these or other animal hats in order to fulfill their official tourist role. Stephen, Ning, and Mark T. were some of the first to lead the pack.
We woke up this morning and went down to our courtyard to have a Taiji lesson. Unfortunately our Taiji master who was to meet with us had a minor fender bender in the chaotic morning traffic. He had to wait for the police to arrive on scene so rather than waiting James, the owner of the Tianjiao Education group filled in and was great! All the kids and staff took to learning the first few moves and truly enjoyed this unique way to start the morning.
After our breakfast it was off to a Pearl Shop to learn about the local freshwater pearl and how they are turned into such beautiful jewelry and decorative items. We also learned that the Empress affectionately known as the “Dragon Lady” actually ingested ground pearl powder in an effort to improve her health and complexion.
Next we were off to the Hutong area. This is an older area where the old style of courtyard dwellings has been preserved within the city. The families have small homes and share a courtyard, kitchen and bathroom between four to six units. We all got into groups of two and jumped on a bicycle powered rickshaw for a ride through the alleys of the Hutongs on the way to our lunch.
My group of 10 students got to meet Mrs. Fong and have her prepare lunch for us. It was quite amazing to see how small her place was. Just a two room apartment and she and her husband raised two daughters there. Mrs. Fong made an amazing 8 dish lunch for us and so far this has been the best food we have had on our trip!
We then went to the Capital Museum to see some of the amazing artifacts that come from the country. One of the neatest features was a timeline of western history and their discoveries in comparison with Chinese history and all of their important inventions and cultural advances.
After dinner we were off to see an acrobatic show featuring high school aged students. These students study acrobatics in a manner similar to how we offer “Academies” for students to specialize in a given focus area. We saw some amazing feats of juggling, tumbling, ‘slack wire’ walking, contortionism, and much more. Many jaws were agape with the feats we witnessed and the students definitely came away with an understanding of what can be achieved when you fully apply yourself to a given practice. Back to the hotel and time to sleep.
**** As I mentioned before I am not able to personally access our blog website at all from China and as a result I am emailing Mr.Galpin to have the site updated on our behalf. Since we had the missing backpack issue, I am about 3 days behind in attempting to write the blog. We have also had an issue with spotty internet at our first hotel so uploading pictures has been pretty much impossible due to the file uploads timing out. As soon as our technology catches up we will have those first couple images up. ****
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Day 1
Day 1:
I have to admit that while I am occasionally used to getting 4 hrs of sleep I don’t think that most of the kids are. We got into our hotel and to bed by 3 am our wake up call was for 7 am.
We have a buffet breakfast in our hotel and it is a mix of Chinese and Western cuisine. I was surprised as how many kids were willing to try noodles, dumplings and even congee with their bacon, eggs, and cereal. The coffee is just not quite the same! There is an Illy’s in the hotel so we can get some espresso if we like.
Speaking of the hotel, we are staying in a very massive yet beautiful 5 star hotel. There is even a bowling alley, cinema, and table tennis/squash court in it. I imagine most of the kids are not used to having such nice amenities.
Our first venture out was to the Forbidden City (also known as the Palace Museum). It was absolutely massive! 960 metres across and we almost the same distance in width. This is where many of the emperors lived when they were not staying in the Summer Palace. We were scheduled to visit Tieneman Square but unfortunately it was closed due to a Congress meeting that is taking place until the 15th of March. We did walk by it and get to see the building where Chairman Mao’s tomb is.
After lunch we went to a tea house called “Dr. Tea”. It is a government run tea house where people may come and have tea for free. We had a presentation on how to make Chinese tea and sampled 4 different types. We also got to see a “Pee Pee boy” in action – a small ceramic figurine used to determine if your water is hot enough – if you search for it on Google you will be quite surprised!
Then we went for a tour of the Olympic Park from the 2008 Beijing Olympics. We saw the big water cube and the bird’s nest stadium but other than that the park was pretty bare. I thought the Forbidden City was a large site until I saw the Olympic park. It must have been 5 km long by 2km wide.
Our first dinner was held at a fairly large restaurant in the city. It was quite interesting that after finishing our meal most everyone thought that we could find better Chinese food in Vancouver!
Back to the hotel and time to catch up on all that sleep we missed. Many kids we asking if they could go to sleep earlier than curfew/room check time as they were slightly exhausted.
.jpg){kind=link}
Day 2;
Breakfast sausages are not the same in China. They look like wieners but have the consistency of bratwurst. Not what I expected when I opened the warmer. Coffee cream is non-existent. Each of our rooms has a slot on the wall beside the light switch where you can put your room key card. This also allows you to control the lights. What I didn’t realize was that if you take the room key out, the lights only stay on for 4 minutes after you leave the room. Oops…….sorry Mr. Peake!
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
.jpg)
Departure Day: Day One
Off and running or ….flying as the case may be. For the most part everybody showed up on time and ready to go. Our buses shuttle us off to a skytrain station two stops from the airport as we were not supposed to be allowed to unload right at the Terminal. One very special bus somehow managed to get away with this and the rest of us were not bitter at all!
After a one and a half hour wait in line just to get checked in, we had a short time to grab an overly expensive bite to eat and then start boarding for Shanghai. For some reason the airline seemed to be very surprised that a high school band would actually bring large band instruments and percussion gear for our trip. Mr. Peake worked his magic and we got going with all gear in tow. So far only one camera lost (but magically found!) and 4 pairs of finely tailored pants delivered just in time to board the plane. Thanks Mom! (That’s from Joffrey)
With our first flight lasting 12 hrs we had a lot of time to try and find things to keep us amused in order to pass the time. Decks of cards, iPods, and laptops came out of the woodwork throughout the plane to help provide distraction. Emerson gave us a detailed overview of the Sunshine Coast as we passed overhead, telling tales of his summer adventures. Rebecca somehow managed to smuggle what seemed like 20 lbs of bulk candy in her carry on but was kind enough to share.
Jason, Stephen, Alisdair and Matt timed themselves to see how long it would take to navigate one full lap of the Economy section without knocking over a stewardess. Alisdair lost badly and fortunately no airline employees were injured as a result of the impromptu race. By about hour 3 we had our signs of tired students dropping off for their first nap for the trip. It was at this point I found out that Brandon Hesketh drools…….a lot!
We had two meals on the flight and then finally got to the Shanghai airport around 4:30 pm local time. After a layover of 3.5 hrs we boarded a flight for Beijing. Most of the kids were so exhausted at this point that the slept for the two hour flight and woke up as we were landing.
Off to the hotel to try and get some sleep………I have never stayed in a 5 star hotel. Should be quite nice.
Off and running or ….flying as the case may be. For the most part everybody showed up on time and ready to go. Our buses shuttle us off to a skytrain station two stops from the airport as we were not supposed to be allowed to unload right at the Terminal. One very special bus somehow managed to get away with this and the rest of us were not bitter at all!
After a one and a half hour wait in line just to get checked in, we had a short time to grab an overly expensive bite to eat and then start boarding for Shanghai. For some reason the airline seemed to be very surprised that a high school band would actually bring large band instruments and percussion gear for our trip. Mr. Peake worked his magic and we got going with all gear in tow. So far only one camera lost (but magically found!) and 4 pairs of finely tailored pants delivered just in time to board the plane. Thanks Mom! (That’s from Joffrey)
With our first flight lasting 12 hrs we had a lot of time to try and find things to keep us amused in order to pass the time. Decks of cards, iPods, and laptops came out of the woodwork throughout the plane to help provide distraction. Emerson gave us a detailed overview of the Sunshine Coast as we passed overhead, telling tales of his summer adventures. Rebecca somehow managed to smuggle what seemed like 20 lbs of bulk candy in her carry on but was kind enough to share.
Jason, Stephen, Alisdair and Matt timed themselves to see how long it would take to navigate one full lap of the Economy section without knocking over a stewardess. Alisdair lost badly and fortunately no airline employees were injured as a result of the impromptu race. By about hour 3 we had our signs of tired students dropping off for their first nap for the trip. It was at this point I found out that Brandon Hesketh drools…….a lot!
We had two meals on the flight and then finally got to the Shanghai airport around 4:30 pm local time. After a layover of 3.5 hrs we boarded a flight for Beijing. Most of the kids were so exhausted at this point that the slept for the two hour flight and woke up as we were landing.
Off to the hotel to try and get some sleep………I have never stayed in a 5 star hotel. Should be quite nice.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
Hi everyone,
Just a quick note to let you know that Chad found his backpack etc. so everything is good as he put it. It seems that Frances had it in her room. Chad will try and make regular postings now that he has his stuff.
He mentioned that they climbed to the top of the Great Wall of China today so it sounds like all is well and everyone is having a great time.
Jim
Just a quick note to let you know that Chad found his backpack etc. so everything is good as he put it. It seems that Frances had it in her room. Chad will try and make regular postings now that he has his stuff.
He mentioned that they climbed to the top of the Great Wall of China today so it sounds like all is well and everyone is having a great time.
Jim
Monday, March 8, 2010
First Post:
Hi folks,
Sorry it took so long to post our first entry. We travelled for close to 24 hrs and were pretty exhausted. All the kids are doing well and we saw the Forbidden city yesterday. Today we are going to perform on the Great Wall.
My posts will be short and far apart due to the fact the when we checked in at the hotel at 2:30 am on our first night, someone managed to take my backpack from the area with all the teacher's luggage while we were arranging to have our large gear stored. The hotel hopes that one of our party grabbed it and has it in our rooms as it was one of 40 black backpacks. Anyways, there goes my laptop, camera and mroe.
Other than that I will update as I can.
Mr. Smith
Hi folks,
Sorry it took so long to post our first entry. We travelled for close to 24 hrs and were pretty exhausted. All the kids are doing well and we saw the Forbidden city yesterday. Today we are going to perform on the Great Wall.
My posts will be short and far apart due to the fact the when we checked in at the hotel at 2:30 am on our first night, someone managed to take my backpack from the area with all the teacher's luggage while we were arranging to have our large gear stored. The hotel hopes that one of our party grabbed it and has it in our rooms as it was one of 40 black backpacks. Anyways, there goes my laptop, camera and mroe.
Other than that I will update as I can.
Mr. Smith
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)