psoebr - Drew J. Rankin

I am currently finishing my Master's degree at the University of Western Ontario in Canada. My research interest is best described as safety critical control of nuclear power plants. It is in this position and with this focus that I am traveling to China to both present a technical paper and participate in research activities at Xi'an Jiaotong. My research stint in China will begin September 1, 2008 and end October 21, 2008, a full two months. I have never before stepped foot onto non-North American soil. Stay tuned to my journey as I will do my best to keep you all updated.

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Joined on: August 30th 2008
Last Login: October 1st 2008

Blog Entries: 9
Photos: 50
Recommended by 1

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Blogs & Travel Journals

by psoebr, order by Date newest first.

By psoebr
September 27th 2008

Washing fruit

I return: Beaten and bruised slightly after a few weeks of recalibrating my body on this foreign soil. In any case, I am going to post semi-weekly updates to keep the information flowing. No more 'try to catch up', I will fill in blanks when I get the motivation and a good internet connection to upload an immense amount of photos. Thanks to everyone who has urged me to continue posting, I wish to share these experiences with all of you, and will in the coming weeks. Nearly half way into my trip and I feel I have a lot to [View Full Entry]

By psoebr
September 5th 2008

Shaanxi Museum and the Presentation Asia » China » Shaanxi » Xi'an

Old-chinese dog

After a late night and many activities the previous day, I woke up well rested Friday morning. The nights I believe I am in more of a passed out state than an actual sleep state. However, my trusty cell phone beeps me out of my REM mode and into this bustling China world. After a quick shower and a brush of the teeth it was off to buffet breakfast for the last time. Tonight I will spend alone in my residence about 2 blocks South-West of this hotel. At breakfast Lingzhi and I are met by Jianping, another classmate from UWO. [View Full Entry]

By psoebr
September 4th 2008

Xi'an Introduction Asia » China » Shaanxi » Xi'an

Greenery

The flight to Xi'an was quite standard for a domestic flight. After having a pre-flight/delay snack I was surprised to be served a meal on the just over 2 hour flight. This was a pleasant surprise. Apparently the only time I will see forks is on flight. I am not sure if it is a control problem. Nevermind, in saying that I figured it is probably a security issue. No chopsticks on board the white sign with red slash circle strewn through two nicely placed chopsticks flashed in my mind. This is my first time actually having planned traveling with someone. [View Full Entry]

By psoebr
September 4th 2008

Adventures with Lingzhi Asia » China » Shaanxi » Xi'an

North Gate

I am going to compress some of my past events into a few posts to get up to speed. I fear that I will miss many recent details if I do not record them very soon. Expect posts regarding, my adventures with Jianping and Qingfeng, and then a post regarding my illness soon. Today, I will post about both my adventures with Lingzhi and in a subsequent post. The events of the most recent days. The morning after having first arrived in Xi'an seemed a typical Chinese morning. It was Thursday and there was really nothing on the agenda for this [View Full Entry]

By psoebr
September 4th 2008

Where is Drew? Asia » China » Shaanxi » Xi'an

Well I am almost a month into Xi'an, but I am going to upload some maps so you have a better idea of where exactly in this world I am! The world map shows a red star somewhere near Xi'an, Shaanxi, China. Within China, Xi'an is considered in the North-West, but my opinion is it is rather near the center of the country, red star. On the Xi'an map the campus is the blue star, my dorm is the green star and my lab is the orange/red star. Watch the above video for a better dynamic relocation, from London, Ontario, Canada [View Full Entry]

By psoebr
September 3rd 2008

Shanghai in 24 Asia » China » Shanghai

First Chinese Breakfast

Today is the 8th. The date added of my posts will be somewhat relevant to the day of the events as I am having a difficult time finding sufficient minutes to document my activities. Currently a plane ride to Harbin will suffice. I will begin where I left of last post. Lingzhi, his mom and Gong Wang have arrived and we are on our way to the restaurant. The streets remain busy and Lingzhi consistently inquires about my opinions of Shanghai. I can only really express my surprise over the number of bikes and the seemingly disorganized traffic that flows relatively [View Full Entry]

By psoebr
September 2nd 2008

The Journey Asia » China » Shanghai

Pre-MagLev

I am in Shanghai. Waiting to board my third flight in as many days. My cross Pacific journey turned into a North Pole adventure. The GPS enabled map on the airplane demonstrated the seemingly inefficient route. An amazing thing it is what maps do to the sense of direction and shortest path. I was seated next to a nice mid 40 year old man (Chris). It turns out that he is headed to Shanghai to pick up his fiance and 1 year old son. He is going to finally bring them to the US to live together. We chat about my [View Full Entry]

By psoebr
September 1st 2008

t minus North America » Canada » Ontario » Windsor

Luggage

The hour has come. Lacking sleep I sit wondering what is to come in the next few days. It will be two months until my next Canadian meal, and I am sure that I will long more for the company that is included in such festivities. Good advice from all involved and the diligence of a bright few have kept me sane to this point. Thanks to all those who have helped, but most importantly, my lovely girlfriend, my giving brothers, my parents, and all extended family, you know who you are. Especially in this last day of madness where at [View Full Entry]

By psoebr
August 30th 2008

Anticipate North America » Canada » Ontario » London

A summer of sober anticipation is coming to an end. I leave for China in less than three days. It is here in these pages that I will make an effort to keep all of my browser buddies whom are interested in my journeys informed. Having survived my anticipation, I will not speculate nor reveal the details of my near future plans aside from itineraries. I am the most excited, anxious, nervous and sleep deprived I have every been. Itinerary: Monday September 1st 2008 08:25 depart Detroit (DTW) flight AA851 08:35 arrive Chicago (ORD) 10:35 depart Chicago (ORD) flight AA289 [View Full Entry]

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psoebr - Drew J. Rankin

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