Day 6 in China! Mandarin, Painting, Local Families and more excellent food!

---

Dennis Liu



Recovery. During past few days, this was the only non-overly exhausting day I have experienced. The day began with a less then average breakfast, not that I had the stomach to eat anyways. I then went into the hotel to indulge in what I find to be the most unforgettable part of this trip, playing cards and watching videos with the friends you meet. After an intense yet relaxing round of poker, we had Chinese class. Chinese class and I have a love-hate relationship. Personally, I would rather being doing something else, but since its China might as well learn some. We then went to the home of a Dalian citizen. They were really welcoming and friendly like the rest of the people in China. We talked about life in China and their family and were sent on our way. On the trip back, we decided to go to a mall and the only thing that you should know is that KFC IS SO GOOD THERE! Anyways, that’s my log about China. To the readers who are wondering about what to do in China, make sure you enjoy the food and meet many friendly faces.



Peter Guo (Yu)



Being born in China, it is great to be back in China to explore and learn about this great land. On an average day, we usually start off the day by waking up at about 7:15ish to get ready for breakfast and today was no different. Then we all met up in the classroom and started our lessons. We started off the lessons with Mandarin games. All of us had to say something that consists of at least 2 words. Then the next person would have to take the last word from the latest phrase and create their own by using that last word first for their phrase (if that made any sense). It was quite unique and interesting. After that we played charades with mandarin words and soon after we began painting. We learned different kind of strokes and techniques for painting a flower. Mine didn’t turn out as good as I would’ve hoped it would but it’s fine, haha. That was the last lesson of the day. Clean-up wasn’t very exciting but lunch was! Every meal at this hotel/university has been amazing because of the choice and freedom they offer everyone; there are so many different foods and there are new dishes to choose from everyday.

Later on that day after eating a wonderful lunch, we went to visit the homes of regular Chinese citizens. We were split up into four groups so we don’t crowd one person’s home. My group had gone into the home of two very kind and generous people. They had answered our many questions and greeted us in to their home with open arms. I honestly did not expect them to be so kind and warm-hearted, it had really surprised me. Before this trip I had been told that China is filled with thieves, pickpockets, etc. Meeting this family has really opened my eyes and helped me realize that for every bad person in the world, there are thousands more that are genuinely good people, so don’t let the few bad bugs block the view of the rest of the world. Visiting that family has honestly been my favourite part of this whole trip so far, they were so kind and respectable, it really made me happy to know that there are these kinds of people who are so welcoming and generous to strangers.

After that heart-warming experience we went to a large shopping center which I believe was called “Roosevelt”. I’m not exactly sure why a Chinese mall is named after an American President, but it was great inside. There were many different stores to go. Most of the stores either sold food or clothing, so it wasn’t all that special. We had to get back to hotel/university by public bus which was quite an experience; it was packed with people and it was even hard to get your own spot to stand. Luckily no one was lost and the group made it in and out of the bus together. Everyone then got cleaned up and we had another amazing meal and the hotel/university. At the end of everyday we would usually all get together in rooms and just hang around, though it gets really loud most of the time and I feel sorry for people who have to hear the noise from other rooms. Hopefully they can endure it for just a couple of more days because we should be leaving in just a few days and be headed back to Beijing. That’s it for my blog entry, I hope you parents aren’t worrying too much about your children because they are in good hands because the supervisors have been fantastic!

---