NYC from my plane

Surprises Pleasant and Frightening En Route to China

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September 4th 2009
No sooner had I cleared customs in Toronto than I heard a voice behind me say, "Hey man, I heard you say you're going to Shanghai too?" It was a guy about my age, who introduced himself as Silas, a 2009 graduate of Skidmore (my mom's alma mater!) who was returning to China, where he had studied abroad. He was going to study Chinese in Shanghai for awhile and look for work, though not of the usual ... read more

Asia » China » Shanghai

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For centuries China stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the world in the arts and sciences, but in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the country was beset by civil unrest, major famines, military defeats, and foreign occupation. A... ... read more