For the four weeks of Chinese winter break, I have been busy traveling around China with my host family and my classmates.
Like American winter break, Chinese winter break (which is decided by the national government) is placed around a national
holiday. While winter break in America is placed so that it includes Christmas Day in it, China’s winter break is placed so
that it includes 春节 (chunjie), aka the Spring Festival, or what we call Chinese New Year. Because Chinese New Year is
such a big deal, there is a four week winter break to celebrate (although, if one is a 高三 student or a senior in high school,
this break is usually spent studying). After finals, I spent a few days resting at my host family’s house and hanging out with
my host sister and friends. Then, I spent the next full week participating in American Councils’ Service Week in Nanjing. Two
days after returning from Nanjing, I went with my host family to Inner Mongolia to celebrate Chinese New Year with their
relatives. Finally, I spent a week in HangZhou learning about the culture of ZheJiang province. All in all, my first Chinese
winter break was full of new experiences.
Like American winter break, Chinese winter break (which is decided by the national government) is placed around a national
holiday. While winter break in America is placed so that it includes Christmas Day in it, China’s winter break is placed so
that it includes 春节 (chunjie), aka the Spring Festival, or what we call Chinese New Year. Because Chinese New Year is
such a big deal, there is a four week winter break to celebrate (although, if one is a 高三 student or a senior in high school,
this break is usually spent studying). After finals, I spent a few days resting at my host family’s house and hanging out with
my host sister and friends. Then, I spent the next full week participating in American Councils’ Service Week in Nanjing. Two
days after returning from Nanjing, I went with my host family to Inner Mongolia to celebrate Chinese New Year with their
relatives. Finally, I spent a week in HangZhou learning about the culture of ZheJiang province. All in all, my first Chinese
winter break was full of new experiences.
Service Week in Nanjing (南京)
The service week in Nanjing was truly an amazing experience. Our week was packed with afternoons of volunteering at
various places, such as elementary schools, elderly communities, disabled schools and YMCA/YWCA classes. Our
mornings were spent attending workshops, visiting museums and checking out other tourist sites. We also had the
opportunity to meet other NSLI-Y kids - the American Councils Shanghai students. It was very interesting to see how nine
other students randomly tossed together made things work, just as we did. I can’t say that our groups ended up the same
way - I’m certain our group dynamics are very different. In all honesty, meeting them made me see our group dynamic in a
new way - and with a bit more appreciation. The week in Nanjing allowed me to see parts of China I hadn’t been able to see
before. The little grade school children I met spoke of American schools with a sense of awe, as a place where children play
all day and have no homework. A little girl actually asked me if we were allowed to play over at a friend’s house in grade
school. Evidently, she wasn’t allowed to because she never had enough time between studying, attending school and
practicing piano. Nonetheless, she seemed happy as we exchanged songs on the piano. The week spent in Nanjing was full
of new experiences. I’m extremely thankful to Nanjing University and American Councils for organizing the event.
various places, such as elementary schools, elderly communities, disabled schools and YMCA/YWCA classes. Our
mornings were spent attending workshops, visiting museums and checking out other tourist sites. We also had the
opportunity to meet other NSLI-Y kids - the American Councils Shanghai students. It was very interesting to see how nine
other students randomly tossed together made things work, just as we did. I can’t say that our groups ended up the same
way - I’m certain our group dynamics are very different. In all honesty, meeting them made me see our group dynamic in a
new way - and with a bit more appreciation. The week in Nanjing allowed me to see parts of China I hadn’t been able to see
before. The little grade school children I met spoke of American schools with a sense of awe, as a place where children play
all day and have no homework. A little girl actually asked me if we were allowed to play over at a friend’s house in grade
school. Evidently, she wasn’t allowed to because she never had enough time between studying, attending school and
practicing piano. Nonetheless, she seemed happy as we exchanged songs on the piano. The week spent in Nanjing was full
of new experiences. I’m extremely thankful to Nanjing University and American Councils for organizing the event.
Chinese New Year (春节) in Inner Mong0lia
After just two days back in Beijing, my host family and I began the ten hour drive to Baotou, the largest city in Inner
Mongolia, which is located in northern China, just under the “real” Mongolia. As is the tradition in China, my host family was
returning to their hometown to celebrate Chinese New Year with their relatives. Chinese New Year is by far the most
important holiday in Chinese culture. It combines the American traditions of reunion and excessive eating on Thanksgiving,
gift giving on Christmas, and the drinking and fireworks of New Year’s Eve into one massive fifteen day holiday. From Chinese
New Year’s Eve until the night before we left Baotou, we visited nearly every relative’s house, or they visited the home we
were staying at. Every meal we had had traditional Inner Mongolian food, which was sometimes home cooked, and
sometimes in a fancy restaurant. Every time we ate a meal, it would be with a new family member, often someone my host
family hadn’t seen in about a year. The reunions were filled with exclamations on how long it had been and how pretty my
host sister had grown. A small cultural difference: In America, at least in my experience, when there's a family reunion, the
adults always exclaim how much the children have grown. In China, the adults exclaim how pretty the children have grown.
I'm not completely sure why this is; some cultural things simply don't have a why. I do know that it's very common. Even if
the child isn't that pretty, the guest will often say it anyways. Other customs of Chinese New Year include setting off
fireworks and watching the Chinese New Year program on TV, in which there are performances by famous people, including
Jackie Chan and my host sister's favorite Korean singer, Li MingHao. At about ten at night, the Chinese New Year greeting
texts began coming. Many of them said the usual, "Happy New Year" and "wishing you success this year." Some people
called instead. An hour before midnight, we began making dumplings, and at midnight we ate at least one, as was tradition.
Chinese New Year in Inner Mongolia was a fascinating experience, full of good food and meeting new people.
Spending Chinese New Year with my host family's relatives made me realize just how lucky I am to have the host family I
have. My host parents always made sure I was introduced when we met the relatives, and if I was feeling out of place, they'd
tease someone into practicing English with me. Reta, my host sister, would also include me in the outings she had with her
cousins. The relatives themselves were also very kind. I very rarely felt out of place, and they treated me as another Chinese
person with interesting experiences, rather than a foreigner and outsider to their family.
Mongolia, which is located in northern China, just under the “real” Mongolia. As is the tradition in China, my host family was
returning to their hometown to celebrate Chinese New Year with their relatives. Chinese New Year is by far the most
important holiday in Chinese culture. It combines the American traditions of reunion and excessive eating on Thanksgiving,
gift giving on Christmas, and the drinking and fireworks of New Year’s Eve into one massive fifteen day holiday. From Chinese
New Year’s Eve until the night before we left Baotou, we visited nearly every relative’s house, or they visited the home we
were staying at. Every meal we had had traditional Inner Mongolian food, which was sometimes home cooked, and
sometimes in a fancy restaurant. Every time we ate a meal, it would be with a new family member, often someone my host
family hadn’t seen in about a year. The reunions were filled with exclamations on how long it had been and how pretty my
host sister had grown. A small cultural difference: In America, at least in my experience, when there's a family reunion, the
adults always exclaim how much the children have grown. In China, the adults exclaim how pretty the children have grown.
I'm not completely sure why this is; some cultural things simply don't have a why. I do know that it's very common. Even if
the child isn't that pretty, the guest will often say it anyways. Other customs of Chinese New Year include setting off
fireworks and watching the Chinese New Year program on TV, in which there are performances by famous people, including
Jackie Chan and my host sister's favorite Korean singer, Li MingHao. At about ten at night, the Chinese New Year greeting
texts began coming. Many of them said the usual, "Happy New Year" and "wishing you success this year." Some people
called instead. An hour before midnight, we began making dumplings, and at midnight we ate at least one, as was tradition.
Chinese New Year in Inner Mongolia was a fascinating experience, full of good food and meeting new people.
Spending Chinese New Year with my host family's relatives made me realize just how lucky I am to have the host family I
have. My host parents always made sure I was introduced when we met the relatives, and if I was feeling out of place, they'd
tease someone into practicing English with me. Reta, my host sister, would also include me in the outings she had with her
cousins. The relatives themselves were also very kind. I very rarely felt out of place, and they treated me as another Chinese
person with interesting experiences, rather than a foreigner and outsider to their family.
Culture and Innovation in HangZhou (杭州)
After returning from Inner Mongolia, I spent a day out with friends in Beijing, and then the Nsliy students reunited in
HangZhou once again. The theme of the week was innovation and culture in the ZheJiang province. We visited many temples
and museums around West Lake, the featured part of HangZhou. Hangzhou is an absolutely beautiful city, during the spring,
summer, fall and winter, although it was absolutely freezing and snowing while we were there. For every outing, we would also
complete a short worksheet as a part of the friendly competition taking place during the week. We learned about Hangzhou's
Spring Green tea, tea leaves harvested during a specific period of time before the normal harvest season. We learned about
the Southern Song Dynasty, which played a huge part in HangZhou's history. My personal favorite experience was going
through the apothecary on WuShan road, a cultural shopping street, and eating several HangZhou specialties. We also had a
chance to watch KungFu tea, a unique method of tea pouring that combines KungFu and traditional tea pouring.
For the first few days, during our free time, we had explored downtown HangZhou. Oddly enough, this history-rich city had
dozens of high end foreign brand shops in its downtown sector. We spent a large amount of time walking around West Lake,
which is where the most beautiful parts of HangZhou can be seen. During the second half of the week, we stayed with a
temporary host family in HangZhou. Our host siblings introduced us to the HangZhou dialect and the special parts of
Hangzhou. On Friday, they celebrated YuanXiao Jie (元宵节), the lantern festival, during which we ate Yuanxiao, or sweet
dumplings made out of glutinous rice flour, for every meal. The host families provided a unique experience.
HangZhou once again. The theme of the week was innovation and culture in the ZheJiang province. We visited many temples
and museums around West Lake, the featured part of HangZhou. Hangzhou is an absolutely beautiful city, during the spring,
summer, fall and winter, although it was absolutely freezing and snowing while we were there. For every outing, we would also
complete a short worksheet as a part of the friendly competition taking place during the week. We learned about Hangzhou's
Spring Green tea, tea leaves harvested during a specific period of time before the normal harvest season. We learned about
the Southern Song Dynasty, which played a huge part in HangZhou's history. My personal favorite experience was going
through the apothecary on WuShan road, a cultural shopping street, and eating several HangZhou specialties. We also had a
chance to watch KungFu tea, a unique method of tea pouring that combines KungFu and traditional tea pouring.
For the first few days, during our free time, we had explored downtown HangZhou. Oddly enough, this history-rich city had
dozens of high end foreign brand shops in its downtown sector. We spent a large amount of time walking around West Lake,
which is where the most beautiful parts of HangZhou can be seen. During the second half of the week, we stayed with a
temporary host family in HangZhou. Our host siblings introduced us to the HangZhou dialect and the special parts of
Hangzhou. On Friday, they celebrated YuanXiao Jie (元宵节), the lantern festival, during which we ate Yuanxiao, or sweet
dumplings made out of glutinous rice flour, for every meal. The host families provided a unique experience.
I've finally arrived back at Beijing No. 80. Everything feels like it's as "back to normal" as it can get. Some of our teachers
have switched classes so that we have new teachers. The international department has also started a new elective option, in
which the Chinese students and international students take a class together, an idea that was actually sponsored by our new
speaking teacher. The electives include International movies, International Choir, paper cutting, drawing, etc. I'm debating
between trying something completely new, dance, or stretching the limits of my Chinese by participating in International
movies. Any advice? Many of the changes here at Beijing 80 have made classes more fun and interesting. In fact, our
conversation teacher has planned field trips for us to use our Chinese in real life situations. So far, the semester is looking
very promising.
have switched classes so that we have new teachers. The international department has also started a new elective option, in
which the Chinese students and international students take a class together, an idea that was actually sponsored by our new
speaking teacher. The electives include International movies, International Choir, paper cutting, drawing, etc. I'm debating
between trying something completely new, dance, or stretching the limits of my Chinese by participating in International
movies. Any advice? Many of the changes here at Beijing 80 have made classes more fun and interesting. In fact, our
conversation teacher has planned field trips for us to use our Chinese in real life situations. So far, the semester is looking
very promising.
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