In China there is a national Holiday called the Golden Week (国庆节). It is a week long period and the most traveled time in China. Native Chinese either return to their home towns if they are away, travel out of the country, or enjoy a week of solace. I decided to travel out of China….
I am studying abroad through The Beijing Center (TBC). TBC is housed on the campus of the University of International Business and Economics (UIBE). According to local Chinese students, UIBE is ranked about 4 or 5 of the top 10 Universities in China. The university provides schooling for about 20,000 students, not including undergraduate and…
I arrived to Beijing, China just one week ago. My first flight was 13 hours. I had a five hour layover in Seoul, Korea and then an hour and a half flight to Beijing. I was greeted at the Beijing International Airport (PEK) by my Chinese roommate, Sue Yang. We had been talking for about…
This weekend me and my friend, Victoria, decided to hit up a couple spots in Beijing on our to-do list! We first visited the Lama Temple where we saw beautiful architecture and so much culture. Although we’ve visited many temples now, this one stood out because we saw many Chinese people praying and lighting incense…
This past weekend we treated ourselves to a nice little post-midterms vacation … to Shanghai. (I’m really digging the one academic break a month life, though this was the last one so that’s kind of sad). Shanghai is such an international city that compared to Beijing, it felt like we weren’t in China at all….
This past Saturday I, along with a handful of other TBC students had the greatest pleasure of spending time with children at the BoAi Hospital here in Beijing. The ages of the children ranged from just over a year old all the way to seven years of age. Many of the children at the hospital…
Dr. Ann Hoffmann and her family embarked on the Silk Road Trip with the TBC staff and students this fall. They brought along with them the necessary medical supplies and their bright smiles on the trip. Without their help and care for the students, the trip might have not gone well for a few. We…
Constructed from the 3rd century BC to the 17th century AD by successive Chinese Empires, the Great Wall begins in the east of China at Shanhaiguan in Hebei province and ends at Jiayuguan in Gansu province in western China. With a total length of more than 20,000 kilometers, this military defense is considered one of…
When I received the housing questionnaire to apply for what housing I wanted for the next year of my life in Beijing, I immediately checked that I wanted a Chinese roommate. What a great opportunity to practice my language skills and learn about Chinese culture, I thought to myself as I considered the pros and…
Why CHINA?!” That was a question I got asked quite often before my year abroad. It is a question the Dean of Students asked me on the first day of orientation. It is also a question that I never really had a satisfying answer for. I hadn’t spent my youth dreaming of climbing the Great…
