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Time to
Discover China
From the Great Wall of China, Terracotta Warriors, Tiananmen
Square to the Forbidden City, the students of Tenison Woods
College saw some of the world’s famous tourist sites on
their 21 day tour of China during the schools fourth
biennial China Trip.
Students were immersed in the Chinese language, art and
history, visiting significant sites and enjoying the
cultural delights that this amazing Asian country has to
offer.
In late September, 22 students, parents and teachers left
Mount Gambier to discover China’s many treasures.
“The trip was an awe inspiring experience as we grasped a
better understanding of the Chinese culture and language.”
Tenison Woods College Year 12 Chinese student and tour
member Chantelle Feast said “Many new friendships were
formed along the way and a variety of new and different
foods were tried by many on the trip.”
“I have always had a keen interest in China and the Chinese
language and have been studying it since Year 8. I have
always wanted to further my knowledge of the Chinese culture
and way of life and what better way of doing it than
experiencing it firsthand.” Miss Feast said.
On arrival to China, six days were spent in Beijing where
students watched as preparations were taking place for this
years 60th anniversary of the
the founding of the People's Republic of China on October 1st
in Beijing's Tiananmen Square.
The first day was exhaustive as the group took in the
enormous “Tiananmen Square” and the “Forbidden City”, a 250
acre home of the last Emperor which is surrounded by a 10.7
metre wall and a large moat.
From there students moved onto the famous Pearl & Silk
markets where they tried their hand at bartering.
Miss Feast went on to say “Bargaining in the stores and
markets caught most of us off guard but by the end of the
tour and with much practice we negotiated some excellent
prices and some great purchases were made.”
In the evening the red lanterns that hung in the air
signalled the festivities on ‘Snack Street’ as the smell of
cooking oil and fruit lingered in the air. A must see and a
one of a kind experience for any traveller, Snack Street was
a great opportunity for students to taste and see first hand
some of China’s more interesting culinary delights.
Those more adventurous members on the tour tried their hand
at star fish, snake, silk worms, and other creepy crawlies,
candied fruit of every variety and for the very brave,
Scorpions.
Other delights of Beijing included the rickshaw ride through
the narrow streets of the hutong area of Beijing, visiting
the Summer Palace, Jingshan & Tiantan Park, Temple of
Heaven, Beijing Zoo, Jade Factory, Ming Tombs and a night at
the Peking Opera.
The students were lucky enough to take a tour the venues of
the 2008 Beijing Olympics including the world famous Bird
Nest. Students also toured the countryside, had lunch with a
rural family and witnessed the simplistic life of this
typical family.
The highlight of the visit to Beijing was no doubt the
“Great Wall of China”. Walking along the wall for more than
two hours was an experience of a lifetime being amongst
thousands of other local and overseas tourists. Every corner
you turned presented another photographic opportunity.
Travelling by train to Xian the highlights continued as the
group were in awe of the countryside where every square
centimetre of land is used constructively, but once arriving
in Xian this was overshadowed by the “Terracotta Warriors”.
The enormity and precision of the life sized warriors
astounds even the most hard to please!
Another highlight of Xian was a bike ride along the city
walls and a visit to the Shanxi Provincial History Museum.
From Xian the tour them travelled to Guilin for a boat
cruise along the Li River. The cruise taking 5 hours,
winding its way south to
the beautiful and fascinating country town of Yangshuo.
The journey along the river was the ideal vantage point to
take in
landscape decorated with startling hills, steep cliffs,
fantastic caves and farming villages that this region Is
renowned for.
Arriving in Yangshuo for more sight seeing, students were
treated to a performance of the Impression of Sanjie Liu in
the evening. Directed by famous movie director Zhang Yimou
who was also responsible for the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the
Impression of Sanjie Liu is the world largest natural
theatre which utilises the waters of the Li River as its
stage and natural mountains as the setting.
With the tour finishing in the financial hub of China and
home to more than 20 million people, the city of Shanghai
provided a stark contrast to the rest of China with its
modern, dazzling high rise buildings. The lights at night
are second only to Hong Kong and provide an awe inspiring
spectacle. Here a visit to an acrobatic show and a day trip
to the “Venice of Asia”, Zhouzhuang, completed a magnificent
tour.
“Overall the trip was an amazing experience, an eye opener
and a tour of a lifetime that I would highly recommend to
anyone.” Miss Feast said.
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