While the concept of a week off in the middle of the semester might seem odd, in America it is common for colleges and universities to offer a week during the spring for students to rest and relax. Most students spend this time at the beach or in a city, but a select few from Bethany Lutheran College in Minnesota spent it in China from 9 March.
Visiting UIC's Student Hostels and Cultural Village
The China Study Programme allows students to enrol in a course to learn about Chinese history and culture and then see it first hand during their spring break. These lucky BLC students came to UIC last week as part of this short-term programme.
Learning taijiquan
After arriving in Zhuhai late Tuesday night, students woke up early to do a campus tour and attend lectures offered by UIC professors. The topics of these lectures ranged from Research Methods in Psychology to Family and Marriage: Past and Present. Students were then taken to dinner with current UIC International Development Office volunteers and then to karaoke, where they got to experience how Chinese students have fun.
The next day students were able to explore different culturally relevant destinations in Zhuhai and Zhongshan, including the Sun Yat-Sen Museum, Qi’ao Island, the Fisher Girl Statue, and the Gu Yuan Art Gallery. After a long day of sightseeing the students got to experience Chinese hot pot for the first time as well as explore Gongbei’s famous underground market.
Campus tour
A visit to the Sun Yat-Sen Museum
The students last full day at UIC focused on the traditional aspects of Chinese culture with lectures on calligraphy and taijiquan. After being busy all week the students were then taken to Yuwenquan for a relaxing time in the hot springs. While it might seem like a lot of things to fit into just a few days the students remained excited, and when asked about the experience, Quincey Krein, a nursing major at BLC said, “I came with really low expectations of China and its people, but I have experienced such kindness from the people here, and it has completely changed my perspective of this country in such a short time.”
Director of IDO Dr Katharina Yu (r) presents the completion certificate to a BLC student
Though this is neither the first programme of its kind nor the last, it was definitely beneficial to those who were involved and shows how UIC is continuing to help spread awareness of Chinese culture to the rest of the world.
Reporter: Heather Lana
Photographers: Tong Haiyan, Zhang Yeshan, Samuel Burgess, Deen He
Editor: Deen He
(from MPRO, with special thanks to the ELC)
