58 FRIDAY, MAY 10 CONTINUED
JAMES: Today we traveled to a local university – ZUCC (Zhejiang University City College). While our concert the previous evening featured only our musicians from Nebraska, this concert featured both our musicians and performers from ZUCC. This was my first Chinese concert experience. Their performances were all amplified, and the performers were all dressed in beautiful costumes. SARAH: Our concert that night was fun as it was a collaboration with talent from ZUCC, including two Chinese pop singers in white wedding dresses! SATURDAY, MAY 11 (PHOTO BY WILLIE BRAUN)
SARAH: Our day of sightseeing in Hangzhou was spectacular. First we toured the XiXi Wetlands-where we weren’t the only tourists! Many Chinese travel to Hangzhou to take in its natural beauty here and the next place we went: the incredibly scenic Westlake. In between, we visited Grandma’s Kitchen, which was one of my favorite meals in China. After Westlake, we went to a Noodle House for a quick dinner, and then saw our first, (and only, sadly!) outdoor market. It was almost like a carnival with all of the locals eating street food and treats, bartering for trinkets and necessities. I only wish I could have spent more time exploring the expansive market! SUNDAY, MAY 12 (PHOTO BY DAVID BAGBY) SARAH: We spent the first half of the day traveling to Xi’an. Upon arriving, I realized just how different the climate was. Hangzhou had been almost tropical in its warm humidity, whereas Xi’an’s climate reminded me of Arizona immediately. We also met Vincent, a student from UNL studying Mandarin at XJTU who was so amazingly helpful, nice, and an immediate good friend to us. After arriving at our hotel, we had a meeting with Dr. Ian Newman and his assistant Mariah about the activities of NU week. We ended the night with an exciting trip to the Shuyuan hostel near the City Wall with Vincent and Derrick (another UNL student studying Mandarin at Jiao-da) to an eclectic, artsy bar that reminded me of my times in Austin, Texas, and the Fremont district in Seattle.
arts MAGAZINE | 2013
MONDAY, MAY 13 (PHOTO BY WILLIE BRAUN) WILLIE: A block from our hotel was Xingqinggong Park. The park was a bustling place. People were exercising, singing, wrestling, playing games, boating, going to the street market, playing music, having music lessons… There was so much, it was really amazing to just walk through the park and take it all in. JAMES: We attended a museum tour at the Xi’an Jiaotong University, guided by a student who had a chance to practice her English with us. She was nervous, but did a fantastic job and was very sweet, just like everyone I had already met. Afterwards we participated in the opening ceremonies for UNL week, during which our group and a group of Chinese musicians performed. TUESDAY, MAY 14 (PHOTO BY SARAH PIZZICHEMI) SARAH: We saw the amazing Terra Cotta Warriors! This was a big deal for me. My best friend since I was two years old had a life-size replica in her house, and I remember staring at it all of the time, wondering what it would be like to see rows and rows of these amazing warriors. In high school, I did A.P. Art History, where once again I encountered the warriors by doing a project about them and learning about the different Chinese dynasties and their art and culture. I had the best time seeing the actual sight and the amazing warriors.