Trips & Expeditions
Week Without Walls:
China 2014
by Eliz, G10
T
he year’s memorable and unforgettable Week Without Walls trip for grads 9 and 10 was spent in the vast country of China. There were 71 of us students in all and 7 teachers and staff: Dr. Lavina, Mr. Kim, Mr. George, Ms. Brook, Ms. Laura, Ms. Min and Khun Jamie. The main focus of our trip this year was not only to recognize the Chinese heritage or apply our verbal skills in Chinese, but also unity within our classes and an inter-class friendship. The itinerary of our trip had us hopping from 3 cities within the 5 days of our trip: Zheng Zhou, Luo Yang and Xi’an. Our days in China were mostly spent inside the bus touring around the different spots, only getting off when we needed to eat, sleep or walk around certain places. Yes, it was tiring, but the bus rides proved to be an advantage when we wanted to rest and take a nap. There were many different sights to see in those three cities. For example, In Zheng Zhou we toured around the Shaolin temple seeing kids of different ages as well as adults training and showing off their sensational abilities. Not far from there we also visited the Pagoda Forests and the Guan Lin temple, taking a huge number of “selfies” and photos. In Luo Yang (one of the Four Ancient Capitals of China) we walked around the Longmen grottoes, looking at the cave wall carvings of the Chinese Buddha and his disciples. The Luo Yang Museum was also a very good place to go to if you want to see traditional Chinese art and preserved items from
20
long ago. Last but not least, Xi’an. Xi’an, or Chang’an, used to be one of the Four Ancient Capitals of China as well as the home of the astounding Terracotta Warriors sculptures. This site contains hundreds of sculptures of Qin Shi Huang’s army along with horses and chariots. Not only that, Da Ming palace and the Tang Dynasty show also proved to be a site worth seeing. It taught us about how China flourished during the Tang dynasty not only through their economy but also their culture. Walking around the streets, buying food, and shopping for some souvenirs at good prices in downtown Xi’an was also enjoyable.
CONCORDIAN