Chengdu, China Study Abroad: March 2015

Mar. 29, 2015

Definitely woke up sore, but it was alright. I was able to get out in time and get to the park, where I would be teaching the Easter class. It was actually pretty fun and the kids seemed to really enjoy it. We first decorated eggs, which the kids thought was really strange. They thought we were going to eat them, not decorate. Then it was making bunny ears, which was probably the most adorable thing ever. The kids running around with the ears, the parents about stopped class trying to get pictures. Then we played a few games, which the kids didn’t really understand. Then it was the Easter egg hunt, which again the kids didn’t really understand. They weren’t really sure why anyone would hide their eggs, it was fairly amusing to watch. We then did some egg races, where the parents participated. It was all a little bit strange, the games and festivities were totally out of context. So most of the time the kids were asking why things were happening, or what was the point. But in the end they kids were happy, so I can’t really complain. After class it was back to the house for grocery runs, which ended up taking up a good portion of the day. Then it was history presentation and cooking curry. It was lovely, an excellent way to finish out the weekend. Tomorrow is the start of the last mini-semester for Chinese, essentially one month left until the spring semester is finish. Life is good.

Lily

Kevin

Isabella

Teacher, Who is the bunny??

Ethan

Mar. 27-28, 2015

Life has been pretty normal, but this Friday all of us USAC-ers loaded up onto the bus at 9 am. Jesse, Cassidy, Brennan and I were a little over packed as we would be splitting off from the main group and heading to the top of Emei Mountain (峨眉山). To be honest, for both Cassidy and Brennan they might have gone a little overzealous with the packing. Jesse and I knew we would need dinner and breakfast and a quick change of clothes, the heaviest thing we had was our water for the next two days. However, our first stop on the way was LeShan (乐山), an area with one of the largest carved Buddhas. It was such a strange adventure, we piled off the bus got on a boat and spent about 15 minutes looking at the Buddha. The funniest part was the life vest that were too small for my torso. The Buddha was actually pretty cool, looming over the river the tourists on the shore were also fairly amusing. There was a giant Buddha behind us and the turned around to take pictures of the boat of foreigners. After we returned to dry land, it was USAC lunch time. Around noon, we finally all managed to get back on the bus and head out to Emei Shan.

This man was standing below a giant Buddha but decided that the foreigners in the boat were far more interesting

Get the Gear!

We arrived at Emei, and immediately broke off from the group. We (Myself, Jesse, Cassidy, Brennan) went to the bus station, and got our tickets for the furthest stop. Normally Jesse and I would hike up, but due to our late arrival there was no way to get up in time. So we traveled via bus to the last stop, we arrived about 4:30 pm. We walked up to the beginning of the trail, Cassidy and Brennan decided to head up via gondola. Their packs were much larger than ours and also I think the elevation was causing a problem for Cassidy. Jesse and I found the trail behind the monastery, then it was up, up, up to the top. The climb was actually pretty rough, it was straight up for the first good half mile, and then it was another 2.5 miles to the top. It was really quite beautiful area, the clouds and forest all around. After about 2 hours of climbing we summited. At the top, there was a temple and a large golden Buddha. Not that you could really see it the sun was going down and the clouds were covering it. Wandering around there was super interesting, as you could really see anything other than fuzzy shapes that eventually would become clear if stepped close enough. Jesse and I met up with Brennan and Cassidy, they took us to our lodging for the night. Dinner was a baked potato and dried fruit, which was surprisingly delicious. Then it was off to bed.

This area is a famous suicide spot, due to the dramatic cliff

Good Morning!!

Good Morning!

Morning came early, as we were getting up to see the sunrise, though the likelihood of us seeing the sunrise was low due to the season. So six in the morning we were all up and out to the viewing platforms, peanut better and jelly sandwiches in hand. While we didn’t get a spectacular sunrise, we did get to see the summit clearly. After that Jesse and I headed back down the mountain. The hike down was lovely, quiet at least until the end where we hit the first wave of Chinese hikers coming up. Jesse and I managed to dodge most of them and get down off the mountain. The bus driver was insane, I’ve never gone around hairpins turns at full speed. We made it down to the beginning of the temple hike around 9:45. We began our hike in the rain and then as we arrived at the temple we realized we had caught up with the USAC group. From there, after wandering around in the temple for a bit we played follow the leader to lunch. This was the first warm meal we had had since lunch the pervious day. It was pretty tasty. After lunch most people went to go see the wild monkeys. I however didn’t go, my backpack zipper had broken and would be easy target for the monkeys to throw my things. To be totally honest I didn’t really want to see the monkeys anyway, not after all the stories I had heard. The rest of the time was spent chatting with Wentao over tea. Then it was back to the bus and back to home. Dinner was a quick stop to the cafeteria. Now I am off to bed, tomorrow I am up early again to go to work. I’ll be a special day as we are doing easter celebrations. In the mean time enjoy the pictures of LeShan and Emei Shan.