Today's weather along with the seminars were great. We started the day with the typical chinese classes and we practiced 我们刚学 的生词. After our chinese seminar, we ate breakfast and took a small break before heading out to the beautiful outdoors and art museum. The museum was very nice and the paintings were very meticulous and creative. I was personally intrigued by the ancient chinese characters. In fact, Well, Rodger, Nate and I took on the challenge of figuring out old scripts that had ancient Chinese writing. After visiting the museum, we headed back to the hotel and took a small break before heading to dinner for more free ice cream. I enjoyed today very much. ~Vincent Gao
Seminar:Chinese Language and Seminar: China's Culture & HistoryToday was finally sunny! After a week of rain we could finally leave the dark depths of our hotel rooms and enjoy the beautiful weather. In the morning we had two informative and challenging Chinese lessons. After the morning seminars many students took advantage of the long lunch break to enjoy the sunshine. In the afternoon we had a Chinese cultural seminar which showed us many examples of Chinese mythology and tradition. Then, we played ping pong and basketball with our wanxiang student ambassadors. At dinner we got to enjoy the free ice cream again! Afterwards we practiced our performance for our nursing home community service.~ Sarah Weardon
Family DayToday was an amazing day! I spent the day with an awsome family who gave us enough food to end world hunger! Prior to lunch however, we watched the break up guru, a popular chinese comedy. As we ate, i felt a little adventurous. So, when they brought out ferilized duck eggs... yes, i ate the embryo... wasn't too bad but i wouldnt do it again. We then visited Kevin's, our host, hometown. The literal translation is new street. We witness the culture of the country side while visiting his grandparent. The farmers in this town used their hands, no machines. The hospital looked like an abandon shack. But their house was better than i expected. After being welcomed and treated to popsicles and fruit. We visited a tree market. Then headed back. Thats when the fun started... I think that i can speak for everyone when i say that Jake's surprise birthday party was a success and a wonderdul time! Since Jake didnt break the longevity noodles, I hope Jake lives to be 100! Good night everyone! ~ Fidel Rodriguez
"When the trees live, the people live. When the trees die, the people die. ~ Kevin (host family inspiration) Study day: chinese homework, Project planning, and Free timeThe worst typhoon to hit Hangzhou in 65 years, 灿鸿(chan hom) did not live up to expectations at all. At most we got a decent amount of rain and some wind gusts. Having already canceled the mall trip scheduled for today, we made the best of staying in by spending two hours interpreting and recording info for our projects. Our visits to the Wanxiang PV/EV facilities yesterday and the the seminars on clean energy and ev vehicles proved to be very beneficial in our project research, providing specific examples of US-China collaborations as well as their progress. The rest of the day was spent bonding with our student ambassadors through "movie parties", market shopping and relaxing on the deck. A calm day was perfect to prepare for our family visits tommorow. I can't wait! ~ Xander Opiyo
Chinese Language seminars and Study Visit to Wanxiang PV & EV facilitiesJournal 7/10: Nothing like 3 hours of Chinese Class to say, "Good morning world!". Well, that's just how we all woke up this morning in this beautiful pre-typhoon weather. After class lunch was held at the hotel before the departure to the Wanxiang Facilities. First stop was at the Welcoming Room at Wanxiang, where an informative presentation was held with a brief Q&A afterwards. The wonderful folks at Wanxiang provided gifts for us, a nifty tea mug with the logos of Wanxiang and the Delaware Dept. Of Education showcased on it! Next stop was in the Wanxiang PV and EV facilities, where a tour of Wanxiang's history and products such as electric cars and busses were shown. On the roof we looked at the cool (and expensive) solar panels Wanxiang uses to generate and sell power. Several group photos later, dinner was held at the 51st Fashion Hotel and the power went out. That was fun. One candlelit dinner please! The day wrapped up after that. Charge your phones and spare batteries people! "Theres a storm comin'. We best be ready when it hits." Lock your windows and have a safe Typhoon-filled Saturday. ~ Sean Sullivan
Seminar: China's Plan and recent Development in Clean Energy & Study visit: Natural Gas - Technology & ApplicationJournal 7/9: Today we were very busy again! In the morning we started off our learning with a two part seminar on "China's Plan and Recent Development in Clean Energy". We were able to acquire some basic knowledge on the many different types of energy sources such as solar energy, geothermal energy, fossil fuels, natural gas, hydroelectric energy, biomass energy, etc. We then were able to dive deeper into the topic by watching detailed videos on the process of building a hydroelectric plant and holding a group discussion on ways to balance the economy, the environment and the development/use of green energy. After lunch we visited and toured the Amber Deneng Natural Gas Company's site. We held a Q&A with some of their top workers and then went back to the hotel for dinner! We are excited for tomorrow's classes and site visit! ~ Madison Northshield "China is in a better position than the United States for developing a green nation. China is still a developing nation and It still has infrastructure that needs to be built. Because of this it is easier to transition straight into green energy than it is for the US to change from Oil to Green energy. Another government sided benefit is the fact that big companies in China are state owned. The chinese government can control how the nation will develop, and can focus on Green energy without lobbying groups putting political pressure on government officials like in the United States. China has a plan to provide subsides to different groups of Green Energy technology. For Solar Power, differing rates of subsides are given to differing regions based on the efficiency of the Solar panels. Subsides are also given to research in different fields, China focusing on Hydro Power for energy production. While focusing on the input side of producing electricity, China also has a focus on building internal infrastructure that is clean like electric buses, and trains. Instead of a US system of high ways, China may become linked with public systems of transportation reducing CO2 emissions from cars. China has a great future ahead of them. It seems that if they continue to keep this focus on Green energy while specializing different regions for efficiency and providing government policysthat promote green energy they will become a green nation in the not too distant future. Now we just wait and see." ~Caleb Siebach Journal 7/8: Today was a very eventful day. Our two sessions of Chinese language class started at 8:30. We learned more vocabulary and watched students perform a scene from the textbook. After lunch, we had two seminars: one on battery technology and one on photovoltaic cells. We learned about Wanxiang's advancements in the field of electric vehicles and watched an interactive demonstration of solar panel technology. After the seminars today and yesterday, many students explored the campus and the surrounding areas. Everyone is having a great time and learning lots! ~ Ravina Sashti
Journal Entry 7/7: Today we worked very hard! We had 3 hours of Chinese study involving grammar and new vocabulary. We also had a seminar on China's International Policy and Relationship with US and a seminar on Chinese philosophy. It was very informational and inspired us all. After class, half of the students went to the market to buy some things from small shops along a street. After dinner, the same students came up to the deck and we all hung out and ate food from the market. We all had a great day today and look forward to our future seminars and events! -Jake Borns 白英杰
Click here for today's photos and student reflections:
Self-study day. Students working on research for projects. Later, free time for ping pong and Chinese monopoly.
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