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The Chinese National Museum is truly a wonderful museum. Not only do they have tons of art spanning Chinese history including: ancient coins, period clothing, and jade sculptures; they also have a large collection of gifts collected from around the world. These worldly gifts are what I found to be most interesting in this museum. […]

Today after class, we went to a museum about Chinese culture, and then a Chinese theater and opera museum. My favorite part was the exhibit on ancient money. A younger counselor named Lindy helped to explain the differences in the ancient money, for example, why some money looked like a knife. It was all made

After a long, hot, relaxing shower I started itching. I passed it off as nothing as I usually over think things which leads to WebMD, which leads me to think I have a terminal disease. I kept itching until I realized I had a rash. My skin is very sensitive so it doesn’t surprise me

As per usual, we started our day in language class. Today we learned how to describe our day and our itinerary. I still don’t think Chinese is for me, but it wasn’t as brutal as before. I may even be getting used to it. After class, we ate a good lunch and set off to

Today, lessons went well. After it, we had lunch and left for the National Museum. When we got there, I was surprised by the size of it. The National Museum was beyond huge. It reminded me of the Smithsonian. Everything from the paintings to the pillars was large. First we toured around the coin room.

Today after classes, we had the opportunity to travel to a rehabilitation center in Beijing which specialized in children’s mental health. It was a wonderful experience as we got to make soap with the children, and sing and dance with them. It was so great to see how happy the students were by our presence. After

Today we started out once again with a Mandarin lesson. We learned how to say a myriad of things relating to one’s family and home, as well as numbers. After class we had a very tasty lunch, which included a new item—candied yucca. It was very sweet and tasted a little bit like cotton candy

Today was especially fun! After our lesson we visited a school and living center for disabled people, and made soap with them. Apparently the residents there make soap to sell, which helps them become self sufficient. I sat across from a guy who was really good at making soaps!! I even got to keep some

Today we went to a rehabilitation center for those with mental and physical disabilities. Already when hearing the news at breakfast of our destination, I was conflicted. While yes, volunteering to make soap for this center is a good activity to do, no consideration was taken for us students about going there. I know that

Today we had the chance to give back to the people of Beijing that have made this trip so great. We went to a mental rehabilitation facility for individuals with mental disabilities to develop their abilities. This facility allows their residents to develop real skills, case in point, making soap. While we were there we