Twenty-One Days Across China
PART ONE
During the hot summer month of July, I was fortunate to attend a special camp that organized a group of teenagers to travel across China. We started on the busy streets of Shanghai, the eastern coastal city of China, and traveled 20,000 kilometers, finally arriving at the western border of China. Along the way, we visited eight cities, each representing a unique aspect of China. We participated in a few dozen challenges and learned more than I could have at school in 21 days. We came to appreciate the diverse cultures of China, and discover some of the spectacular sights that China holds. These 21 days were full of painful rejection, occasional embarrassment, and the joy of accomplishing tasks. I would really like to share some of my most memorable experiences in the camp.
One of the key purposes of the camp was to hone our communication skills. For this purpose, we undertook an interview challenge on our first stop, Shanghai. With a population of 27 million people, Shanghai is an ideal city to practice do that. Our challenge was to interview 100 people about their thoughts on video games, which are becoming more and more popular amongst young children, causing concerns for parents and teachers. Earlier in the day, we had split up into three teams, after an anxious night of self-recommendations. My team had 7 members, so we each had to interview about 15 people.
We decided to head to the Bund, where visitors were always bustling around. At first, no one had the courage to approach a stranger, and so we stood on the street for about ten minutes, watching our potential interview candidates pass by one by one. That was until one of our teammates stood up and gathered her courage to interview the patrolling policeman. To avoid overwhelming them, the rest of our teammates scattered around, and decided to also start interviewing.
I was a bit hesitant at first, mostly because I was afraid to be rejected by strangers. They seemed to be preoccupied by shopping, chatting and enjoying the Bund scenery. But how was I ever going to interview 15 people if I didn’t even try? So I picked a kid that was sitting on a bench with his family. He seemed friendly enough. I tried to be polite and not let my smile seem to anxious. It turned out, the dad was very eager to talk about his thoughts. So for the next few minutes, I listened to him talk about his experience and opinion on video games. When he finished, I felt pure relief, and of-course grateful that there were people out there willing to help. Maybe the world isn’t so scary after all. But just after the friendly dad, I got rejected by the two visitors that I had asked. Either they were busy, or they had not interest in talking. My face burned seeing their silhouette slowly starting to fade in the crowd, and I almost wanted to give up. But, glimpsing at my teammates busy interviewing tourists, I decided to muster up some courage and ask again. I needed to stop caring so much about other people’s opinions (ironic really, given the challenge) and be more brave.
So, I tried again, and succeeded! I kept trying to get that earlier mindset into place, and in the end, I interviewed 15 people, most of them are concerned about the amount of time spent on video games, expressing the need to avoid addiction. Was it just a coincidence that one month after our interview, the Chinese government put out an executive order to control the amount of time spent on video games?
Though the whole experience was frightening (keep in mind that this was one of the first challenges), I did it in the end. Even thinking about it now, I am still extremely happy and proud.
In a peaceful little town, lies a huge glittering lake, dotted with thousands of islands. This town is known as Thousand-Island lake, a small town in Hangzhou. Here, we were going to focus on another camp goal of learning a new skill. With this beautiful lake, learning water sports were, of course, the best choice.
The first sport we learned was kayaking. Our coach showed us everything from the structure of a kayak to the different ways to rescue a fellow kayaker. And how did we absorb all of this new information?
Instead of just sitting and watching the coach tell us how to get on the kayak, we were pushed into the lake and had no choice but to apply the skills we just learned to action. If we were doing something wrong, the coach would point it out and tell us to try again. Kayaking was actually surprisingly easy, though at first, I wasn’t too sure about changing directions and stopping the kayak. However, after a few hours under the sun and a few dips in the water, me, and the rest of the camp, were able to skillfully kayak. We started to have fun with more adventurous group activities, including races, games and posing for photographs. Thinking back to the whole experience, I believe that if we hadn’t gotten into the water and made mistakes, we wouldn’t have been able to enjoy all those activities after. Putting the information into practice really makes the learning process way easier.
The next day, we learned how to paddleboard. I have tried to paddleboard once in Hawaii but quickly gave up after a few falls into the water. The reason why I couldn’t keep my balance was that I didn’t know the proper techniques, and I didn’t have enough patience. It actually turns out, paddle-boarding is really easy and fun, once you know the fundamentals. We paddle boarded across the lake, enjoying the blue sky, the clear cool water, and the rugged mountain ranges that surround us. We had one of the most relaxing days in camp.
The method of learning that we used there was one of the best ways, in my opinion, to learn. I think this method can also be applied to protecting the environment. Instead of just sitting in front of the screen, watching other people take action, or reading how to protect the environment, we should go out into the world and try ourselves. Remember, nothing’s going to change if we don’t do anything, no matter how hard we read or talk
Overall, the challenges at Thousand-island lake were filled with splashes and fun. It made us bond, laugh, and finally start to enjoy our week.
Another really memorable experience was investigating Nanjing Massacre. The Nanjing Massacre was a horrendous war crime that took place in Nanjing, China during the Second World War when Japan invaded China. The main goal of our investigation was to let us come in contact with history and to uncover all the unheard stories from survivors.
We first visited Nanjing Massacre Museum and learned about some of the most important events of the massacre. Seeing all the horrible pictures of the massacre, I felt immensely grateful for the established peace that we live in now. At the same time, regret and sadness for all the deaths of innocent villagers welled up in me. I am also so proud of the courageous fighters that sacrificed their lives to fight the Japanese. Though this period of time has fortunately passed, we shouldn’t ever forget it.
The next part of our investigation was to find the massacre survivors. We set off. Each of our teams heading in a different direction, determined to hear the few words from the massacre survivors that will reveal historical first-hand experience and make a huge impact on our understanding of the world’s history. It was difficult at first, with no information about where we were going to find someone, or any preparation for when we get rejected. But about halfway into our challenge, my team leader found a community center near a historical site, and the volunteers at the center told us that a survivor lived in the compound nearby. I am so grateful for the kind community volunteers, and their willingness to help us. Because of them, we were able to find a survivor. The half an hour we spent visiting the survivor, was unforgettable. Unfortunately, the survivor was already in her 90’s and had Alzheimer disease, so she wasn’t able to tell us a story, but all the same, looking at her wrinkled face, and imagining how she had survived the massacre, we were deeply touched,. Meeting someone who has experienced so much in their lives was really inspiring. I wish her the best.
The two days at Nanjing started with a rocky start, but in the end, we completed our investigation, and came in touch with one of the most important parts of China’s history. It was two days that will forever be in our lives.
PART TWO
Nowadays, one of the most critical skills for survival, whether we like it or not, is earning money. On the quiet streets of a small town called Xinzhou, in Shanxi Province, about 1000KM away from our starting city of Shanghai, we undertook another challenge: earning money. Just a few bucks weren’t going to be enough, as we had to earn enough money to buy three meals for our whole team. Having been supported by our parents, most of us had no experience with making money. The only experience I had was selling hot chocolate and mashed potatoes with my friend. We stood in the cold wind for about two hours, persuading strangers to buy the food. In the end, we earned nearly 100 RMB, which we donated to an animal shelter. But, in this case, we had no starting capital, and Xinzhou wasn’t a very wealthy town, making rejection chances even higher.
Our teacher gave us one to two hours to plan out how we would earn money and make a basic estimate. Our team was wild and filled up a whole poster sheet with ideas and made a very high estimate for each person. We expected the seven of us to earn at least 350 RMB, enough for three meals. The next day, we set off very confident, knocking from door to door, asking if there were any odd jobs that we could do, such as scrubbing leftover dishes or sorting groceries. Everyone was still a bit nervous, but we tried not to show it and worked hard. But soon, the whole morning whizzed by, and we had only earned one RMB (from furiously collecting bottles) and a free lunch from a kind businessman who was moved by our enthusiasm. Everyone else that we had asked rejected us. Our energy level plummeted from 100 to 20. And even worse, we watched the other teams earn more and more money, making us feel increasingly pressured.
Exasperated, our team settled down at McDonald’s and tried to think of a life-saving plan. In the end, the only two solutions that we could think of were to sell our personal belongings, or we could start knocking on doors again. So I decided to try to sell a bag of leftover masks that I had. I hesitated a few minutes before asking anybody, the old fear of being rejected bubbling up again. Finally, I gathered my courage, just like in the first few days at camp, and started to sell my masks to strangers. But after being rejected seemingly a thousand times, I gave up. Disappointment and embarrassment filled my mind. Everyone that I had asked refused, some walking away without giving me a glance. Was it that I was communicating wrongly? Or was it just my bad luck? I came back to my team defeated.
As we walked down the streets, we met with another group, and they kindly lent us some money to buy rubber bands. Another teammate and I took these few rubber bands and tried our luck once more. In the last two hours before the deadline, we asked every single lady that we could find to buy our rubber bands. We ran from street to street, rejected by nine of every ten or so people. Finally, we stopped feeling embarrassed or shy. I even asked an old gentleman to buy my rubber bands. Of course, you know what happened.
In the end, we only earned 30 RMB. Though some of my teammates were disappointed, I was actually quite proud of myself. I could never imagine the past me going up to strangers and selling rubber bands, and actually earning money, but I did it! So even though we didn’t earn as much as we would have liked, I am happy that we tried hard till the last minute. At the end of the day, it’s the effort that matters.
This challenge was one of the hardest because, in the modern world, nothing is free. You have to earn what you want. Yet, earning money is so hard. It is not a one-step no-sweat activity. It requires skills, courage, and persistence, far more challenging than I have thought. I learned to appreciate the hard work my parents and every other person in the world do to provide for their families. Thank you!
PART THREE
I’m sure many of you will immediately think of the Terracotta Soldiers located in Xi’an if I were to ask you about historical relics in China. When I mention this, you might imagine an army of clay soldiers lined up in a vast underground vault, but it’s so much more than that. It is about the history and culture hidden in these soldiers, the fine artwork made by the artisans, and the many beliefs that the Chinese once had.
Our instructors were determined for us to appreciate this. So we lined up a few minutes before eight o’clock in the front gates of the museum. Around us stood so many others, some locals, other foreign visitors, all waiting to admire the wonders hidden inside. The morning air was hot and humid, and the sun was glaring down at us. Our teacher decided to use this chance to tell us the history of the Terracotta Soldiers.
Qin Shi Huang was the creator of these warriors. Historians say that he started the construction of his mausoleum as soon as he took the throne. The Terracotta Army was the to guard his mausoleum and Qin Shi Huang himself in the afterlife.
After a while, the security guards opened the gate, and we were inside. We toured through the pits, one at a time. These soldiers all faced east, and every one of them is carved with glorious detail. The single strands of hair, the way ribbons on their armor slightly tilt in the air were all shown on every single one of the soldiers. We could see the looks of determination on the warriors and the motions of every one of them. We learned about the different roles soldiers played in wars, such as the general and chariot warriors. I think why these warriors are so famous is not only because of their number and beauty. They show us a part of Chinese history, about the strong beliefs of the afterlife and the intelligence of our ancestors.
What I just described and told you could probably all be found online. But in my opinion, what could be more beneficial than just looking at the warriors or learning their history is participating in cultural activities and events. Our camp instructors led us through series of fun activities that led us to experience and remembered the Terracotta soldiers. We tried archery, calligraphy, and sculpting little soldiers of our own. Though we only had to make one soldier about the size of our hand, it was way more complicated than imagined. I ended up with a tilting gray soldier but surprisingly won first place!
And that leads to the last and most memorable few days of our camp. The night we spent in the desert. We had just walked the whole day across hundreds of dunes under the scorching sun and had finally reached our camp.
We had a big bonfire, each of us singing under the stars, watching the flames dance and twirl, and enjoying the night. Then, as the bonfire started to end, we scattered around, some going back to their tents, others climbing onto the dune nearby. We prepared to watch the stars and hopefully catch a glimpse of the milky way, which would supposedly appear at 1 am.
We talked under the night sky, playing childish games, filling in the otherwise peaceful silence. Soon, it was 1 am. We all turned our lights off and prepared to stargaze. Finally, it was just us and the stars. The night sky was dark, and the gentle light from the stars and moon was surprisingly bright. The sky was filled with them, blinking in and out. The endless sand glittered under their light, like the shallow waves on a beach. Some desert birds interrupted the silence with a few squawks as if announcing their liking of the view to us. The stars filled the sky, some alone, others clustered into a constellation. We excitedly pointed out the constellations that we could recognize to each other. The stars were something that you could never imagine seeing in the city. It was utterly beautiful.
And just like that, the trip came to an end.
The end of the camp was a mixture of exhaustion as we wrote our end of the final report. But also pure joy as we attended the ending ceremony, each of us grinning, so grateful to have enjoyed the experience with each other, and learned everything that the camp gave us. About cultures, about each other, and about our environment.