Author: Tiffany Luehrs

Location: Hangzhou, China 

The dreary weather added to the wonder of the city of Chongqing. It gave the city an eerie feel as we looked out at the panoramic view from the side of a hill. After a delicious hot pot of dinner, a spicy delicacy of the Si Chuan province , we headed to the docks to board the Victoria cruise ship.

Looking around, I noticed that the city had transformed as the moon rose. At night Chongqing was beautifully lit up, and I was enamored by the reflection of the colorful city lights shimmering in the gentle waves of the Yangtze river. As I stepped on the cruise ship, I was excited and curious to see what the next three days on the Yangtze would reveal.

During the cruise, we were able to attend various lectures, one of which was on Chinese medicine. I knew the basics of Chinese medicine: herbal remedies, cupping, scraping, and acupuncture. But that was about it. The lecture was intriguing, and I learned how the methods of acupuncture, acupressure massage, cupping, and scraping relate to the theory of Yin and Yang, a Taoist concept of interdependence between passive and active forces. When your Yin and Yang is balanced, you are healthy, but when your Yin and Yang are unbalanced, there is a blockage of your 气 (qi) or the energy flow that takes place throughout the channels of your body, causing illness or discomfort.

During our journey, we also had the opportunity to go on a few excursions by foot, one of which was to see and climb the Shibao Pagoda. To get to the pagoda, we had to cross a slippery, shaky bridge with a terrifying drop beneath our feet. My usually dormant fear of heights came out of hibernation at full force as I walked along the bridge, clinging to the railing and trying not to look down. The perilous crossing was worth it. The 12-story, red pagoda was constructed out of wood without any nails. Since the 18th century when the temple was built, there have been renovations to the structure to preserve the temple and make it safe to enter and climb.

The saying goes that the higher one climbs in the temple, the more likely your dreams will come true. You know I climbed all the way up. I even ventured up the feeble, volatile ladder that led to a claustrophobic, square scenic outlook room at the very top of the temple, which only had enough room for around four people at a time. At the top of the pagoda, I was able to look out at our cruise ship along side two other ships amidst the hazy sky and grey waters.

While on the cruise, we witnessed three gorges: Qu Tang, Wu, and Xi Ling. The three gorges were magnificent and unlike anything I had ever seen. It was at Xi Ling Gorge that our journey ended, and we were greeted by the Three Gorges Dam, the world’s largest hydropower project. The beautiful mountainous landscape is still present but interrupted by the dam. As Watts, the author of When a Billion Chinese Jump stated, the dam was a “gray scar on an otherwise stunning landscape.”

While the Chinese have been building dams ever since the first was built in around 600 BC at Anfeng Tang in eastern China, the Three Gorges Dam is the first dam built on such a large scale. It generates incredible amounts of electricity, improves navigation along the Yangtze river, and allows for flood control, but at enormous costs.

This gray scar has caused the displacement of 1.4 million people, water pollution, loss of biodiversity, the introduction of new diseases, and an increased risk of earthquakes and landslides. It was amazing and surreal to finally see the dam in person after researching the hydropower project in my Environmental Biology of China class and having watched Up the Yangtze. It was definitely an eye opening and fascinating way to end our 10-day travel excursion during G20. Now it’s time to head back to Hangzhou and truly get started on the “study” part of study abroad. 😉

-Tiffany

Author: Tiffany Luehrs

Program: Hangzhou Study Center – China

While packing my suitcase for my return to America, a song came on my Spotify: Roam by Theia. One of the lyrics in the song is “everywhere I roam is home” and while humming along and placing my belongings in the open suitcase before me, I realized how true those words were. Washington, D.C. is my home. Valparaiso University is also my home. And now Hangzhou has become my home.

This semester in Hangzhou taught me many things. I learned to go with the flow and live in the present. I found that I had a lot more to learn regarding the Chinese language, and I pursued the challenge of expanding my vocabulary and improving my listening comprehension and speaking skills. I never felt lost and learned to successfully navigate the streets of Hangzhou and any city I was traveling, in part due to my improved Chinese skills and in part because I figured out how to use the amazing Baidu app, China’s version of Googlemaps (download it right now if you are going to China anytime soon – It’s a lifesaver).

I will miss the vibrant international community, my new friends from all over the world, running by West Lake, the cheap meals and taxis, the rich culture, and so much more, but I know it will only be a matter of time before I return to China or run into one of my international friends in another part of the world. Tomorrow I hop on a 13-hour flight back to the U.S., and I already know it will take time for me to get used to everyone speaking English around me. I will probably accidentally say “xiexie” instead of thank you for at least my first month back, but I am sure I will get back into the swing of things soon enough.

Okay, now I really need to finish packing.

-Tiffany

P.S. Have a listen  ☺  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1CXPepq8xHM

Author: Tiffany Luehrs

Program: Hangzhou Study Center – China

One of my favorite parts of our Thanksgiving weekend in Shanghai was having the chance to roam around art galleries and museums including the Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Center, Shanghai Gallery of Art, Rockbund Art Museum, Art+ Shanghai Gallery, and  the Propoganda Museum.

I could go on about each gallery and museum for ages, but I want to focus this post on a artist I discovered at the Art+ Shanghai Gallery. The artist that caught my eye was not even a part of the exhibition they were showing by an artist named Ye Hongxing that created beautiful artwork out of thousands of stickers.

Ye Hongxing Sticker Art

While walking around the exhibit, the owner of the gallery began sharing with us the story of the gallery and what brought her to Shanghai. She then led us to a backroom with artwork from previous exhibits. One of the artists that she told us about is Yoa Lu. At first, when she pointed out his painting, I saw  picturesque Chinese landscape, but looking closely I saw that the Chinese landscape I was looking at was actually a painting of apartment buildings and green construction  netting. In the background were traditional temples and mountains.

Through his art, Yao Lu expresses his concern for China’s rapid urbanization and the loss of traditional buildings. The manipulation of utilizing the traditional style of a Chinese painting to portray China’s present day value, consequences of rapid expansion, and blatant environmental destruction was absolutely intriguing to me. If you have the chance, you must check out Yao Lu’s work and when in China, the many art galleries displaying the works of China’s leading contemporary artists and photographers.

-Tiffany

Author: Maia Moore

Program: Hangzhou, China – Study Center

This past weekend, I took a weekend trip to Shanghai since it is only 2 hours
away. To save a few yuan (I am still a poor college student, after all), I stayed in a hostel for the first time. We have hostels in the US, but they aren’t as numerous or widely used as they are in Europe or Asia. Since this was my first time staying in one, I wasn’t really sure what to expect.

Booking the room was relatively simple. We went online, researched hostels, found one with good reviews and a reasonable price, and booked it through a hostel website. We had to put down a deposit beforehand and paid the rest when we arrived. The room was bigger than I expected. Since I was with a group of friends, we all decided to book a private suite with three beds, a couch that could be used for an extra person, and a private bathroom.

The next morning after our arrival, I headed downstairs to the restaurant that was located within the hostel. Hostel food has a little bit of a bad reputation when it comes to food. However, it was a good price for my budget, so I took the risk. For breakfast, I chose the “American” breakfast option, consisting of an egg, pancake, one sausage, one slice of bacon, and toast. It was…interesting. Although, it wasn’t terrible.

That night, I returned to the restaurant where breakfast had been served. The atmosphere was totally different. In the morning, the restaurant was quiet and had a little light peeking through the skylight ceiling. Now, the room was darkened but with party lights everywhere. People with a variety of different looks and languages filled the area. A soccer game was being shown on a large screen TV in the corner, and music was blasting all around us. My friends and I met a few new people and played pool with them into the night.

Every hostel is different, so students should definitely do research and look up reviews before they book their rooms. Overall, I had a pretty good experience and would stay in a hostel again.