Article
Originally posted on July 29th, 2008
Dear Readers,
So far all the planned trips have been a blast! Our first trip, to an acrobatic performance, filled me with vigor and excitement as I watched children my own age flip through hoops and perform stunning tricks with Kong Zu, a type of Chinese yoyo. It inspired me to buy one of my own and I now practice it almost every day, but I fear my skills are improving little.
Other trips, such as to the architecture museum, filled me with awe as I saw beautiful masterpieces and replicas of buildings around Beijing. It encouraged me to see Beijing’s wonders, but unfortunately so far my studies have interfered. School finds ways of keeping you busy…
Despite how wonderful these last two trips were my two favorite trips brought me to the Beijing Zoo and a branch of the U.S. embassy. First the Zoo:
I only ever heard bad things about the Beijing zoo; that it was dirty, the animals were treated poorly, and the cages were a mess. While I only saw a small branch of the zoo, near the pandas, it seemed like a very nice place. The cages I saw sparkled from cleanliness and all the animals seemed quite happy!
The trip to the embassy seemed like it would be a drag after hearing the trip overview. It seemed like we all were about to get another one of those inspirational speeches… However, it actually ended up being very fun. The speaker, Frank Whitaker, presented very interesting data on the U.S. and China’s political standings and was nice and… well… frank! He didn’t tip toe too much around volatile subjects, which was a nice change from other politicians I have spoken to. By the way, I’m sorry for using so many “to be” verbs, but I’m rather tired. All this fun is wearing me out!
‘Till next time then! I unfortunately can’t get any photos for you off my camera… I’m kind of technologically inept.
Sincerely,
David