Jacksonville High School is always trying to better itself. Whether we’re rewarding students, opening new courses and clubs, or pushing the “Be R.E.D.” ideology, JHS is striving towards success. We do this to ensure that the students are sent into the world as good people. If there is one situation where being R.E.D. is of utmost importance, it’s exploring a foreigh land.
Though China is thought to be the oldest civilization in the world, The People’s Republic of China is a country still in its infancy. Founded on October 1, 1949, it has become one of the world’s most influential superpowers in a relatively short time. However, this does not mean the country is without conflict. China and Japan are not on peaceful terms. Manufacturing that is too slow to meet demand and controversial food safety scandals gradually hurt Chinese industry, something thought to be strong. To add on to these problems, China is overpopulated, which is only exacerbated by refugees immigrating from neighboring Myanmar.
But one aspect of China still thrives and that is tourism. This is, of course, due to China’s rich culture and landscape. Over the summer, three students and two teachers from Jacksonville High School visited China. Ms. Arnold, Mr. Herring, math teachers from JHS, Maria Rubin de Celis, David Sibert and Mary Thorsen went on an enviable adventure to places like Beijing, Xi’an and Shanghai. They experienced a foreign culture that most Americans could hardly fathom.
The first thoughts that are evoked by the mention of China for many people is of food. Acclimated to burgers and soda, the idea of having “Peking Duck” is strange and perhaps uncomfortable for most Americans. It’s served in the U.S., but how often is it ordered? Is it authentically prepared? Those who went on the trip had authentic Peking Duck. And despite the suspicion you may have, the experience was enjoyable. Ms. Arnold “had never had duck before, even as a country kid” but enjoyed the duck. As a matter of fact, Mary Thorsen found all the food they had eaten in China “for the most part, delicious!”
But food is trivial when compared to the overwhelming discomfort, stress, fright and awe of being an American in China attempting to communicate with the locals, travel the surreal land, and keep track of familiar faces. According to Ms. Arnold, “Personal space doesn’t exist in China.” This is definitely the case with the local vendors. Ms. Arnold spoke of this: “One guy put a hat on one of my student’s heads as we were walking away, and we had to take it off and give it back and run away! At one point, they surrounded us. We thought ‘They’re kind of like piranha!’ But when they realized we weren’t buying, they just went away; they were easily bored.”
Another example of fright or worry in China is when Mary and Maria realized they were lost at one of the Seven Wonders of the World. “After taking a cable car ride down from the top of the Great Wall of China, Maria and I had no idea where we were,” Mary elaborated. But all was fixed when Mary “found a local tour guide who spoke English and was able to call our tour guide so we could meet up with her. But that was scary.”
In contrast to the social and personal experiences, Mr. Herring spoke more of the cities themselves. “I thought that it would be a lot of the same, because we were going to three large cities. The atmosphere and experience was very different, depending upon the city,” Mr. Herring explained. Of Beijing, Mr. Herring had the following to say: “Beijing was very based upon the capital. There was a large picture of Chairman Mao … and the Forbidden City. You were very much aware of the political nature of the city.” Though Beijing may currently be the capital, “The majority of the dynasties had been centered at Xi’an,” making our protagonists’ second stop the historic capital. “Its focus was archeology because of the discovery of the Terracota Warriors,” Mr. Herring said, later explaining that “There is no suburbia. You don’t have a yard. You don’t have a house. You have an apartment. The state owns all the land and people get a 70 yr. lease for anything that’s close to being private property.” Mr. Herring closed on Xi’an with, “The concept of eminent domain is very active there.”
JHS’ third stop, Shanghai, is the “showcase city” according to Mr. Herring. Shanghai is very invested in the “race to compete with the capitalist world.” Apparently, there is a form of “Communist Capitalism” in Shanghai that inspires it to strive. They are currently building a skyscraper taller than the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, India, and the “rice paddies now are high-rise skyscrapers.” “They want to be the best and the biggest!” So, with visits to today’s capital, yesterday’s capital, and the financial center, JHS left China with the ultimate cultural experience.