Day 3: Shanghai

Our group plus new friends!

After the presentation 

World Expo: Shanghai, China 2010

Fundan University Gate

Fundan University

Fundan University

Today we visited Fudan University and gave our presentation to an auditorium full of students and student affairs professionals. Our presentation was well received and I am most impressed by how gracious the Chinese people are in general. At lunch we had (another) fabulous Chinese meal with some interesting options. I was encouraged to take a slice of what commonly looked like "headcheese", a German luncheon meat, and dip it into a dark sauce. I was told it was pork so I did as I was encouraged. When I took a bite I was surprised to discover that it was very hot (the sauce). I inquired a little stronger as to what I was eating, and I was told it was pork ear. During the van ride back to the hotel, Brian was talking about the pork with the "hot sauce" that he enjoyed during our meal. He was shocked to learn that he was eating pig ears, the expression on his face was priceless.

Lesson 2: be sure to ask plenty of questions before diving in with your chop sticks.

We visited Fudan's new campus in the afternoon and it was fabulous. Beautiful marble and granite buildings, and the landscaping was phenomenal. It is their new law and professional school campus.

I learned something very important today. It is humanly possible to be addicted to tea on two continents. Dr. Bird has the Chinese people chasing after iced tea for her every where we go. It is simply amazing to watch! The Chinese people only drink their tea hot and ice in general is rare. However, they manage to have a cold tea in her hand most of the time.

This evening we went to the World Expo 2010. I am still stunned. No words can describe the magnificence of the entire Expo park, especially at night. Several of the structures will stay after the Expo is over, but many will be torn down to make room for a new retail district. I was very moved by how committed the Shanghai people are to sustainability and a carbon-free print in the future.  They understand that they have made mistakes in the past, and they hope to not repeat them in the future. Fudan University arranged for us to have VIP entrance and treatment to the Chinese pavilion and the Shanghai exhibit. A once in a lifetime experience.

Dr. Pam Ehlers

Director of OSU Career Services

Day 2: LEGIT!

That's the word we taught Vivian, OSU staff member and Chinese translator, today after going to the World Expo since that was the best word we can use to describe today's experience. 

We started today off with breakfast at the hotel in their "Western Style Resturant" they had a mix of chinese food and american food and it was quite tasty. We then headed off to Fudan University for our first speaking engagements. On the way we had to stop at Starbucks so everyone could get their caffine fix in true American fashion. Once arriving at Fudan University we had a special waiting room for us with the best leather chairs. We thought about taking one of the chairs home with us but they were too big for our carry-on luggage.

Shortly after that, Dr. Bird and Dr. Ehlers spoke without translation because the group understood English. The hosts also had tracked down some iced tea for Dr. Bird so now her tea addiction is known on two continents, now that's friendship! After speaking we took a tour of the campus and it was so beautiful. We also lucked out having great weather today with blue skies for most of the day which isn't always the case in Shanghai. We then had a meeting at the Career Services Center where Dr. Ehlers exchanged stories with their director and we found out that once again we are more the same than different. We had a lovely lunch after that with various people from their student affairs division. One of the highlights being that Brian was telling our guests how much he loved one of the dishes and they giggled and told him it was pork.... only later did we find out it was pig's ear. The food has been great so far but we aren't very good with chopsticks yet, maybe by the end of our trip we will be experts. 

After lunch we went to Fudan's new campus which has their law school and it was breathe-taking; the architecture here is unbelievable. We learned that in Chinese building that when you see a square that represents the ground and the circle above represents the sky, it makes sense. After our tour, we headed back to the hotel to change and get ready for the World Expo. When we arrived Lena told us that it was one of her life long dreams to go to the World Expo so there it is, dreams do come true :). 

Thanks to Fudan University we had VIP passes which means we got to cut all the lines and have special VIP hallways. There are no words to describe the expo other than LEGIT. There were so many cool things to see and their mission for China is to make a greener and cleaner tomorrow. We only got to see the China pavilian because of the lines and it was the only VIP access we could have but really that was enough. We also took a bus to the USA pavilian and had "traditional" american food. I know we are in China eating American and we are so lame but it didn't really taste like home; it just looked like it, which is sometimes enough. We also got to drive by and see all the other countries. It made us realize that we really are one world. 

Well, that's about it for today it was action packed and we are totally in love with Shanghai. We have lots of shopping to do tomorrow and sight seeing so we need to get some sleep. We love and miss you all! more updates to come....


-Abby

Day 1, part 2 - We're in China!

To our friends, families, and other followers:

We arrived safely and had a great first night- we had an incredible meal and stroll around Shanghai. We're exhausted but happy! Although a few of us brought working (supposedly) cell phones, we haven't quite gotten the knack of calling the U.S. yet, so please accept this as notification that we're okay! We'll send updates and photos soon!

Day 1... And, We're Off!

Day one. We arrived at the airport at 4:15am. We are excited to be heading to China. Today’s blog topics will be long flights, the maglev and Shanghai traffic.

Abby- It’s been an early morning so far but after a few  bumps we are inside the airport waiting for Starbucks to open. I’m not too excited for the long flight but I am very much looking forward to the maglev train. Today will be an experience. At the end of the day, we will finally be in CHINA!!!!!

Ally – I’m very tired, so I’m ready to get on the plane and take a nap.  I’ve been on a long flight before, and I’m looking forward to watching movies and reading my ethnography for class.  Once we arrive in Shanghai, we’ll get to have our first dinner in China.  It still seems unreal that we’re actually on our way.

finally embarking on our journey! This trip will be able to provide us with a wealth of knowledge about different cultures and experiences that will have a positive impact on our lives for years to come.

Vivian—Oh my, I am on the way to my hometown again. Exciting, but also I’m wondering how can I show the charming Shanghai to everyone! I can’t wait to see my parents!

Léna – I share in the group’s feelings of exhaustion and the surreal fact that we’re on our way, but I’m mostly just excited. I’m excited about the trip, excited to be united with our Chinese friends and make new ones, and excited about this group, which somehow already has funny stories to tell when we haven’t even left Tulsa yet. Chinese word of the day: Shi qi = seventeen, as in the number of hours on a plane between us and a totally awesome adventure.

Dr. Ehlers-OK, the bumps Abby is referring to are with me. I had an exciting morning at the Tulsa airport. It appears that the new screening machine at the gate does NOT like “money belts” on the body. Since I have been given the task of protecting our emergency cash on the trip, I decided that the best bet would be to keep it on my body at all times. Since the cash and the belt have no metal parts, I figured I was safe to pass through. This thought process was flawed and so the lesson for the day is as follows: do NOT go through the new airport screening machine with a money belt unless you want to take a trip to the “private room” with two TSA agents for a strip search. Can’t wait for lesson two!

Lee- I wanted to tell our readers that I have never blogged before. For sensitive readers or regular bloggers, I will offer my apologies now in order to save time later.

Welcome to the OKSTATE China blog!

 My name is Lee Bird, and I am the Vice President for Student Affairs at Oklahoma State University and adjunct faculty member for the College of Education Student Development Program.

My traveling companions include four graduate students: Brian, Lena, Abbie and Ally. We are accompanied by our amazing interpreter, Vivian Wang (a doctoral student at OSU), and Pam Ehlers, OSU Career Services Director. Pam and I have been invited to speak about American student services at five universities across China. Our students will also share their experiences as graduate students. Join us for updates as we travel across China.