So I realized that I had not yet posted a blog entry for this week. I am leaving soon for a fun-filled week in Guangzhou, Hong Kong, Macau, and Zhuhai, and I would be remiss if I did not leave you with some story about this past week. Apologies if this seems rushed, as well as the fact there are no pictures.
Just as a quick side note, I am not planning on bringing my laptop with me, so I will probably not be updating this blog next week. Sorry about that, but I will make it up to you the week after that. I may have to break next week's blog entry into two parts, just to get in all the pictures and events that went on. Think of it as a "I really hope this makes up for everything" kind of move.
Anyways....This Wednesday was the date of the Qingming festival. Everyone had off from classes (but I already had no classes that day, so...) and the Alliance program prepared a small expedition for us. In addition, we had a member of the Alliance Staff with us. Teresa Bellono (which I hope to God I am spelling correctly, as she told me she reads my blog), the Communications Manager for Alliance, has been visiting the programs that Alliance has in Asia, and we were one of the last stops on her trip. She picked a great time to visit. We went out to an organic farm an hour or so out of Shanghai, where we were allowed to pick fresh strawberries. This festival is a big deal for the Chinese, as it is associated with respect for the dead as well as agriculture. The festival, also known as the Tomb-Sweeping festival, is one where people pay tribute to their ancestors or go on spring outings.
This festival is associated with the turn of the weather to a more spring-like climate, and it has shown in the past few days. Gone are the days of cold rain and wind, replaced with sunny, warm days. Kite-flying is also a popular event of the festival, but I did not see any kites at all.
After our strawberry picking, we had lunch on the farm, nothing out of the ordinary. After that, we got back on the bus and went to Zhujiajiao, one of the local water villages and a popular destination for this festival. We took a riverboat ride, then walked around the village for a little bit. We did not have a great amount of time in the town, but it was enough to get a good idea of what the village is normally like. To be perfectly honest, it was not a major revelation, but it is a nice quaint village, and I would recommend it for anyone with spare time in Shanghai.
Apart from that, things have been pretty quiet. Well, I mean, apart from the fact that I will be competing against other people in a Chinese speech competition. Oh yeah, that should be fun.
Until next time...
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