Tuesday, March 22, 2011

SMU Update 3/22/11

Tonight, the student union hosted an “English Connection Party” for us to meet more of the SMU students. We were divided into teams and played games such as musical chairs and multiple balloon stomping games. The most interesting game had to be when a MMA student had to listen to a popular Chinese song through headphones and try to sing it back to the crowd for them to guess the tune. Our limited Chinese vocabulary made for a very interesting rendition of the songs, but the SMU students were able to guess most of the time!

The SMU students set up many performances for us, including traditional instruments, Kung Fu, Tai Chi, hip hop dance and pop performances. We all had a great time getting to know more of the students and really appreciated all of the effort that they put into hosting us. While we didn’t have time to prepare for much, Pete and Adam did an impromptu dance while an SMU student sang, I sang karaoke and more of us danced (for extra team points) throughout the night. Just a wonderful weekday evening at SMU!

Monday, March 21, 2011

SMU Update 3/21/11

Our Monday started off with Morning Formation. The way they do it is similar to the way we do it, but also very different. Only the licensed majors have to attend, and it is held once a week. All the cadets line up just as we would. An officer comes out with a microphone and starts yelling something. It was pretty funny because I wasn’t expecting it and I had no idea what he was saying. He must of said something funny because all of the Chinese students were laughing at us after wards. Any ways after he stopped talking, everyone was silent. Then an Honor Guard meticulously marched in front and raised the flag. They march a little differently as shown in the pictures.  The flags of the other countries were raised as well. Their morning formation is not as long, and the weather is a little warmer. Best of all we can sneak our hands in our sleeves every once in a while. Once that ended we ate breakfast, and awaited our first class.

 The way our class schedule works out is we have two classes on Monday, and then one class Tuesday Wednesday Thursday and Sunday. So far our classes have been pretty good. I like the way our schedule is set up because aside from homework, we have a lot of spare time to do whatever we want. The other day we taught some Chinese kids how to play American Football. Although it was complete chaos, they loved it and so did we. We will soon be playing basketball which they all love. Everyone here is obsessed with the Lakers, Kobe Bryant and of course Yao Ming. Chinese Culture class is probably the best class so far. It has been a good first week. It is now Thursday, and tonight we head into the city for the first time. It should be a great experience.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

SMU Update 3/17/11

The group has been here in Shanghai for almost a week now. So far it has been a great experience. We arrived last Saturday after a fourteen hour flight. The plane ride wasn’t very fun, but we were immediately welcomed with open arms from the Chinese students that were at MMA last spring. From there we took an hour bus ride to the new campus. The structure of the highways and its surrounding buildings are very unique. When we arrived to the campus hotel where we were greeted by our new roommates, and placed into our rooms. The Chinese students were so anxious to greet us and even more excited to practice their English. For a majority of them it is their first time ever seeing Americans in their life. They already have decided on their own American names, most of them being very basic. For example Bob, and Jack. It was around 7 pm at this time, and we decided to go to a Chinese restaurant located on campus. It’s a good thing our roommates spoke English because it was total chaos in the restaurant. Waiters and Waitresses were speaking to us, and we had no idea what they were talking about. All the menus have pictures of the plates so we just pointed to them. The food was definitely not what we are used to, but it was a good time. Immediately after that everyone went back to the rooms to catch up on some much needed rest.

The next morning we were allowed to sleep in. We woke up to pouring rain, but at least it was not too cold. The weather at this time of year here in Shanghai is usually around the mid 40’s. We all then gathered in the hotel lobby, and then onto a bus to the ------- Museum. The museum was the biggest I have ever been in. Right in the center of the museum was an authentic sailing vessel, built hundreds of years ago. The tour consisted of ancient Chinese maritime history, all the way to current day. It was very interesting, and the best part was at the end. They took us into a bridge simulator. The bridge simulator was in 3d, and fully functional. The best part was that the floor moved with the waves. Lastly we were brought to a knot tying station where just about all of us forget every single knot. Good thing we are business students. When we got back to campus everyone put on their salt and peppers, and we went off to the Exchange Program Welcoming Dinner.

The dinner was great. We were all sat at large tables where we met students from five other countries. There were students from Canada, Poland, Russia, Germany, and South Korea. Then the President of SMU gave a welcoming speech, and told us to begin to eat. We were served all different types of food with beer and soda. It was the first time we were able to eat our food with forks, rather than chopsticks so that was good. After we ate, there were a few demonstrations given on stage by students at SMU. Some of the performances included Kung Fu, and Tai Qi. After that some cadets were called on stage to perform as well and none of us could move like them. So the crowd was very entertained. At the conclusion of the dinner, we all went back to our rooms to get ready for our first morning formation, and our first day of classes.

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

SMU Update 3/8/11

Greetings, from Shanghai!! My computer says 6:48 am, and I think my body agrees, although it's only 6:48 pm on Sunday evening. We arrived safely in Shanghai yesterday afternoon around 4:30 pm and were excited to see many of our old roommates from last spring at MMA there to greet us with our new roommates! The flight was long but smooth, although I don't recommend it when you have dry socket from a last minute wisdom tooth removal. We met our head teachers and took a bus to the campus, which was a quick 40 minute drive. By the time we arrived in our dorm, we had been traveling for 25 hours! We all went out for dinner in the square on campus, which was one of the more overwhelming experiences of my life. We took over two long tables and I think most of us ordered the first thing on the menu (which, luckily was all pictures), although I opted out of the ketchup on my noodles once a few people got meals and realized what it was, so I may have enjoyed my meal slightly more than others.

We unpacked and went to bed shortly after that to be ready for a 9 am “orientation.”
It was raining again this morning when I woke up to the chorus of American accents in the hallway around 7. A few of us got up early, surprising our roommates I think! I was jealous to Skype with my family who was enjoying a lovely American meal at my aunt's house, but pleasantly surprised at how clear the picture was for both of us and how great the connection is! Most of us ate in one of the canteens nearby before our meeting, which was another interesting meal. Vanessa and I went with noodles and meat because it was the most recognizable and we thought we'd start slow. Unfortunately, Vanessa's meat choice turned out to be spicy, which isn't really our gig first thing in the morning. I was enjoying mine greatly, until my roommate Iris casually mentioned that it's usually something you get for lunch. Oops, oh well.

Our orientation was in the same room that all of the business classes will be held in and was about a 10 minute or so walk from the dorm. There was a presentation from the head teachers from deck and business each, as well as a representative of Foreign Affairs. We were given a brief overview of our schedule, and we all turned to smile at our classmate Young Ryou when we saw that the deck students have a morning jog at 6:40 and attend the flag raising ceremony every morning, while the rest of us only attend on Mondays. He seemed enthused about morning PT and mofo, so I'm sure that will also be a wonderful surprise for Kyle Scannell and Peter Menard when they arrive on the 14th!

We were excited to meet the other international students: one from Canada, two each from South Korea, Russia and Germany and three from Poland. We were given a couple of free hours until we met to go to the China Maritime Museum with the other exchange students. We took a tour of the museums six halls: the hall of Chinese Navigation History, the Hall of Ships, the Hall of Navigation and Ports, the Hall of Maritime Affairs and Sea Safety, the Hall of Seafarers and the Hall of Navy. The museum was beautiful with its modern architecture, and a lot of fun with the many models, ancient artifacts and interactive simulators, so while we were all exhausted again, I'd say we had a good time overall.

We had a welcome dinner with the Vice President of SMU and some of the faculty, where we enjoyed a delicious buffet and saw performances of traditional dance, Kung Fu, Tai Chi and song. A few of us were invited to learn some moves on stage, which was certainly interesting to watch. We walked back, sharing umbrellas with our roommates as it is still raining and is going to all week, and are resting up for our first day of classes tomorrow. Yikes!