Health & Fitness
Brewster High School China Trip: May 28, Day 10
A look into the adventures of Brewster High School students and faculty during the heart of their trip to China.
Today is travel day as we make begin the last leg of our trip. We left Xi’an in the morning,
arriving Beijing around 1:30. It wasn’t until 3:00 that we arrived at Silk Road, a large shopping area. Shopping at Silk Road is part retail, part negotiation. As we walked through the sections, vendors would call us to their booth to buy items. Negotiation was important, as items could be had for ten percent of their asking price. The haggling and play between customer and vendor might be considered intrusive in America, but bargaining is a matter of commerce in virtually all transactions taking place outside of formal retail establishments.
After shopping we arrived at the Beijing 101 dorms. Our first two stays were based with
families and hotels. This final leg gives our students the experience of living in Chinese dorms. The dorms were bunk-style housing, with beds elevated over desks. Entering the dorms there was a chalkboard explaining how to keep rooms clean. Though we could not read the Chinese, the pictures were easy to follow.
As today was a travel day, we didn’t have time for much other than the shopping and formal
journaling at our evening meeting.
Click on the PDF to the right for photos and the original entry.