Tuesday, May 18, 2010

"China Engorged" - Marie Richards


Originally a lecture on our trip was titled “China Engaged” to represent the focus on furthering engagement through education. After our first week, we determined that “China Engorged” would be a much more accurate description of our experience.

Traditional Chinese dining involves eating family style from a table dominated by a giant lazy susan. The lazy susan is piled with dishes ranging from octopus to duck tongue to large sausage pastry balls. In theory, you are supposed to use your chopsticks to take food from the dishes directly to your mouth. The plate is for spitting out bones. Mastery of chopsticks has been an ongoing process. I almost impaled Jason at our first meal and was the only person at our banquet table to be offered a fork. At the end of the meal, a plate of sliced watermelon is served as dessert. After several “Two-a-Days” of overwhelming meals, we decided to fashion a sign with a picture of watermelon to signal to the waitress that we were done!


The other crucial component of meals is toasting. Bai jiu is the customary drink. Do not be fooled by the lovely blue bottle – this stuff could rival moonshine from the mountains of South Carolina….and win. Toasting is an important part of the culture and, fortunately, our Furman professor and trustees have been able to uphold our national honor.

Marie with the Baijiu

Kathy and Coleman toast at the Celebration


Kate and Martha take one for the team

"Celebration and Young Alums in China" - Tom Triplitt


Tuesday, May 18, our last full day in Suzhou.

We had a fairly normal morning schedule today, meaning we did not have to get up too early. We boarded our bus at 9 AM in our finest clothes and our VIP badges to attend the 110th birthday celebration of SUDA, Soochow University where Furman has a wonderful working relationship.
In true Chinese Style, there was much pomp and circumstance with thousands of chairs set up in the old courtyard, hundreds of dignitaries on the stage and at least 10 speakers AND fireworks! Our SUDA host, Harrison, translated for us while the speeches were going on, an amazing feat. It started to rain just as the giant assembly ended and we then boarded our bus to attend a huge banquet for all the VIP's and students hosts. There was much toasting and exchanging of business cards. The banquet hall can host a dinner for 1500.
After lunch we changed our clothes and went for a quick tour of the silk museum and then to one of Suzhou's famous gardens, the Humble Administrator's Garden. The Garden is actually his house and grounds that covers 5.3 hectares. It is stunningly beautiful with many of the same plants and trees that you see in the US.

We met some of our SUDA friends and 6 young Furman alums who are working in China for another Chinese feast that included jellyfish and octopus, then went shopping in the rain along a quaint little street. John-Stewart Clark, son of AD Gary Clark helped us bargain with the shopkeepers.

Young Alumni with Kate Kaup

Off to Shanghai this morning and then to Tibet tomorrow!

Go Paladins in China!

"Baijiu and Orchids" - Kate Kaup

6:45 am May 19
Well this is tricky!...the more fun we’re off having, the less time we have to blog about it!

We’ve had a great two days since I last posted anything. Monday I tried to compress sixty years of Chinese Communist Party history into fifty minutes and Dean Xu Qinggen reflected on his experiences during the Cultural Revolution. Dean Xu visited Furman in the spring of 2007 and taught Chinese poetry.

Monday night we were joined by Christy Campbell, a 2006 AS graduate who is now working in Cambodia aiding trafficked women who have been rescued in police raids.

Tuesday the group got to experience a university anniversary Chinese style, complete with fireworks and followed by the ‘ole midday banquet toasting of baijiu or white lightning. We were given royal treatment by our hosts, with orchid corsages pinned on us while we stood on a red carpet (literally!) before the festivities began.


Group on Red Carpet

After the banquet, we made a brief visit to the Silk Museum and then strolled through Suzhou’s largest garden, the Humble Administrator’s Garden.


Humble Adminstrator's Garden

Dean Liu of the Foreign Languages School hosted our farewell dinner, and we were joined by six Furman alumni and three of the teachers who will be coming to Furman this July. Four of our alumni are 2009 grads who are just finishing up a year teaching, two here in Suzhou and two about an hour away in Changshu. Stew Clarke, AS/Psych double major from the class of 2009, is opening up a donut shop here in Suzhou, and Martha Kimmel also joined us for dinner. Martha is doing fabulous work for Furman here as our Admissions Counselor for East Asia.

Have to run check out and catch our bus for Shanghai. More later!