Caves, High School, and a Home-Cooked Meal

Engineering student Lola Buonomo writes some English in a Chinese student's notebook during the Penn State class's visit to a secondary school in Huangshan. (Photo credit: Curtis Chan)

Engineering student Lola Buonomo writes some English in a Chinese student’s notebook during the Penn State class’s visit to a secondary school in Huangshan. (Photo credit: Curtis Chan)

By James Futrell

Today was one of the best days so far. It started with a cave that had 36 separate grottos. we went into two of the grottos and it was an engineering marvel that they were carved over 2000 years ago. There was one part where the cave was carved so that it would stay up and not collapse in on itself. The area came to a point so in order for it to stand up the engineers had to let the support billow out so the cave would not collapse in on itself. Another amazing thing was how big the rooms in the caves were. The cave was not just tiny, narrow hallways like a lot of caves are.

Next we went to a secondary school. It was really interesting to meet the kids and see what high school was like for them when comparing it to what high school was like for us. It is amazing how long their day lasts; from 7 in the morning to 10 at night. I cannot imagine a 15 hour day of school. The guys at the school love to play basketball. It is one of the main things they did in their spare time. The also enjoy playing table tennis. Another thing different from American high schools is that the secondary schools are boarding schools. They have there own dorms and have to wash their clothes. Having to live at their high school is something I could not imagine doing.

Next, we went to Xinli’s house where he grew up as a kid. While dinner was being prepared, we went for a walk around the town and we met a group of kids. We also saw where Xinli went to elementary school. His town is very different from any town I could imagine growing up in. After playing with the kids for awhile, we had very good food. It was nice to have homemade Chinese food after all of the restaurants. It was all a great meal.

This class it has been great learning and understanding the Chinese culture. I have learned a lot and do not regret the decision one bit. This will definitely be something I remember forever.

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