Category: China: IFSA Shanghai

This summer, I had the privilege of traveling to Shanghai and Beijing China with Dr Yao. Through all of our travels, I can say, this has been one of the best experiences of my life. Going into the program, I was not quite sure of what to expect. As an American citizen, you hear a…

Well, after 6 months, I am finally home! After my time in China, I went to Amsterdam for three weeks to spend the holidays and following that I stayed a week in London. Leaving China was extremely difficult. I ended up having tons of flight problems and had to spend a night in the airport….

I recently returned home from a semester abroad in Shanghai. I decided to stay more days after the program ended to maximize my time before coming back for New Years to my family. First thing I did was visited M50 with a good friend. It is the modern art area of Shanghai. There was a…

The semester is over; 2016 wraps to a close. I spent about six months outside of the country this year traveling to Ecuador, the Philippines, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Japan, and China. I can’t emphasize enough how much there is to learn by expanding your horizons in a literal sense as well as mentally. The unique…

The past 4 months have really flown by. I have been to many countries spanning North America, South America, and Asia. Part of the reason I love to travel isn’t just to go sightsee. Each time I go to a new place, meet new people, get to know new cultures and have new experiences, it…

As the final week of school draws to a close, I am still spending time with my Chinese before getting ready to pack my things and head back home. Last night I ate at another fantastic restaurant in Wujiaochang that sells Xinjiang cuisine. It was very similar to the type of food that we had…

Last weekend, two other friends from Rollins (Mikolaj Geritz and Jonathan Guacaneme) spent the weekend in Japan. We managed to visit Tokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, and Nara all within 3 days and it was absolutely wonderful. From the excellent food, temples, shrines, and—of course—video games in Tokyo, to Fushimi Inari Shrine in Kyoto, to Nara Park…

It seems that no matter how long you live in China, there is always something new or interesting going on. Old restaurants (or bars and clubs if you’re into nightlife) seem to disappear overnight with new ones starting there the following morning. Recently, I ate at a fantastic Thai restaurant called Simply Thai on the…

Sitting in a pool of hot coffee, I let my body relax and enjoy the marine pool before me. We traveled to Hong Kong, Macau, Zhongshan and Zhuhai. It was amazing. The last day was the most relaxing. We went to a hot springs resort. I’ve never been to a hot spring, so I was…

Phew! What a time it has been lately here! So, as an update, my speech was anything but successful during the contest. In the military we commonly say, “proper planning prevents piss-poor performance” or “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail”. This was exactly the case during that time but I know to…