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| Sidney Cobb ('19) |
China Journal:
For my blog, I would like to share the first week of my
China journals. Looking back on these journals, I am reminded of how
challenging my first trip abroad was, how many challenges I faced and how I
have changed drastically from these first few days of the trip. I struggled
with food, travel, jet lag, and social situations. However, all of these
challenges helped me grow and helped me develop the confidence to travel and
the desire to explore new places.
May 19th-20th
2018
Today I was somewhat sad to leave
London, I had really enjoyed my time on the Oxford trip and I was
simultaneously very excited and nervous to arrive in China. I had never been
out of the US before this summer and had never been on a flight more than a
couple hours long, but the flight was actually much easier and smoother than I
had thought. I was really thankful that it was an overnight flight because it
made it much easier to adjust to the time difference. Now I am excited to see
what the rest of China has to offer now that we are here safely!
May 21st-
22nd 2018
Our first few days in China we had
the opportunity to go to a class and explore the surrounding area. The food has
definitely been a struggle. I am a vegetarian and it has been much harder to
find options than I anticipated and communicating at restaurants has been
really difficult. I have been very thankful for our student guides however.
They make navigating so much easier. I had a great time going to the Yu
Gardens. It was incredibly beautiful and my first taste of traditional Chinese
culture.
May 23rd-25th
2018
These two days were my favorite in
Shanghai. We got to go to Maritime University which was incredibly beautiful
and our hosts and the students treated us so kindly and made us feel very
welcome. I got to know two students who are planning to study next year in
Milwaukee. We got to exchange information so I will be able to talk to them and
help them when they come to the US! The next day was our free day and I got to
go to Shanghai Disney. It was really fun and relaxing and it was really cool to
experience Disney in another country.
May 26th-27th
2018
Today was our first day in Xi’an.
The train ride was really cool—I had never ridden in a real train before so it
was a new experience. I didn’t sleep much though so I am fairly tired. Today we
got lunch and I had a traditional Korean meal which was a type of spicy tofu
soup that I really loved. Then I came back and did some yoga. This far into the
trip, I have realized that I really need to put more focus on taking care of
myself than I have been. I am also halfway through which is quite daunting, but
I am looking forward to getting to know Xi’an more.
Sidney Cobb, of Frankfort, Ky., is a senior McConnell Scholar at the University of Louisville, where she studies political science and history.