Day 5 in Beijing

Donning our winter coats, we headed out this morning to the Summer Palace, or Yiheyuan, testament to the Empress Dowager Cixi's extravagance and corruption.  This beautiful expanse of gardens and buildings on the Northwest edge of Beijing is dominated by Kunming Lake, which occupies two thirds of its total area.  We entered through the East Palace Gate and meandered through the Hall of Benevolence and Longevity and the Hall of Happiness and Longevity, both of which are in a traditional Chinese Courtyard configuration, called Siheyuan.  Our excellent tour guide David explained to us the practice of FengShui in both the architectural designs and interior and exterior decorations.  Continuing through the grounds, we looked across the lake to the rainbow bridge and the many pagodas arranged harmoniously around the lake.  We walked through the emperor Guangxu's residence, learning about the many intrigues and betrayals of Cixi's time, and down a long hallway to the foot of the impressive tower of Buddhist Incense.  A long climb up many flights of stairs took us to a spectacular view over the entire Summer Palace and towards the city.  A brisk walk past newly blooming magnolias and peach trees and a quick stop by the famous marble boat took us back out to the edge of the palace, where we met the bus to embark on the next event of the day, a visit to the School Year Abroad (SYA) program at the Beijing Normal University High School Number Two.  A quick lunch of hand-cut noodles in a rich broth readied us for an exciting afternoon of interacting and making friends with other high school students, both American and Chinese.  After meeting with the director of the program, Jeff Bissell, we met a number of the 60 American students who had chosen to spend a high school year abroad pursuing a rigorous China-focused curriculum, learning in an immersion environment, and living with host families.  During our stay at the school, the Chinese students played basketball with some of our students, took some of our students to the chemistry lab and a school drama competition, while others exchange information on what it is like being a teenager and a high school student in China vs. in the U.S.  For dinner, we divided into four groups and went home with the SYA students to their respective host families.  It was a wonderful cultural exchange and a glimpse into the daily home life of a high school student in Beijing, China.  After dinner, we thanked our gracious hosts, exchanged email addresses, said our good-byes, and went back to the hotel for an informative talk on the Forbidden City, which we will visit tomorrow.