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Home Stretch

Writer: kozainilkozainil
Aug 2, 20182 min read

Updated: Aug 6, 2018



July 25th

We are in the "home stretch" here in China, with just a few days left before we board our planes at the tiny Shangri-La airport. A couple of students are headed to Hong Kong to travel a little more after our trip, but most will fly home on the 29th.



This morning, students participated in a second cooking class and ate the delicious dumplings (momos) they made for lunch.


Our fearless chef!


In the afternoon we had some individual review sessions with students before we all headed out to Jiāng Lǎoshī's house (Jiāng Lǎoshī is the other Chinese teacher here in Shangri-La), where she cooked a homemade Tibetan feast for eleven hungry travelers.

Students relaxed in Shangri-La Old Town, played cards, did a little bit of shopping, and hopefully used their time to write in their Mandarin journals (which are due on the 29th), study for assessments (on the 27th and the 28th), and get ready for our review sessions.



We had a really fun evening at Jiāng Lǎoshī's home this evening, touring the Tibetan-style home, eating snacks, participating in traditional tea serving rituals and drinking many cups of green tea (an extremely high quality 普洱茶, pǔ'ěr chá), playing cards, chatting, and laughing a lot.


Jiāng Méi cooked ten dishes for us!

排骨炖藕 (Páigǔ Dùn'Ǒu, Spareribs and Stewed Lotus Root Soup)

红烧肉 (Hóng Shāo Ròu, Braised Pork)

柠檬手撕鸡 (Níngméng Shǒusī Jī, Lemon Hand-shredded Chicken)

酥肉 (Sū Ròu, Breaded Crispy Pork)

大葱炒肉 (Dàcōng Chǎo Ròu, Stir-Fried Pork with Scallions)

牛肉干巴 (Niúròu Gānbā, Sun-dried Yak Meat Fried in Oil)

奶渣蛋卷 (Nǎizhā Dànjuǎn, tough to translate: "Yak Milk Pulp Rolls")

炒青花  (Chǎo Qīnghuā, Stir-Fried Broccoli)

炒玉米 (Chǎoyùmǐ, Fried Corn)

麻婆豆腐 (Mápó Dòufu, Old Pockmarked Lady Tofu).


Van and Nathaniel decided that they wanted to help prepare and cook the food, and spent several hours assisting our Chef/Hostess. Everyone agreed that it was one of the best meals we've had in China so far. It's difficult to describe how flavorful, subtle, varied and well-balanced this feast was; everyone needs to come to China one day and try some of these dishes!





 
 
 

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About The Program

This trip is a four-week culture and language immersion trip intended for Proctor students interested in experiencing cultural immersion, developing their Mandarin language skills, and earning one full year of language credit toward their graduation requirements. Students will travel through southwestern China to the town of Shangri-La in northwestern Yunnan Province, east of the Himalayas on the Tibetan plateau. Yunnan province, in particular, is a fantastic area to explore because of its enormous cultural diversity, historical significance in terms of trade, and its relative remoteness. There is very little air pollution in the area compared with cities on the east coast of China. In addition, the town of Shangri-La itself is a cultural crossroads due to its proximity to the Tibetan Autonomous Region, and 80% or more of the residents of Shangri-La are Tibetan. Once in Shangri-La, students will live with home stay families who speak Mandarin and have children roughly similar in age to them.  Students will also participate in four hours of language classes each weekday, and of course will have many more opportunities to practice their Mandarin in markets, with their home stay families, and with friends. During the weekends, they will embark on various exciting excursions, including a five-day trek around Kawagarbo Mountain, one of the mountains considered most sacred and holy by the Tibetan people. Each day, the group will meet to reflect and share thoughts and feelings about all that we experience. Through our group meetings, group excursions, and classes, students are supported in and can get the most out of their home stay experiences.

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