Our First Day in Shanghai

 Greetings from Shanghai!

All of our students made it safely to our study center at East China Normal University, the campus that will be the hub of our learning and adventures here for the next four weeks. We spent the morning in orientation learning about the program, meeting our on-site staff and Chinese teachers, and getting to know each other with ice breaker games. We also discussed how to be aware of cultural differences we might encounter during our time here, as well as how to stay safe while having a great time exploring the city. 

Students learn tips for getting around Shanghai, from navigating the crowded subways to using bike sharing apps to conveniently pick up and drop off bikes anywhere in the city.  

In the afternoon we went on a campus tour, which was interrupted by a sudden spell of rain. The weather is hot and humid during the summer in Shanghai, and short rainfalls throughout an otherwise sunny day can be common. After the tour, we enjoyed our first dinner in Shanghai at a Sichuanese restaurant. With all of our students, program leaders and Chinese teachers, we're a big group of close to 40 people and had to split up and sit at four different large round tables. Sichuanese food is known for having a particular kind of spicy flavor called 麻辣 málà. The first character, má, means numbing; the second character, là, means spicy. The là comes from chili peppers cooked in many Sichuanese dishes, and the má comes from Sichuan peppercorns. Our table of adventurous students had fun picking Sichuan peppercorns out of the dishes to try on their own, experiencing the tongue-tingling, numbing sensation that comes with chewing on them.

 Round tables are common in Chinese restaurants, where the dishes are served family style on a circular lazy susan placed in the middle of the table.

 After dinner we were treated to a performance of Face Changing, a famous trick used in Sichuan opera. Performers wear extravagant costumes and full-face masks; in the Face Changing trick the performer waves his hands and changes his mask in the blink of an eye. The masks are all different colors and have different expressions, representing different types of characters and personalities. With the change of his mask, the performer's "face" is also changed.

After dinner, we saw a 变脸 biànliǎn, or Face Changing performer hard at work. The performer walked into the crowd and greeted many of our students, giving us an up-close view of the face changing technique. Even up close, it's impossible to see how they do it.

 

The performance capped off the end of a very long day, and we were all happy to go back home for a good night's rest. I know we're all looking forward to more adventures ahead in the coming days!

-Justin