Day 17 ( 20th march), 18(21st march), 19 (22nd march), 20 (23rd march) and 21 ( 24th march)

Day 17 (20^th march)

We had our common test today. I thought it went alright. It was a manageable paper. After the common test we went for a biopharm trip. I wasn’t sure if biopharm meant the production of pharmaceuticals or whether it was crops and produce that were genetically engineered. Upon arrival, I finally got my answer. They were producing pharmaceuticals. But around the area, they were also growing crops around the area. At the biopharm, they produce antimicrobials and anti-inflammatory drugs. It was intreseting to view all the processes that go into purifying the needed components that go into making the drugs. This trip was extremely invaluable to me as it was very extremely relavent to my field of study and I could potentially be working in a place like that when I graduate from university.

Day 18(21^st march)

Today, we learnt about the three main types of religions in china. Being mainly Taoism, Buddhism and Confucianism. Personally, I am an atheist, so I don’t believe in gods or any religion. But it was interesting to see how different some of their practices are and yet also how similar and closely intertwined their practises and beliefs are. Their origin was also another interesting topic and it just goes to show how time can change people beliefs.

I came to a conclusion today during the lesson that the learning style of the china students and Singaporean students are totally different and is extremely difficult to adapt to a different style of teaching. I cant go hours on end in a lesson without a break as I find it hard to concentrate because I get tired or sleepy or just plainly lose interest. And I don’t seem to be the only one experiencing this problem. Many of my classmates seem to feel this way too and it is extremely evident during class time.

Day 19 (22^nd march)

We managed to finish both the tutorial and lecture in the morning today. Thank god because we really needed the time to prepare for the Chinese culture presentation that is going to occur very soon. I feel that the schedule for this oip trip was a bit to jam packed, or at least for the second half. There isn’t that much time in the second half of the trip and yet there is twice the amount of workload with 2 projects and a report due. And to top it all off, we still have to study for the common test. I wish that it was more spread out or at least have one less presentation or let us do the report when we get back to Singapore. Whats worst is that one of the presentations is just the day before the common test and I think it will be hard to prepare for both the presentation and the common test at the same time. But there isn’t anything I can do about it so I shall just brace myself and work as hard as I can for the next three weeks.

Day 20 (23^rd march)

We went to see 4 places today. Yellow Crain tower, east lake, hubei provincial museum and yangtze river.  What I took away from these various sites today was that china is extremely rich in history and culture. There were also many architectural marvels throughout history. It was extremely enjoyable. When we all got to the last place, which was Yangtze river, we were all tired and there wasn’t much to see so we all started to take some really crazy photos and just did many crazy things. But it was a good chance to spend some quality time with friends just to relax and unwind after a hectic first 2 weeks

Day 21 (24^th march)

In the morning today, we went strawberry picking with some of the local students. It was amazing. I had never been strawberry picking before and it was the first time I had seen a real strawberry still on its vine. The only issue I had was that the path to the farm was extremely muddy and slippery. It made my shoes all muddy and horrible. But other than that, it was an enjoyable experience. Sadly, not much interaction between the local students and us had occurred as everyone was too focused on the strawberries. It was amazing to be able to pick the strawberry right off the vine and eat it then and there. The strawberries in china aren’t like the ones I am used to seeing in the supermarkets in Singapore. The strawberries there are rather deformed and oddly shaped. But they were still extremely sweet. Some of us bought some but strangely, by the time we had got back to the dorms, some of the strawberries had gone bad. And it was hardly even an hour after picking them.

Once we got back to the school, there was a party waiting for us. We quickly cleaned up and headed off to the party that was on the third floor of their gym building. The party started off rather dead but by the end of it everyone was enjoying themselves. There were a lot of fun games and performances. We all got a chance to play some games with the local students as well as got a chance to talk to them about our education. It was a very memorable time and I will never forget this party.