Sanda University - Day 1

After a two hour flight to China, we met our tour guide, Mandy, and caught a bus to Sanda University, only thirty minutes away. We quickly checked into our guest house and headed to grab some lunch in one of the dinning halls. It was pretty good. I have came to the conclusion the Chinese do not use napkins or drink beverages with their meals. We asked Mandy where we could get a drink and she lead us to the shop on campus. Everything was fairly cheap, about 1 USD. Since we cannot drink the water in China, I bought a 1.5 L bottle of water for 3.90 Yuan ($0.63 USD). Even sodas were less than a dollar. After the shop we got a quick shower, got a tour of the campus, and headed to the presentation room where they had lots of snacks sat out for us. I ate some dragon fruit. It had a similar taste to Kiwi and was very delicious. We snacked on the goodies while the Chinese students presented about their culture, lifestyles, and festivals, and then we presented ours to them. After the presentation we got a ten minute break and I went to the restroom and come to find out the toilettes were yes, indeed, a hole in the ground. It was quite nicer than what is the general stereotype of China's "hole in the ground", but still, an experience in it's self. After the break, a few students played some terrific music pieces. I really was in ah. We then had dinner with the same students in a different dinning hall. Both meals today were in a red dish (pictured below) that I found out later is actually a Japanese style dish.. (explains why they have similar ones at Fusion in Greenwood). I am ready for our full day of Chineses language and culture classes tomorrow.

I saw this quote in the airport in China and thought it could not be more true:
"Education is the wisest investment"