Eunoia GO – A documentation of the 2018 BSP Chongqing-Chengdu immersion trip
Led by 4 teachers, 35 Eunoians in the Bicultural Studies Programme (BSP) embarked on a 12-day immersion programme to Chongqing, China on 24th November 2018. This immersion programme is an enriching one, comprising enterprise visits, interactions with locals in schools and communities, city explorations and many learning opportunities. By having first-hand experiences of local life, we had a more comprehensive understanding of the local customs in China.
Day 1: Beginning of a wonderful journey
After a 5 hour flight, we finally arrived at Chongqing. Filled with anticipation and curiosity, everyone was excited as we headed to our first attraction – Chongqing Hongya Cave. As we departed from the airport, we saw the bustling nightlife and beautiful city lights of Chongqing from the windows of the bus. I was mesmerised by the numerous high-rise buildings and bridges that were well-lit by neon lights. The traditional Ba-yu architecture of the Hongya Cave caught our attention too. It is said that this is one of the places that the anime Spirited Away took inspiration from. I immersed myself in the lively atmosphere, surrounded by people everywhere; we could also see a whole variety of stalls on the streets, stall owners selling local specialties and mala skewers, “spicing up” our first impressions of Chongqing as we concluded our first day.
Day 2: Dazu Rock Carvings
We visited Dazu Rock Carvings– which is categorised as an AAAAA-level tourist attraction– and admired the spectacular Buddhist culture of the Song Dynasty. As we listened to the guide’s explanation, we realised that this attraction was truly fascinating: every Buddha sculpture was extremely detailed. We were impressed by the effort put in by those who managed to carefully carve these sculptures 800 years ago. What shocked us more was that when placed together in a gallery style, the sculptures of Dazu Rock Carvings told a full story, which displayed the faith people had towards their religion. From the story, we also learnt the importance of filial piety, and to always be thankful for what we have.
Day 3: The charm of Chongqing
After breakfast, we got to experience the transport system in Chongqing by taking the Chongqing Rail Transit to the well-known Liziba Station where the trains travel right through a housing block. Although we have seen such videos online before, being able to witness it in real life was a totally different experience. Chongqing is located in an area with many mountain ranges, making it a challenge to construct a developed rail transit system. Liziba Station is proof of the great planning and wisdom behind Chongqing’s rail transit system– one that is worth learning from！
In the afternoon, we paid a visit to Raffles City Chongqing in Chaotianmen (built and run by CapitaLand), where the person-in-charge introduced the features and meaning behind this project to us. Chaotianmen square was once a port used to welcome imperial edicts, hence carried great historical importance, and it is now located in a prime area in today’s Chongqing. The fact that this location is being used for the Chongqing Connectivity Initiative, a priority demonstration project between China and Singapore, demonstrates the close ties between the two countries. We then proceeded to Changan Automobile Factory (one of China’s state-owned enterprises), and observed how the factory manufactured cars, as well as learnt more about state-owned enterprises. As dusk fell, we visited BreadTalk at Chongqing’s Shin Kong Place, and immediately felt closer to home at the sight of a familiar Singapore brand. The wide variety of bread and pastries had us uncontrollably buying a few to taste –and they were delicious, even though many of the bread sold in Chongqing were different from the ones in Singapore. The bakery had found ingenious ways to integrate Chongqing’s food cultures into the bread, creating interesting and unique local flavors.
Day 4
Chongqing No.8 Middle School has a history of 80 years, and is a very well-known school in Chongqing. We were given a guided tour of the school’s newest campus, the Yubei campus, by enthusiastic teachers and students. One could really tell China’s emphasis on education and their efforts towards grooming the students. During our tour in Chongqing No.8 Middle School’s archives, the teacher placed great emphasis on the school motto “Nurturing talents”. This showed how much the school valued the students’ conduct and behaviour, and I believe that their achievements today must be closely related to the way they firmly enforce their founder’s ideals.
Chongqing No.8 Middle School arranged enriching lessons for us, ranging from a fun Wushu lesson to a tie-dye workshop where we handmade our own tie-dye products. We also participated in the community service activities, where we visited a nearby old-folks home with the students of Chongqing No.8 Middle School. Each of our groups prepared a performance item for this visit to show our spirit of giving back to society. The elderlys there were really friendly, and were excited to know that we were students from overseas. They were more than willing to share their experiences with us. This was the first time we did volunteer work overseas, and even though our interaction with them lasted for only a few short hours, it was really an unforgettable experience.
Day 5: Goodbye Chongqing
The visit to the Three Gorges Museum allowed me to understand the historical landscape of the Three Gorges and the importance of Yangtze toward Chongqing’s development. Chongqing was the temporary capital of China during the Second Sino-Japanese War, and it became an important anti-fascist city. Chongqing’s geographical location also brought about development in the city during post-war times, causing it to be one of the major cities in China today.
Thereafter, we visited Zhou Jun Ji, a private enterprise in China famous for its steamboat seasoning. We learnt more about their manufacturing process and bought some of their products afterwards. Through this visit, we also learnt about the challenges these private enterprises face and their respective development in China.
In the evening, we concluded our time in Chongqing and boarded the high-speed rail to Chengdu. The rapid advancement of the high-speed rail and its well-developed system has brought great convenience to the people and allowed China’s economy to flourish as it links up the various major cities in China. We spent the first night in Chengdu in a communist-themed hotel, which was designed based on the Mao Zedong era. As the hotel was located on the outskirts of Chengdu, the lack of facilities affected our quality of rest, but I guess this was a rare opportunity for us to experience a different kind of lodging.
Day 6: Travelling across China
Early in the morning, we first visited Liu’s Manor and Anren Town. Through these historical buildings, we learnt about life back in the olden days and the cultural history behind them. Afterwards, we visited the Jianchuan Museum Cluster where we visited museums with different themes. For example, we learnt about the days when the Nationalist Party and Communist Party battled against Japan together, the hardships they went through as they worked together and the times when they fought against each other. Each museum allowed us to gain new insights of the history of different periods in China’s modern times.
Day 7: Singaporeans in Chengdu
We were very fortunate to have a chance to visit the Consulate General of the Republic of Singapore in Chengdu and learn from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs officers. They shared about the future development and opportunities in China’s West region and also the collaboration between Singapore and China. The experiences they shared about their work as MFA officers greatly benefited everyone.
Following up, we also visited Raffles’ City under Chengdu’s CapitaLand. We received a very warm welcome from the project manager as he brought us around and introduced to us the way of management and their ideals. He also shared about the knowledge he has gained in China. Afterwards, we had dinner with fellow Singaporeans who were either working or starting a business in Chengdu. They shared about their life in China and work experiences, giving us lots of advice and allowing us to understand the development of China from different points of views.
Day 8: Exploring the city map
We finally had the long-awaited city exploration activity! We needed to explore the local way of living in groups in the form of group competition. I found this learning experience especially interesting as it allowed us to thoroughly explore the city and understand how life there was really like. We had many opportunities to interact with the locals to learn more about Chengdu culture from their perspectives as we moved through the city to complete our tasks. During the exploration, each group tried their best in order to win and the competitiveness made the entire process exciting and fun. It was definitely a memorable learning experience.
Day 9: Crossing mountains and rivers
Our stamina was really put to test on this day of climbing and trekking, but everyone still had a blast! We first visited the majestic looking Dujiangyan Irrigation System, understanding its importance to the entire Chengdu’s irrigation system. The knowledge and wisdom of people from thousands of years ago was truly remarkable.
We also went to Mount Qingcheng to learn about its history and religious cultural value. Mount Qingcheng is one of Chinese Taoism’s places of origin and this famous Taoism mountain is said to be highly valued by all dynasties. It was a pity that it drizzled that day. Even though everyone persevered through and climbed to the top of the mountain, it left some regrets in us as we were unable to fully admire the scenery and pay tribute to Taoist deities. But this was made up by the Sichuan Opera show later that night, which was simply incredible! Enjoying and appreciating all the talented performances with the locals allowed us to experience how life is like living in Sichuan.
Day 10: National Treasure
We definitely cannot miss visiting pandas when we visit Chengdu, which is the home of this “national treasure” of China! Our anticipation grew as we approached this day listed on our itinerary, and we were bursting with excitement when we finally saw those cute pandas at the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Pandas. After watching the way the cute pandas laze around, everyone could not help but fall in love with them. All of us had a blast there!
Moving on, we paid a visit to ByteDance, the company that founded TopBuzz and TikTok. We learnt about the strategies they use to develop different applications and also the development of digital media in China. I found out that many China corporates are now focusing on their development in the field of Artificial Intelligence (AI), and that innovation and continuous research in the age of digital media will be the new main driving force for China’s future development. This is definitely worth our attention and we can learn more about it.
Day 11: School Exchange
On our second last day of the trip, we went to Chengdu’s LongQuan No. 2 Middle School and interacted with their teachers and students. Once we stepped into the campus ground, we immediately felt the warm welcome extended by the school members. Afterwards, we joined the students in paper cutting class and martial arts class. We joined the school’s international class students, who were studying one foreign language (Korean, Russian, Italian and French), along with the two languages they are already learning in school – Chinese and English. They were all trilingual, and we were extremely impressed! LongQuan No. 2 Middle School is an arts and sports school, hence students were given many opportunities to develop in their co-curricular activities. The students were all talented, passionate and proactive, and we befriended one another in no time at all!
In the afternoon, we went to Chengdu’s University of Electronic Science and Technology and visited their museum, innovation centre and library, where there was a virtual reality (VR) gaming area. The library used a face identification system that was used in China’s skynet programme to grant entry to visitors. After learning more about it, we realised that China is already very developed in the technology of scientific face identification. This allowed us to have a much better understanding about China’s development in areas of electronic science and AI.
Day 12: Farewell
On the last day of our trip, we visited Wuhou Temple and Jinli Street to learn about the historical importance of Chengdu in the Capital of Shu Kingdom during the Three Kingdoms period. Wuhou Temple was built to commemorate the bright and intelligent Zhu Ge Liang. We also went to the Thatched Cottage of Du Fu, immersing ourselves in the local cultural atmosphere and also its local flavour. Ms Lan, our tour guide, explained about spring festival couplets to let us understand more in-depth about the ancient purpose from those Chinese words.
It seemed only befitting that it started to drizzle on our final day in China; gusts of wind blew past and autumn leaves scattered on the ground. Everyone was busy taking pictures and doing some last minute shopping. Even though we were filled with reluctance to leave, we still felt immensely blessed to have had this rare opportunity of participating in our last bicultural overseas trip. Over the past 12 days, we gained much more knowledge about China’s development in different areas, as well as formed new perspectives on the Singaporean culture and what it means to be Singaporean. Thank you to the 4 teachers for taking care of us, helping us to plan our schedule, preparing information and leading our daily reflection activity. I am grateful for everyone’s participation and forming wonderful memories together!
Translated by Lee Hui En 李卉蒽 (20-I4)
and Quek Zhi Jun 郭芷君 (20-A6)
原文
诺雅行天下 ——记2018双文化重庆成都学习浸濡之旅
2018年11月24日，诺初35名双文化学生在4位老师的带领下，开启了中国重庆成都为期12天的双文化之旅，这次旅行是个非常充实的学习之旅。行程包含了企业参访、学校交流、社区慰问、城市探索等很多方面的学习内容，而通过亲身体验当地人的生活，也让我们对中国的风土人情有了更全面的认识。
第一天 启程
经过五个小时的飞行之后，我们的飞机终于到达重庆，带着期待与好奇，大家兴奋地踏上了旅程的第一个景点 —— 洪崖洞。从机场到洪崖洞，我们在巴士上看到了重庆市繁华、绚丽的夜景：随处可见的高楼大厦和跨越两江的一座座大桥被霓虹灯装饰得梦幻无比，令我感到十分震撼。而洪崖洞独特的巴渝传统建筑特色外观也十分迷人，这里据说也是日本动漫千与千寻的取景地之一。而置身其中，你会发现四周人山人海，热闹极了，而且到处都能见到不同的摊位正在摆卖重庆土产和道地的麻辣串，就这样我们在扑面而来的重庆味道中，度过了我们这次旅行的第一个夜晚。
第二天 大足石刻
我们到了中国 5A级的旅游景点——大足石刻，欣赏了宋代时期壮观的佛教文化。通过讲解员的解说，我们了解了大足石刻的魅力所在：这里每一尊佛像的雕刻十分精致，让我们惊叹800年前人们的伟大，竟能在高山在如此细心的雕刻。而更令人叹服的是大足石刻通过回廊式的雕刻群构成了一个完整的故事体系，显示了人们对他们宗教的信仰。我们也从雕刻的故事中意识到了孝顺父母的重要性，也懂得要继续积德感恩现在所拥有的一切。
第三天 重庆城市魅力
吃完早餐后，我们先去体验了重庆的城市交通系统，通过搭乘轻轨到了著名的李子坝站，看到轻轨直接穿入住家的画面。虽然之前在网上就有看过这轻轨直接穿入住家的视频，但亲眼目睹的感觉还是很不一样。重庆的地理位置山脉较多，要在诸多山脉中构建一个发达的轻轨交通系统十分不易，而李子坝站象征了重庆交通系统和规划的智慧，值得我们学习！
当天下午，我们参访了凯德集团在重庆的朝天门莱佛士广场的建筑工地，当地负责人向我们介绍了朝天门项目的特点以及意义。朝天门所处的位置在重庆市的黄金地段，在古代更是迎接圣旨的码头，历史文化意义重大。而在此建立中新两国互联互通战略的示范项目更显示了两国之间的密切合作以及共同发展的意愿。然后我们到了长安汽车厂（中国的国企之一），看到了汽车厂如何建造一辆车，也更加了解国企的经营。傍晚我们参访了重庆新光天地面包物语，大家一看到新加坡的品牌就倍感亲切，在看到各式各样的面包和糕点后更是忍不住买了几个来试吃，味道真不错！特别的是这里的面包种类与新加坡并不一样，这家店巧妙地烘培了与当地重庆饮食文化有关的面包，实在是有趣的创新。
第四天
重庆市第八中学校是一间有着80多年历史的学校，在重庆市非常有名。在热情的当地师生带领下，我们参访了重庆八中渝北壮观的校区。渝北校区是八中最新的校区，规模特别大，学校的施舍也非常完善。看得出中国对教育发展的重视和对栽培学生不懈努力。八中设有一个专门介绍学校的校史馆，老师在向我们讲解时一直强调“树人有道”的校训，可见学校很重视学生们的品行，相信取得今日的成就也跟他们一贯坚持创办人的理念分不开。
八中为我们安排了丰富的体验课程，在八中的扎染工作坊，亲手制作了扎染艺术品之后，我们跟着体育老师上了一堂武术课，大家在学习武术的过程中玩得很开心。之后我们也参与了社区服务社团活动，与八中的学生们到附近的老人院慰问。为了这次的参访，我们各组都准备了表演项目，以展现我们社区服务精神。而老人院的老人都很友善，听说我们是从外国而来的学生之后也都很兴奋，非常乐意与我们分享他们的经验。这次的义工活动是我们第一次到国外当义工，与他们相处交流虽然只是短短的几个小时，但这次的经验永生难忘。
第五天 再见重庆
三峡博物馆的参观让我认识了三峡的历史景观以及长江对重庆发展的重要性。重庆作为抗日战争的临时首都，成为了反法西斯的重要城市，而战后重庆重要的的地理位置也带动了重庆的发展，成为了中国的重要城市。
之后，我们到了中国一个著名的火锅调味料民营企业周君记参访，了解了该公司的生产过程也购买了周君记的产品。通过此次的民营企业参访，让我们了解民企在中国的发展和困难。
傍晚时分，我们结束了此次重庆部分的行程，搭乘高铁抵达成都。如今中国的高铁迅速发展而且系统完善，连接了中国各大的城市，为人民带来了极大的方便，带动中国经济的蓬勃发展。还记得我们在成都第一晚的住宿，是一间红色主题的宾馆，宾馆是以毛泽东时期的风格而设计的。由于宾馆在郊外，设施明显的不足影响了我们的休息，但我想这或许是个难得的机会让我们有机会体验非凡的住宿。
第六天 穿越民国
早晨，我们先游览了刘氏庄园和安仁镇，通过这些民国时期的建筑，我们了解了当时人们的生活和文化历史。随后我们参观了建川博物馆，通过实物展览了解了国民党和共产党在抗日战争所付出的努力以及两党之间的内战以及合作。不同的主题博物馆也让中国近代不同时期的历史有了新的认识。
第七天 新加坡人在成都
我们很庆幸能有机会拜访新加坡驻成都总领事馆，与外交官员们学习和讨论。他们分享了中国西部地区的发展和未来机遇，也分享了新中合作项目和他们当外交官的经验这些宝贵的分享让大家获益不浅。
接着我们参访了成都凯德集团旗下的莱佛士城，项目经理非常热情地招待了我们，带领我们四处游览，他向我们介绍了莱佛士城的管理方式和理念，也分享了他在中国所学习到的知识。之后，我们也跟在成都创业或工作的新加坡人一起共进了晚餐，他们分享了他们在中国生活和工作的经验，给了我们不少金玉良言，让我们从不同角度了解了目前中国的发展状况。
第八天 城市地图探索
今天，我们终于迎来了大家盼望已久的城市探索活动！我们需要通过小组竞赛的方式深入探索成都当地的衣食住行。我觉得这种学习方式特别有趣，让我们有了深入城市独自探索的机会，也可以更加了成都的衣食住行与文化。在完成活动的过程中，我们体验了成都的轻轨，也跟当地人进行了直接的沟通交流。在探索过程中，各小组为了夺冠都全力以赴，整个过程即刺激又有趣，是一次难忘的学习体验。
第九天 跋山涉水
今天的整个行程非常考验我们的体力，全程又爬山又走路， 但大家还是玩得很高兴。我们首先见证了壮观的都江堰工程，了解了都江堰对整个成都市的水系统的重要意义，古人千年之前的智慧实在令人佩服。
我们也去了青城山，了解这座山的历史与宗教文化价值。青城山是中国本土道教的发源地之一，可以说是受历朝重视的一座道教名山。可惜当天下了点小雨，虽然大家都坚持着爬到了山顶！但无法慢慢欣赏山上的风景与瞻仰道教的神仙，多少有些令人遗憾，不过晚上的川剧表演，实在太棒了！在舞台下欣赏各个才华横溢的演出，让我们亲身体验了四川人的生活与四川人一同欣赏表演。
第十天 国宝
到了成都，有一种中国的国家之宝一定不可错过——那就是大熊猫！经过很多天的期待，我们终于在成都的熊猫基地见到了可爱的大熊猫！在看到熊猫懒散可爱的样子之后，大家都禁不住喜欢上了它们，在熊猫基地玩得不亦乐乎。
之后，我们也去了创办今日头条和抖音的公司，了解了该公司发展不同应用程序的策略以及新媒体在中国的发展。我发现了很多中国企业正在朝着人工智能领域不断发展，而在新媒体时代科技的创新和持续的研究将是中国未来发展的新重点，这值得我们去关注与学习。
第十一天 学校参访
行程倒数第二天，我们到成都市的龙泉二中与师生们进行了交流，刚进校门，我们就感受到了学校热烈的欢迎。之后我们与龙泉二中的学生们一起上了剪纸课和武术课，和我们一同上课的是龙泉二中的国际班，他们正在修读一门外国语（韩语、俄语、意大利语和法语）再加上他们在学校所学的汉语和英语，可说是精通三种语言，这让我们大家都很惊讶！龙泉二中是个艺术体育学校，因此学生们在课外活动的发展得到更好的发挥，学生们才华横溢，也更加热情主动。这也让我们跟龙泉二中的学生们很快地聊到了一起成为了朋友。
下午，我们去了成都的电子科技大学，参观了大学的图书馆、博物馆和创新馆。在图书馆里设有VR游戏，而在创新馆有中国天网工程采用的人脸识别系统，通过学习，我们发现中国在高科技面部识别科技已经很发达，这让我们对中国在电子科技和人工智能发展方面有了更全面的认知。
第十二天 惜别
最后的一天，我们到了武侯词和锦鲤古街，了解成都作为三国时期蜀国都城的历史意义。武侯祠是为纪念聪明机智的诸葛亮而设立的。我们也到了杜甫草堂，感受当地的文化气息和地方风味。导游蓝导一一为我们解释春联，让我们从文字中更能体会了解古人的涵义。
在这最后的一天，突然下起了绵绵细雨，一阵凉风吹过秋叶散落在大地。大家都抓紧时间在最后一天拍照购物。虽然内心充满不舍，但我们很庆幸有这次难得的机会参与最后一次的双文化之旅。在这12天的双文化重庆成都之旅，相信大家获益匪浅了解了中国各方面的发展，也更加理解作为一位新加坡人的意义。我们一同游学学习、交流，互相帮助照顾彼此，为这12天留下了美好的回忆。感谢4位老师的细心照顾，帮我们筹划行程，准备资料，带领我们每日的反思活动。感恩有大家的参与，让我们留下了完美的共同回忆！
| 我为何选择翻译本作品：我在学校网上读到这篇作品时就对它特别感兴趣！因为这位学姐精心将12天的旅程，每一天的过程，学到的东西，自己的感想等都记录了下来。从而，我在读的时候也似乎和她一起踏上了那一次学习之旅，学到了多些有关中国的新知识。老师们让我们选作品时，就立刻想到了读到的这篇作品，想尝试翻译，将这篇作品分享给更多人阅读。 |
作者：姚文轩 (18-A1)
Eudaimonia 