The trip has increased my knowledge of China. After going to Shanghai and Yangzhou, I have seen how different the lifestyles of Singaporeans and Chinese are. I have also gain more insight and understanding of the different values and beliefs of the Chinese in China. After this trip, I am now more appreciative of my life in Singapore, and am proud to be a Singaporean.
After going to China, my knowledge of China has increased greatly. I now understand China more, having experienced and witnessed for myself how China is like real life, instead of just reading from books or researching from the internet. For example, I have always imagined Shanghai to be a crowded, populated area and very polluted, considering how modernised Shanghai is. However, when I actually saw Shanghai for myself, I realised that it was actually a beautiful place, with many wonderful sights. From knowing only about Shanghai xiao long bao, I now know, and even first hand seen what makes Shanghai such a well-received tourist attraction. Shanghai's famous tourist attractions are the huang pu jiang and the bund. Huang pu jiang being a favourite tourist attraction is not a surprise. Riding on a boat along a river, with buildings and the beautiful skyline along the river banks puts anyone in a pleasant mood, and allows one to sit back and relax, and perhaps just reflect on what happened that day. The bund is another scenic spot. Like huang pu jiang, it is very modernised, surrounded by buildings and artefacts, each with a story behind its construction. For example, the vintage like European styled houses dates back to the French concession and the three memorial pillars which each signify three major wars in china, the Sino-Japanese wars, Opium Wars and the Chinese Civil wars. Both places are significant in the history of Shanghai, as a memory for the Shanghai people, of the times and experiences they went through during the periods of hardship for many Chinese. I feel that this is a commendable effort of the government in keeping a part of Shanghai's history. However, to keep up with the modern times, for the European houses, the interior has been renovated to cater to the needs of a modern society like Shanghai. Although the exterior is very well-maintained the interior does not reflect the history of Shanghai at all, the interior is mostly banks or offices, without a trace of the olden European interior styles. Although now the government can never bring back the interior design, but to boost china historical culture, the government can consider not renovating the interior of other historical artefacts so as to also preserve a piece of China's history.
In Yangzhou, I have also experience lifestyle in china. In Yangzhou and in Shanghai are quite different, though both are from the same country. In Shanghai everything is modern, and the roads were cramming with cars and heavy vehicles. However, in Yangzhou, many rode on bikes and scooters, and traffic was less heavy. The skyline were also different. At night, in Shanghai, the sky was filled with laser lights from buildings advertising their products. In Yangzhou, the sky was dark, and dull in comparison to Shanghai. However, it feels calmer in Yangzhou. Life seems laid back and more relaxing compared to Shanghai, as it has not been affected by the urbanisation and modernisation as much as many other places.
Compared to Shanghai, Yangzhou's efforts to preserve its historical culture is better. For example, many of the tourist attractions of Yangzhou are keep in nearly the same condition they were since the times of the dynasties, when the artefacts were constructed, like Lushi Mansion and Zhu Ziqing's residence. Although some parts have been renovated, like reconstructing the Lushi Mansion into a restaurant, the mansion is still largely intact. In Lushi Mansion, most furniture in the rooms have been replaced with restaurant kitchenware, however, the rest of the mansion is still like during the olden times. Similar to Lushi Mansion, Zhu Ziqing's residence is also very well-kept. In fact, besides the extension of an extra room to introduce Zhu Ziqing the place has hardly any changes to when it was build so long ago. Besides learning the efforts the government has to keep the valuable parts of history well-maintained, I have also learnt more about other factors of china, like its economy, and history and culture.
At the Beijing-hangzhou grand canal, I saw that by the banks, unlike huang up jiang, it was mostly trees and occasionally there will be buildings, mostly those kind of buildings constructed like in the past. Also, at one time, only one boat is riding along the river whereas in Shanghai there were about four to five boats. The canal is also a very important part of China's history. It was a main transportation route for transporting goods like salt. Through the boat ride along the Beijing-hangzhou grand canal, I understood and learn how important the rivers were for transportation in the past. It was important in selling and transporting goods, which is a significant economical factor. However, it is tragic as the canal had gone through a period of downfall, due to natural disasters like flooding. If there were not so many natural disasters, I believe Yangzhou would have also prospered like Shanghai, and we might not be able to experience a piece of historical china.
Another attraction of Yangzhou is the Shouxi lake. Shouxi lake is a smaller, imitation of the West lake, and much liked by emperors like Kangxi and Qianlong, for its beautiful scenery. The layout of rocks and plants gives people a calming feeling, allowing one to relax. Just like Shouxi Lake, Ge garden has a similar effect, although with a different background story. Ge Garden belonged to the richest merchant back then during those times. He had specially build this garden, and planted many species of his favourite plant bamboo. Bamboo symbolises that his household residents will have a strong moral backbone, and is strong and resilient. Another unique part about Ge Garden is that the words on its tablets have missing strokes. It is to symbolise and for the merchant to remind his children that nothing is perfect, therefore they need to keep striving for excellence. Both places have in common the beautiful sights they provide, and the rich history behind the places. It is indeed an eye opener.
Visits to the Chinese cutting paper museum, Dong Guan Jie, Dong Quan Men and block printing museum also gave me an insight to China's history. The Chinese cutting paper museum taught me the traditional art of paper cutting. It also amazes me how talented our ancestors are, being able to cut out exquisite designs. Dong Guan Jie is rather modern to me. Although the exteriors are well-kept, inside the shops are all modern, selling goods like key chains and soft toys. At Dong Quan Men, I truly experience how it was like to be in the older times. Everything there seemed like a community which has not caught up with the modern times of today. Although the residents living there have modern amenities like air-conditioners, the design and architecture of the area still seemed like a scene from the past. The block printing museum is a very modern museum, yet filled with history of china. It introduces us to a significant accomplishment of the Chinese, printing. It is not like our high tech printer, where with a button your document will be printed in seconds. In the past, the words first had to be carved out on a block. One mistake and all your hard work will be meaningless. After that, it will be checked through once before spreading ink and printing. It is a long, tedious process, patience being the key to producing any worthy work. Seeing how the lives of our ancestors were in the past makes me appreciative of the luxuries I have right now with everything at my convenience and disposal.
As for education, I also find myself very lucky. In the school I visited in Yangzhou, the students used a backboard with a smart board while in singapore I use a whiteboard and even have my own iPad. Also, I am able to bring my phone to school, but the students in Yangzhou do not have the same privilege as me. Their education system is also more stressful than ours. Academics are their sole purpose of learning sometimes, and a large part of their lives revolves around getting good results. Unlike in singapore, in Yangzhou, their school ends at 6pm and they only have co-curriculum activities on Friday, and majority if the activities are academic based. When the students reach home, they have to complete all their homework and excluding eating time and bathing time, they hardly have any free time before they are suppose to sleep. Their academic lives are hectic and stressful to me. Now, I feel that Singapore's education system is very good. More priority is placed on holistic development. Also, we learn about more cultures. In Yangzhou, the students only learn about the traditional Chinese culture like Wushu and Chinese painting. In Singapore, we get to learn western cultures like the guitar and painting and Asian cultures like Javanese music. In Yangzhou, they have only one food choice, and eat with only chopsticks. In singapore, we have a variety to choose from, and we can choose our choice of utensils. Even our toilets are cleaner and more convenient. Through these experiences, I realise how lucky I am to be a singapore student. I have learnt to appreciate the luxuries I have which I used to take for granted. I have also learnt important values and attitudes from the students. They are attentive and have an excellent learning attitude. During class, they do not talk at all, and sit properly, unlike me in singapore when I slouch and sometimes zone out of lesson. The students also participate quite actively in class, answering the teacher when the teacher poses a question. I hope to be able to pick up and learn the same good, eager learning attitude they have.
One of my favourite places in Yangzhou is the Daming temple. One thing I saw at the temple which touched me was the banner hung at the entrance which wished the students good luck for their "Gao kao", similar to the A levels in singpaore. Seeing how the community all wishes the best for the younger generation to score well is very heartening. In the temple, I learn more about the religion Buddhism and of the kind, benevolent acts by the gods. Also, in the temple, there was a ancestral hall to commemorate the retired scholar Ou Yang Xiu for his benevolent rule and his contributions to Yangzhou. Something which struck me was when I was at a shop selling items in the temple, a mother came in to buy a lucky charm for her son. She wanted a blessed lucky pouch with the words "金榜题名”, which means to score high marks in examinations and do well, for her son's Gao kao examinations. It gave me an insight as to how important academics are to the students. It also touched me, as I saw an act of parental love. A mother coming all the way to a temple to buy a pouch to bless her son in his examinations might be a simple act, but who else will do so for students? Only parents will place buying a lucky charm for their son as their priority, maybe family members will do so too, but parents will do anything for their children to excel in life. It might seem like a simple action, like parents getting something to bless their children is normal, but the amount of parental love I feel from this simple action warms my heart.
Lastly, another factor of china is its transportation system. In China, I took the bullet train. I feel that the service in china is excellent. The seats are comfortable and you can even turn the seats around, unlike in singapore where on the train it is cramp and suffocating during peak hours. Maybe it is because the train is a second-class train, and passengers need to have a ticket, therefore more high class. Something startling in China which I saw was that on the train, besides us, the other Chinese passengers were reading, unlike us who were using our electronics devices. This is an indication to show that us people in singapore are perhaps too sucked into the world of technology and thus forget about the simple pleasures of activities like reading.
From this trip, I see how china's culture has affected singapore too, like us students learning the Chinese culture like art. Also I learn that the Chinese in Yangzhou, due to their more laid back lifestyle, enjoy a simpler life in general. But the focus on academics might be more detrimental than helpful to the students. Singapore can learn from china too, by preserving the old buildings we have which contain our precious memories. I know that space is much needed in singapore, but preserving our memories are also important too. After this trip, I feel very proud to be a Singaporean. I am lucky to be able to experience so many luxuries like my school. I am not bounded by the need to score good results which is the only factor for my future. I am able to learn and experience so many different cultures and have a unique culture of my own, a fusion of many cultures. For example my language, Singlish. It might seem unruly to some, exotic to some, but familiar to me. A mixture of English, Chinese, Hokkien, Malay is what special to me. Speaking plain English or Chinese might be more formal and acceptable, but our own fusion of language is what makes singapore special, and not just foreigners whose ancestors moved here a long time ago. We are unique, and I am proud of that.
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