Great Wall
Our time in China is coming to a close. We are at the Beijing airport and waiting for our flight. Here are a couple more pictures from our time in Beijing. 1) CHEX group on the Great Wall. 2) CHEX in front of the 2008 Olympic Bird nest stadium. See everyone soon!!!!
Beijing!
CHEX 2012 arrived safe and sound in Beijing today. We even arrived early enough to get a full day of sight seeing in. We visited Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, went to a tea tasting and finished off the day with dumplings.
Brookline-Gaoxin 2011-2012 Exchange Group
Cuihua Mountain
This past Saturday we had our last weekend excursion to Cuihua Mountain. This lake was formed when the mountain collapsed during and earthquake. The highlight was probably the ice cave that was also created by the collapse. It was a hot day in the upper 80s but the cave was below 40. Picture of the group at the mouth of the cave below.
Chengdu - Buddha and Monkeys
CHEX group at the base of the giant stone Buddha in Leshan Sichuan Province. More pictures below: 1) Climbing Mt. Emei a famous Buddhist mountain 2) Gabbi tangled up with a wild monkey, everyone is fine
Chengdu Trip - Temples and Pandas
Today is the third day of sight seeing in Chengdu and the surrounding area. This is a picture of the group at a local temple that had beautiful gardens. More pictures below: 1) Hallee and Ellie showing off their street food. 2) CHEX Group getting ready to see the Sichuan opera. 3) The amazing face changing show. 4) Panda!
5) CHEX group yet another beautiful garden.
5) CHEX group yet another beautiful garden.
Big Wild Goose Pagoda
BHS group at the Big Wild Goose Pagoda. BWGP is the oldest structure in a very old city. Build in the Tang to house Buddhist documents and relics brought back from India. Two more pictures bellow. 1) Buddha in his temple at the base of the Pagoda.
2) Yet another Buddha who doles out good luck for a rub of the belly.
2) Yet another Buddha who doles out good luck for a rub of the belly.
Day at the South Lake
BHS Group at the South Lake. The South Lake is a massive artificial lake that is surrounded by sculptures and park space. We took the 'train' all the way around.
Yunnan Trip
CHEX group at the foot of the Jade Dragon Snow Mountain. Today is Monday and we have just returned from a 5 day tour of Yunnan Province. In addition to the JDS mountain we visited Kunming City, Dali old city district, Lijiang village and a spattering of other sights. All beautiful and very unique. More on this in the blog soon and more pictures below. 1) CHEX ladies at a Buddhist monastery in the shadow of the JDS mountain. 2) CHEX gentlemen with Young G (our Gaoxin teacher leader) in Dali old city 3) Walking though Lijiang 4) CHEX group in the Stone Forest near Kunming City 5) Dancing in Lijiang
Shaanxi History Museum
BHS group at the Shaanxi History Museum. Also pictured Kevin and Yang Lao Shi (one of our Chinese language teacher and a Shaanxi History museum guide). Pictures below: 1) Students observing an artifact heavily influenced by the Silk Road from the Tang Dynasty.
2) Kite flying is a big deal here. This guy had what seemed like hundreds of small kites strung together.
2) Kite flying is a big deal here. This guy had what seemed like hundreds of small kites strung together.
Culture Classes at the Gaoxin School
I recently realized that some of you may have never seen a picture of the Gaoxin No. 1 High School. I took this shot from a building across Tanyang Rd. The school is center view. The kids walk through the large courtyard everyday on the way to classes. The building with the rounded walls (very center of the picture and to the right of the courtyard) is the auditorium space where we gave our speeches. Behind the main building are playing fields and a track. The students recently had a Kungfu lesson there. My wife took some shots (see below).
Tang Paradise Photos
Terra-Cotta Warriors
BHS group pictured with Johnny, our tour guide for the day. This picture does capture the excitement we all felt but does not do justice to the size of this room or the scope of the the first Emperor of China, Qin Shi Huang's vision for his after life. Read more here. More pictures in the blog.
Dui Bu Qi
Welcome Ceremony
BHS group and the leaders of the Gao Xin School at the official Welcome Ceremony. Madame Wang the high school principal
is the center of the second row. Mr. Wang (no relation), middle school principal
is seated to the right of Madame Wang. Other notables: Xiaolan, our coordinator at the HS, is second from the right in the back row. Also, Jevons and Selina are in the back row. (Read more in the blog)
is the center of the second row. Mr. Wang (no relation), middle school principal
is seated to the right of Madame Wang. Other notables: Xiaolan, our coordinator at the HS, is second from the right in the back row. Also, Jevons and Selina are in the back row. (Read more in the blog)
Visit to the Stele Forest
BHS group at the Stele Forest. (Click here)
All smiles at the Bell Tower
The Bell Tower is in the exact center of the city. This was the first place we visited on our first tour. From the Bell Tower you can see each of the four main gates of the city wall.
We have Arrived!
BHS CHEX Group (and friends) at the Xian Airport after 23+ hour traveling. We were welcomed by a huge crowd and flowers!
Welcome!
Hello All,
Welcome to 2011-2012 Brookline China Exchange website. The China Exchange is a two way exchange between Brookline High School in Brookline Massachusetts and the Gaoxin No. 1 High School in Xi'an China. In the fall 8 students and 1 teacher come to Brookline from Xi'an to live with host families and to attend BHS. In the spring 8 students and 1 teacher travel to Xi'an to attend the Gaoxin No 1. High School. It is an exchange of language, culture, ideas and education. Friendships are built, new family members are welcomed and lives are often transformed. I, Brad Kozel, am the BHS teacher that has been given the opportunity to travel with 8 of Brookline's best and brightest (see picture below). Over the course of our trip the students and I will be using this website as a platform to share our experiences with anyone who chooses to visit the site. I do not know exactly know how the site will evolve over the time that we are in China but I plan to always update this main page with pictures and significant events. Additionally, the blog will see regular entries from me and also the students as a part of their reflective journal assignments.
Best,
Brad Kozel
Welcome to 2011-2012 Brookline China Exchange website. The China Exchange is a two way exchange between Brookline High School in Brookline Massachusetts and the Gaoxin No. 1 High School in Xi'an China. In the fall 8 students and 1 teacher come to Brookline from Xi'an to live with host families and to attend BHS. In the spring 8 students and 1 teacher travel to Xi'an to attend the Gaoxin No 1. High School. It is an exchange of language, culture, ideas and education. Friendships are built, new family members are welcomed and lives are often transformed. I, Brad Kozel, am the BHS teacher that has been given the opportunity to travel with 8 of Brookline's best and brightest (see picture below). Over the course of our trip the students and I will be using this website as a platform to share our experiences with anyone who chooses to visit the site. I do not know exactly know how the site will evolve over the time that we are in China but I plan to always update this main page with pictures and significant events. Additionally, the blog will see regular entries from me and also the students as a part of their reflective journal assignments.
Best,
Brad Kozel
Brookline China Exchange Group 2012
Bottom Row Left to Right:
Maya Shaked, Hallee Wong, Nicki Polyakov, Gabbi Zutrau, Levi Goldfarb, Bela Bogdanovic, Brad Kozel
Top Left to Right:
Ellie Flammia, Terra-Cotta Warrior, Will Addelson
Maya Shaked, Hallee Wong, Nicki Polyakov, Gabbi Zutrau, Levi Goldfarb, Bela Bogdanovic, Brad Kozel
Top Left to Right:
Ellie Flammia, Terra-Cotta Warrior, Will Addelson