Learning a lot over the break

COEUR d'ALENE - Put the words "student," "spring break" and "travel" together, and it usually means frat party-like festivities on sunny southern beaches.

Not so for a group of Lake City High School students who opted for a more educational spring break trip - to China.

"It was really good going with a historical background," said Jenny Brooks, an 11th-grade International Baccalaureate Chinese Studies student at Lake City High.

Brooks was one of 11 students, mostly juniors, who spent eight days at the end of March exploring Beijing, The Great Wall, and Shanghai. The trip was led by two teachers, Chinese Studies instructor Sandy Biondo, and Eric Edmonds, who teaches World History.

The trip was not affiliated with or sponsored by Lake City High School or the Coeur d'Alene School District. All expenses were paid for by the students and teachers themselves.

The travelers were struck by the cleanliness of the cities, the warm welcome they received from Chinese citizens, and the lack of Communist influence.

"I teach history, so I was open for propaganda," Edmonds said.

He didn't see it.

"They're out-capitalizing the U.S.," he said.

Cody Main, a senior and another Chinese Studies student, observed no evidence of a totalitarian regime.

"It was very much like any Western nation," Main said.

Main's classmate, Jordan Finney, said it was evident that people were working toward achieving financial security. Homeless people offered items for sale, she said, rather than just begging.

The group heard a lot about China's back-story from their tour guide.

"He spoke very candidly about things that had happened years ago, negative, horrible things," said Biondo. "It didn't appear there was any effort to repress this information."

The students represented the United States in a way that made Biondo "incredibly proud." She was impressed with the teens' willingness to try new things, "every food, every custom."

Even duck bladder for breakfast in Beijing.

Cody Main ate the fowl organ for two days before he knew what it was, and said it tasted like "shredded turkey."

The students and teachers noted there was a lack of the sugary sweetness or saltiness they are used to in many American foods. They also found the portion sizes in China were smaller than those in the U.S., but the travelers felt they were well-fed.

The group visited a middle school in Shanghai, and found it resembled an American middle school in many ways.

While students in the U.S. say the Pledge of Allegiance before the U.S. flag, Cody Main said the school children in China marched outside their school in "regimented formation" to a flagpole where they sang the Chinese national anthem.

There were some differences the U.S. travelers noted.

The Chinese school children exercised in the morning, as the U.S. travelers discovered was the custom for much of the population. It was not unusual for the American visitors to witness large groups of people gathered in parks in the mornings practicing Taiji, also known as Tai Chi, a Chinese martial art characterized by slow, meditative movements.

"They have a huge respect for teachers over there," Main said.

The American visitors observed that school children in China stand when speaking to an instructor.

Lake City High student Jordan Finney said she not only learned firsthand about Chinese culture and history, but also experienced a deeper sense of pride as an American, and an enhanced appreciation of American values and the U.S. Constitution.