The fun part about this film for me is that it somewhat exemplifies why I came to a liberal arts college (as cliche as that might sound). I absolutely love the fact that I will graduate from Colorado College as an Economics major with a solid documentary film to my name. In fact, the councilman in the film asked to use it in his efforts to work out land issues surrounding the trail. Nearing the end of my time at CC forces me to reflect, and this film is one of the things I am most proud of. It is just one example of the numerous other areas, outside of my major, which I have been afforded the chance to explore while here.

I encourage anyone and everyone to check out The Colorado College YouTube Channel. You’ll find countless great student films there.

The old studio at KRCC - it had it's charm!

We are now in the seventh week of The SOCC (The Sound of Colorado College) broadcasting from an entirely new location… Loomis Hall. For anyone who doesn’t know, The SOCC is Colorado College’s new student-run radio station. We began making noise in the spring of 2008, when our studio was located in the basement of KRCC’s Weber studios. You may ask what the difference between KRCC and The SOCC is. KRCC is Colorado College’s radio station and has been for the past 60 years or so. A few decades ago, KRCC began its transformation from a purely student-run college radio station into a professionally operated NPR affiliate. Today, KRCC’s licensee is still held by the college, but little student participation took place until a few years ago. In 2008, KRCC finished the purchase and upgrade to three HD channels on the regular 91.5 FM signal. HD radio, simply digital radio, is still terrestrial radio – no subscription is required. All you need is a new HD radio. To bring back extensive student involvement, KRCC gave HD3 to the students at Colorado College to do with it as they saw fit.

Today, The SOCC (KRCC-HD3) now broadcasts on the HD3 broadcast as well as over the internet at WWW.THESOCC.ORG. Run by three student staff members, The SOCC has around 50 volunteer DJs who man the station from Noon-2AM, seven days of the week. Some highlights of the 2009-2010 school year include an enormous crop of new DJs, the CC Debate Team Hour, and the continuation of some popular shows run by DJs who have been with the station since its inception.

Our new studio just after countertops and shelving were installed

As mentioned at the outset, The SOCC recently moved studios. We started in the dark, somewhat smelly basement of KRCC. This summer I worked with multiple folks on campus and at KRCC to initiate a move that had been discussed last semester while I was in China. Things came together, and now we are succesfully broadcasting from a small room off the Loomis Hall lobby.

The move has done wonders for The SOCC’s exposure to the campus and community. Before, people would often be surprised when told that we have a new student station. I think I can confidently say that most students, faculty, and staff have at least heard of The SOCC by now. It has been a personal pleasure working to bring something like this to the forefront of the CC community. Community radio is alive and well, even in this age where television and the internet seem to rule the communication stage. My goal is to make The SOCC as much a part of a Colorado College students daily routine as visiting Worner Center to check a mail box. As we grow and build upon our previous experience, I have no doubt that The SOCC will make a name for itself. Our move to this new central location is a great start. While it is sad leaving the folks who have nutured us through our infancy, it is time for us to try and walk on our own. KRCC will continue to keep us afloat through our struggles, but I am excited to see what we can do on our own a bit.

Check out our website to get more info and see a program schedule. Also, listen in over the Internet by clicking on the “listen now” links on the top left of our web page. Click the logo below to visit our site….

The first car load of equipment installed this summer in the new space

Vinyl, decorations, and little bit of character begin to fill in the new studio!

Harry on the sleeper bus out of Deqin - a bit of a tight squeeze

My last post covered what turned out to be one of the highlights of my almost four months in China. After an incredibly unique experience hiking to Yubeng, Harry and I split from the rest of our small group. At this point, I truly faced the reality that I would leave China in only a few days. My feelings were varied. I felt excited to see my family, friends, and enjoy some of the foods I so strongly missed. I also felt sad knowing that this was the last time, hopefully not for too long, that I would be with some of these people I had experienced so much with. I had already said goodbye to those friends in my program who hadn’t continued to Yubeng with us, but now I had to say goodbye to everyone but Harry. I had plenty of time to contemplate this on the 20+ hour sleeper bus ride we had to take out of Deqin to Kunming. Once in Kunming , Harry and I would board a plane to Guilin.

While on that sleeper bus, in the midst of trying to dodge the smelly feet of my fellow passengers, somehow making my little “bunk” as comfortable as possible, and keeping my body alert for flying spit from the top bunks, I had plenty of time to reflect on my time with the people that I had become so close to. It surprised me initially how strong the friendships were between all of us. How did we become life-long friends in four months? I attribute the closeness to many things. Of course, there was the obvious: we spent four months in a completely foreign land trying to feel our ways together. I still believe though, that we had sought each other out among the 60 or so people in the program for a reason. We were a diverse group, but one that seemed to understand each other and where we were coming from. At the same time, it was clear that our time abroad meant similar things for all of us. We were there to expand our understanding of how large the world really was, meet new people, and step outside of our comfort zones. We have stayed in touch since returning home and have already planned a little reunion in Washington D.C. this October. More on that when it happens…

My final days in China were perhaps the most fun and relaxed of any. Harry and I arrived in Guilin where we stayed the night before heading out to

Scenery leaving on a bamboo boat from Xingping to Yangshuo on the Li River

Yangshuo the following day. Our hostel in Yangshuo was about as entertaining as they come. The staff was playful and excited the entire time. The hostel was filled with travelers from all corners of the globe. We spent out nights on the roof-top bar of the hostel socializing and sharing traveling stories. During the days, we roamed the overly tourist streets of Yangshuo and picking different far off adventures to take. The karst scenery along the Li River in Yangshuo was the most dream-like scenery we had seen in China.

Our best adventures came from renting bicycles to roam the surrounding areas. Harry and I spent one day biking out into the middle of rural villages and fields. Drudging through muddy paths and fields, we reached a bridge (I believe it was the Dragon Bridge). This was one of those final moments in China where I was able to see things I could only imagine being a part of. Standing on the bridge, looking over bamboo rafts in the river below the shadowy peaks, my mind wandered to my return home. In all honesty my mind had been wandering frequently to that. Again, mixes of emotions were present. I think I was most enamored by the fact that in only a day or two I would be thousands of miles away. I was quick to realize the amazing privilege I had been given in being able to see this part of the world. From the support I received from friends and family to the availability of resources I had to do this trip. I still am thankful to so many people for the chance I had. I think I reached a place where I realized I had given so much to every moment in China, and these last few could not be any different.

View from the Dragon Bridge

I spent the last days in Yangshuo completely satisfied. Satisfied with the time I had spent, the place I was, and with my return home. Harry and I made a few good friends in Yangshuo, who thanks to the Internet we can still keep in touch with via facebook.

Harry and I finally boarded our last train in Guilin only a few days after arriving. We spent about 19 hours together before arriving back in Beijing. When we got back, we found a few friends still in Beijing and ate our final meal at our favorite restaurant near Beida – West Gate. I spent that night in a hotel before boarding my plane back to Chicago.

I left China with so much more than I had come with. It all may sound cliche, but going abroad naturally will teach you things. Among many things, I think I came away with an excitement for new things and an appreciation for the familiar. I have been lucky enough to share my stories and times here on this blog, but I look forward to hearing the stories from others. Whether they are stories from abroad, here at home, or the same old stories I’ve heard hundreds of times.

Thank you to everyone who has read these and commented. Thank you to everyone here at Colorado College who made this possible. I look forward to all the great stories that will get shared here this year!

A view from one of our bike rides

Monks at the largest Tibetan temple in Yunan Province. We visited this while in Shangri-la.

busy, but good. It is good to be back State-side. Before I launch into blogging about the summer, let me finish up my trip to China.

My final week in China was perhaps the most incredible of all. My last post was from Lijiang in the Yunan province. From Lijiang three friends and I separated from our program’s trip to finish on our own schedule. Our route took us from Lijiang to Shangri-La (only named that because the Chinese government wanted to create a tourist attraction). The town is also known as Zhongdian, but the area is noted as being very close to the Shangri-La described in the book, The Lost Horizon. From here we took a bus though winding mountain roads to Deqin. Deqin is about 80% Tibetan and going through a decent amount of construction despite the remote nature of the place.

Tashi's Mountain Lodge in Reringka village outside of Deqin.

We stayed 15 minutes outside of Deqin at Tashi’s Mountain Lodge. Tashi’s is a foreign trekker friendly guest house in a recently renovated Tibetan home. We arrived to find a beautifully rugged place that was run at the time by a couple from Italy, Phillip and Silvia. The two had stopped there a few weeks ago to find a job and ended up abandoned by the Tashi’s local staff who had retreated for a few months to the mountains to collect caterpillars that were supposedly full of medicinal value. From Tashi’s, we gathered information on a trek to a remote village, Yubeng, not accessible by road.

We payed a driver to take us to Xidang where the trail head for Yubeng is. We stayed a night with a Tibetan family in Xidang. Our host was a friendly older couple who spoke a Tibetan dialect. We communicated with hand gestures. The next day we began our 6-7 hour hike to Yubeng. The trail was surprisingly full of trekkers and locals. We had to hike over a mountain before we could drop down into Yubeng. Although cloudy, the top (before our descent into the village) was one of the most rewarding moments of my life. The magical scenery combined with the warmth of the Tibetan people gave me a whole new sense of China.

Our host in Xidang. We didn't know how to say her name, but she seemed to respond to the last part which sounded like "de ma."

We stayed that night in Yubeng under two peaks that were unlike anything I had ever seen. As one visitor to Tashi’s had described, “It is mountain paradise.” Words are hard to find when thinking about this place. I will let a few pictures tell the story. At the same time, this is not a place I want to spoil with too many pictures for those that ever make it there.

Yubeng borders the official Tibetan Autonomous Region. The two peaks we slept beneath in Yubeng (as well as the larger, Kawa Karpa, which is not visible from Yubeng) are considered by many to be the guardians of the Himalayas. Kawa Karpa is a holy mountain and visited frequently by monks. From here, my friend Harry and I seperated from our other two friends, Liz and Allyssa. We moved onto much more travelled locations in Guilin and Yangshuo.

To be continued…

At the top of the hike to Yubeng

Me overlooking parts of Xidang. Very, very green!

Among the prayer flags near the top of the hike into Yubeng

A look at lower Yubeng below the peaks

One of the guardian peaks of the Himalayas. This one is called Shenyufeng (6054 meters)

The first Tibetan we met in Yubeng - joyful and wearing a Jordan shirt. Being from Chicago I was happy to see my hometown hero's influence reached this far!

Night market in Xi'an. This place was extremely busy and really fun to walk around with lots of shops and food.

Once again, China has kept me so unbelievable occupied that it has been almost impossible to get a dull moment to sit down to write here. I am currently on my three week trip throughout China. We are currently staying in Lijiang – an old town in the Yunan province. Yunan is known for being the home of many of the ethnic minorities in China. Our trip has taken us to some amazing spots in China. So far, we have seen: the Terra-Cotta Warriors, the giant pandas and the Panda Research center in Chengdu, some of the muslim culture in Xi’an, and the largest buddha in the world in Leshan. Because of limited time and the wealth of information to share, I will post a series of pictures here instead of writing in depth on each place. I could write for days to be honest.

Some thoughts on the trip so far:

China is an unbelievable diverse, large, and fascinating place. Having only been on the road for about one week, we have seen some of the most major tourist spots in the country. I am consistently amazed at what I see. I am also noticing the large amount of Chinese tourists. With China’s economic boom, it seems that people here are traveling very frequently.

Thus far, it is really difficult to choose my favorite place on this trip. My favorite town is by far Lijiang. We are staying in the old town. While it is covered in gift shops and Chinese tourists, it is completely charming. It makes you feel as if you are seeing China hundreds of years ago.

Unfortunately, my camera broke while in Leshan. Thus, I do not have any pictures yet to post here from Lijiang. A friend is gathering some for me, but those may not be posted until my return to the States. My return is less that two weeks away. It seems that time has flown over here. I will likely have some time to post a few more stories and pictures once I am back. Until then, enjoy these pictures and hopefully one more post from this trip.

The giant pandas during feeding time and me. These guys were hilarious. Laziest animals on Earth.

For 100RMB you could hold a Red Panda. They look like raccoons, but are adorable.

the largest buddha in the world. It was HUGE!

Chicken-shaped dumplings in Xi'an. They didn't taste that good, but they looked cool.

Me in pit 1 at the Terr-Cotta Warriors. Just FYI - I wasn't listening to music there. I had no other place for my headphones from the bus ride!

On the field in the Bird's Nest - the main Olympic Stadium

I finally just posted a blog I have been thinking about for weeks now. Read it below – it was a really funny story about Easter here in China.

On that same line, there are so many stories and adventures I want to share with everyone who reads this blog. For a few reasons, I have not been able to post as much as I would like recently: namely, my flash drive with a back log of finished pieces got erased recently; there are too many amazing things happening for me to get them all down on paper; and, I am having trouble keeping myself seated a chair in front of the computer!

A major distraction lately has been both the weather and the quickly approaching end to our semester here. The weather has been better and better here in Beijing, which makes it hard to stay inside too much. As our semester comes to a close that means two things: I need to get done all the stuff in Beijing I wanted to do before May 2nd and we are gearing up for a three week excursion throughout China. The first two weeks will be with our program, but the final ten days or so will just be with a few friends. Over the course of the three weeks I will visit Xian, Chengdu, and most of the Yunan province. When we seperate from the program, my friends and I will travel to Shangri-la and then Deqin, which borders Tibet. We will take an excusion to a secluded village, Yubeng, at the base of one of Tibets holliest mountains. We will then travel to Yangshuo in the central part of China and then back to Beijing. My mind is scattered to say the least.

So, please hang in there as I get stories in order to share with you all here. For now, I’ll let my pictures tell some stories.

Shaolin kung-fu monks. We took a trip to the Shaolin Temple - the home of Kung Fu.

Me in front of one of the enormous Longmen Grottoes. This is the largest Buddha we saw there. Breathtaking!

Watching the sunrise after a night of sleeping on the Great Wall of China

My Chinese teacher and me posing for a picture on a weekend trip.

Outside the Water Cube - where Phelps set amazing world records

A total tourist picture, but how could I resist! This place was much smaller than you'd imagine.

A couple of weeks ago I had the most enlightening conversation with a fellow employee at work, Bill. Bill and I ate lunch together one of the Thursdays that I was at work. We took the elevator down from the 5^th floor of HanWei Plaza to the second basement level where the building’s cafeteria was waiting for us. On the way, we began talking as we frequently do about our past week or plans for the upcoming weekend. We had to halt the conversation for a moment as we entered the cafeteria to fill our trays with piles of interesting Chinese cafeteria food and rice (I tend to take extra servings of rice).

We sat down and continued our talk. Bill alerted me that the upcoming weekend was a Chinese Holiday – tomb-sweeping day. He explained that he would go with his family on Sunday to the graves of his elder family members and “sweep” their tombs. The holiday is meant to allow people a day to clean their deceased loved ones’ graves and pay their respects. Not everyone in China actually follows through with the tradition of the holiday, but everyone gets the Monday after the weekend off of work. Bill explained that it was only recently made into a national holiday.

His story inspired me to mention that Easter Sunday would be the following weekend. I asked Bill if he knew anything about Easter. He said he did and gave me back the watered down religious significance of the holiday. Though not prescribed to any religion, Bill understood the significance of the story of Jesus Christ’s resurrection. He then asked me what most American do on that day. Without hesitation I began to describe some of the common Easter traditions that my family practices: egg coloring, Easter egg hunts, giving chocolate, and eating a meal with the extended family. As I described some of this, Bill stared at me with the most confused look.

He asked me, “So, do you eat these eggs.” I laughed and said, “Well, no. We just color them, hide them, and then look for them.” As I said this, I began to realize this was somewhat of an odd tradition. Bill’s face said the same thing as my thoughts. Eggs make sense since they represent fertility and birth. Looking for them seems to have some relation to the story of Jesus’ resurrection. I then explained that little children are told that the “Easter Bunny” hides the eggs. This raised Bills eyebrows even more. He said, “Bunny’s don’t lay eggs. Why a bunny?” I had nothing. Why a bunny? What a great question. I would later research this. I told him I didn’t understand it, but it was kind of like Santa Clause. I’m not sure if that really helped.

I then added that we often exchange chocolate on Easter, especially chocolate bunnies. Bill responded, “So this is like Valentines Day. Why do Americans like chocolate so much?” I had to laugh. Again, I was slightly perplexed at my own cultural traditions. I could only shrug my shoulders. With that we mostly concluded our talk and went back to eating our rice and mush.

I discovered, through some extensive reading on Wikipedia, that the bunny has significance in old folktales from Germany. The nests that hares would build resembled those of a certain bird. Thus, it was written into some folktales that hares laid eggs. Somehow this worked its way into the Easter tradition.

Bill’s ignorance with respect to American cultural traditions was a blessing. It helped me look back at my family and myself. It mostly made me laugh at the absurdity of some traditions we have. Nonetheless, it provided a new perspective for me.

Wikipedia article on the Easter Bunny: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Easter_Bunny

After my spring break trip to Sanya, I returned to work on Tuesday. Within an hour of arriving at the office, Mr. Zhang was at my cubicle. He said, “Matt we need your help again.” Once again, Mr. Zhang was making me feel like 007. This time he just explained the situation at my cubicle: The intellectual property team (IP team) at Hylands needed to prepare for an important meeting the next morning. The meeting was with a potential corporate client. The IP team needed to convince this firm to hire Hylands for a potentially high profile IP case. The catch was the meeting would be held in English. So, Mr. Zhang asked if I could meet with his IP team so that they could practice their English and bounce ideas off of me.

We entered the meeting room and sat at the beautiful, large table. Mr. Zhang then explained to the group what we were doing. He said, “We are preparing for tomorrow’s meeting. I have asked Matt to attend and evaluate our English. If you have questions, please ask him. From now on, we will speak only in English.”

The International Trade team and me (not Mr. Zhang and his team, but I don't have a picture with them yet!)

Mr. Zhang then asked his team to begin explaining the facts of the case that they knew. Because they had not been hired yet, they had been given limited information. They spent about twenty minutes working out how to explain the case in English. I did my best to make sure that they’re explanations were very clear. The case dealt with managers of a corporation who had deceived the firm to pull profits away from a pending deal. I will spare you the details.

Once the team had finished explaining the case, they began to discuss strategy for their short meeting. I offered some suggestions, which were received very well. The team continued to ask questions about how to phrase certain ideas and concepts.

Mr. Zhang then said he had one final thing he would like me to do. He wanted me to summarize, in my own words, the case that they had explained to me.

He said, “We just explained that to you in English, however, we do not think first in English. We think in Chinese and translate in our heads. You are the only one who thinks in English first. So, if we hear a summary of this case from someone who is thinking in English first, we will have a much better understanding.”

I found this fascinating. I spent the next ten minutes explaining the case. When I was finished the team seemed extremely happy and thankful. I realized that it must have made a huge difference to hear it from a native speaker’s mouth. With that, we concluded the meeting.

These experiences with Mr. Zhang have been fantastic. I have felt increasingly more useful to the firm because of this. I do not speak Chinese well, so when I started work here I assumed my usefulness to the firm wasn’t great. It seems that just being a native English speaker has great value here. It’s almost like I am Hylands’ secret weapon. Well, maybe not quite, but it’s fun to think so.

Out the side of a Hainan Cab

Three weekends ago was the middle of our semester here in Beijing. In light of this, we were given Thursday and Friday off as a spring break. A group of us in the program had settled on our destination about a month prior to the break. We were headed to the city of Sanya on Hainan Dao Island. Hainan Dao Island is off the southern coast of China and just east of Thailand. In all honestly, we were treating ourselves. Hainan Dao is considered the Hawaii of China. The beautiful beaches, tropical weather, clean air, and good eating make it a frequent travel spot for many Chinese and Russians. We were trying to give ourselves a few days of sunshine, warm weather, and relaxation. I was particularly attracted to the trip because of the other attractions on the island: the monkey island, jungle hiking, and a small population of a particular Chinese minority. Unfortunately, those extra attractions did not follow through because most of them required heavy entrance fees or long travel days on the island. It turned out that we spent a great deal of time on the beaches, swimming, and enjoying the down time.

Our trip started out interestingly, as most of them do. Hainan Dao is quite a large island. It has two main entry points: Haikou and Sanya. Our plans had us staying in Sanya but flying into Haikou. Haikou is about a three-hour drive from Sanya. There is a bus, but Ken, the manager of our hostel, offered pick-up service for just slightly more money than the bus fare. Once off of the plane, we met our drivers waiting outside baggage claim, holding signs.

Local transportation

As we began to walk to the cars, one of the drivers handed me a cell phone. Confused, I took it. It was Ken. He explained to me that these men would take us to the hostel in Sanya. All seemed just fine. He then added, “And if anyone is to check on you, just tell them that these men are simply your friends. Nothing else. Just friends.” At that point my confusion came rushing back. “Okay,” I said, not wanting to inquire too much. He repeated himself then said, “And please make sure you tell everyone in your group that. See you soon.”

I started to wonder if we were headed to Sanya at all? Who were these men, and why do I have to tell someone if they ask that they are just my friends? The only thing that kept me from getting on the bus to Sanya was that this hostel, and Ken, had rave reviews online. I told the group, who seemed equally as surprised. We got in the cars and took off.

Luckily, not a single person stopped our cars or asked us anything. We arrived in Sanya to find Ken waiting outside of the buildings. As we settled into our rooms, Ken explained the whole story. Apparently, the government has set it up so that flying into Haikou is cheaper than Sanya. They then offer the bus service, which makes the difference almost disappear. Thus, the officials do not like it when travelers use private transportation to Sanya.

Our worries aside, we marveled at the view we had from our hostel room. In fact, our room didn’t seem very much like a “hostel” at all. It was amazing for the price!

Looking out our window

We proceeded for the next few days to explore the different beaches that the island had to offer. Our favorite turned out to be Yalong Bay. Yalong Bay was about a 45-minute bus ride from where we were staying, but it was well worth it. The sand was clean and the water blue. We even found ourselves one day sitting poolside at a five-star resort. We had originally gone to eat at their restaurant. It turned out that the pool area was relatively empty. Nobody minded that we stayed the afternoon.

One day, three of us in the group attempted to venture to a small island off of Hainan. On our way, we took a taxi through some rural areas of the island. We saw a great deal of the beautiful countryside and local farming. We arrived at the place where we could take a boat to the island. It turned out that, as with every attraction on Hainan, it cost a great deal to get in. We decided it wasn’t worth it. Even our taxi driver told us in it wasn’t all that great. So, we headed back.

At The End of the World park

We did successfully visit one tourist attraction, The End of The World Rocks. The park was absolutely gorgeous. There were lawns and gardens that were beautifully manicured and beaches that were picture perfect. The highlight of our trip here was the boat ride we took. We each paid 50 RMB to take a small boat out to see the “Love Rocks.” The main attraction is a rock formation in the shape of a heart jutting from the ocean. After a few pictures, our drivers convinced us to throw them some extra money to see the marriage rocks that were further out. While less impressive, these little humps far off-shore were fun to see.

Walking around the park, we saw many Chinese tourists dressed in their one-piece tropical outfits. These were very popular across the island. My friend, Juan, and I even purchased outfits for ourselves.

It turned out that Sanya and Hainan Dao, while full of attractions, proved its value in the relaxation and easy-going nature it brought out in all of us. We all left a little more rested and relaxed than we had arrived.

The "Love Rock"

Coconuts at a stand near our hostel

Countryside

the beach at sunset

Hanwei Plaza - my office building in Beijing

The Tuesday before my spring break here in China was maybe my most interesting day at work yet. Most of my days at work are filled with reviewing English documents for the international trade department, checking my emails, reading the news, and discussing interesting issues with co-workers. Tuesday was different.

Before the day began, I emailed my boss, Jiang Peng, to alert him that I wouldn’t be in the office on Thursday due to our spring break. I offered to do some extra work, as I would be missing a day. He wrote back promptly saying that another partner in the firm, Mr. Zhang, would be coming by soon with some work.

Around 10:00, Mr. Zhang arrived at my cubicle and asked me to come to his office. We sat, and he said, “Matt, we need your help.” In all honesty, I immediately felt like I was on an important mission. He explained that the team was looking at hiring a new lawyer. She had studied in the U.S. and claimed to speak English very well. He wanted me to confirm this by holding an informal meeting and discussion with her. English language experience is essential at this firm. Each day they communicate with international clients. He gave me twenty minutes to prepare (I wasn’t sure how to prepare for my pending “interview” as my law experience is very limited). I decided I would simply ask her questions about her studies and her career.

I entered the meeting room with Mr. Zhang, and one of Mr. Zhang’s associates. Ms. Chen, the woman “under review” came in shortly after. She was young and very smiley. Up until this point I had felt fine, but the minute she walked into the door I got nervous. What was I, an undergraduate student, doing interviewing a woman for a job at a law firm? I calmed down by reminding myself that my purpose was simply to evaluate her English language abilities.

We began speaking about her experience in the U.S. and why she is interested in law. She responded that her interest in law stemmed from her feelings that her gender is “too emotional.” She wanted to pursue something “professional.” I was slightly shocked by this response. China’s gender issues are interesting a deep. That is a discussion for another time though.

Ten minutes in, Mr. Zhang interrupts. He requests that Ms. Chen explain to me the details of a meeting she attended with Mr. Zhang last week. From here, the meeting got much more serious. As Ms. Chen spoke, Mr. Zhang prodded and corrected her continuously. As he did so, he asked me whether I understood what she was saying. For the most part, I did. I could tell she was nervous though. She spoke very well, however, she did confuse and contradict herself when speaking about law related issues.

Taken at the front desk of Hylands Law

The meeting finished, and I spoke honestly with Mr. Zhang. He agreed she was well spoken but wasn’t always clear. He then asked me to evaluate her written language by assigning her to summarize and review a case of my choosing. This completely threw me for a loop. I asked him where I might find a case to give her. His answer: “I don’t know.” I was on my own here.

After ten minutes at my desk of wondering what in the world to do, I thought of an idea. I found that the most readily available case decisions are U.S. Supreme Court decisions. Knowing little about most of these decisions, I chose one that all U.S. high school students learn in history class: Brown v. The Board of Education. My brother, who is in law school, found this absolutely hilarious. So, I asked Ms. Chen to read the decision on the 1954 U.S. Civil Rights case and summarize the case in her own words in one page.

I know this all seems ridiculous. All in all, it was a good choice. It was a straightforward case that both of us would understand. It allowed me to evaluate her written English much better than I could with a more complicated and unfamiliar case. She wrote a concise and strong summary.

I felt a little funny about the whole ordeal. Still, it was an amazing experience. I realized that my lack of law experience was inconsequential to Mr. Zhang. I am the only native English speaker in the office; thus, it makes perfect sense that I should help evaluate English ability. In fact, this little “mission” spawned an even more interesting day when I returned from spring break. Check back to read about my trip to Sanya, as well as what happened when I returned from break.