A big HIE! to all, we are a group of 15 students from Temasek Junior College. For this year-end holiday, we embarked on an educational trip to China-Tianjin and Beijing.

In Tianjin, we collaborated with the famous Yaohua Senior High School for an intriguing student exchange programme. During our nine days there, we were introduced to the the national museum of Tianjin, the five famous streets which preserve European architectural buildings, Yaohua counterpart- Binhai High School, Tianjin economy development association zone(TEDA)(involving a tour around Toyota car manufacturing industry and a computer networking company), Tianjin national library (boasting a wealth of books), a pigeon-feeding attraction, pan shan, and lastly an old folks' home.

Tianjin
The name Tianjin was granted by Zhudi, an emperor in Ming Dynasty. Its is a place where the heavenly emperor lingered. Tianjin was also considered the most important military fortresses. In 1860, after the First opium War, Tianjin was further expanded as a business and communication center. By the end of the 19th century, it had grown into a bustling center with a population of approximately 300,000 citizens.

Yaohua Senior High School
It is located at 106 nanjing road, Heping district and consists of chinese and western style buildings.
Founder: Zhuang Lefeng
Their aim: An honest and simple school spirit, To nurture a cradle of talents.
Sch motto: Diligence, Simplicity, Loyalty and Honesty
Their present principal is Qu Limin, an excellent math teacher. The name Yaohua means to glorify china. Currently, Yaohua consists of 61 classes with 11 experimental classes; one class comprises around 50 plus students. It is also a combined school with Jiacheng.

Tianjin museum
It is located on Yinhe plaza, the cross of Youyi road and Pingjiang rd, hexi district of Tianjin. It, an art palace to show the Chinese civilization, showcases nearly 200,000 art and historical relics, among which are nearly 1000 first-class cultural artefacts. It's specially established for people who love history and art. =)

Pan Shan
This renowned tourist attraction boast of countless scenic landscape atop a mountain. One will certainly be enchanted and invigorated by the breathtaking views and fresh crisp air.

5 famous streets
Once a residential area for europeans during war-time. The 5 streets are chong jing lu, cheng de lu, ma chang lu, mu nan lu and da li lu.

Three-day stay in Beijing

In Beijing,we visited many renowned places of interest, namely Tian An Men Square, Imperial Palace Museum, The Great Wall,Summer Palace, Temple of heaven palace and Wangfujing Street.

Beijing- the splendid capital
During its first Golden Age, it was the showcase capital of Kublai Khan. The choice of location was strategic- it was close to the Mongol heartland and far from the ancient chinese capital of Changan (today's Xian). Later, it served as the capital of the late Ming and Qing Dynasties.


Tian An Men Square
It is located in the centre of the city and is the largest square in the world today. At the centre of the square, there is a magnificent monument of the people's Heroes and Mao Memorial Hall. Furthermore, on both sides, there are the Great Hall of the people, the Museum of the Chinese History and the Museum of the Chinese Revolution. Tian An men Square used to be the Front gate of the Imperial Palace in the Ming and Qing Dynasties too, where emperors issued their orders.

Imperial Palace Museum/Forbidden City
The Imperial Museum also known as the Forbidden City is located in the centre of Beijing. It was the palace for the emperors of the Ming and Qing Dynasties. It is now the largest existing ancient architectural structure in China. This was the place where 24 emperors ascended to the trone and ruled over 500 years. It is also a significant place for the largest display of precious cultural relics and art objects in China.

The Great Wall of China
Citied by the astronauts as one of the two man-made features on earth visible from the moon, it is also a magnificent piece of architecture aiding in China's defence in ancient times. From the east to the west, the wall stretches for over 6000km. It is often said that he who fails to reach the Great Wall is no man, and a true man must go to the Great Wall.

Summer Palace
It is a classical Imperial Garden embracing hills and lakes. This was the place where the Imperial families of the Qing Dynasty handled their government affairs, spent their summer, celebrated their birthdays. There are over 3000 different points of interest located among the vast lake and hills, which include pavillions, halls, extensive corridors and islets. This site is an exemplary example of the artistic chinese garden designs emphasising natural beauty. Kunming Lake is situated in the summer palace; it is a favourite summer retreat for Beijingers.

Temple of Heaven Park
Built between 1406 and 1420, the Temple of Heaven covers 273 hectres and represents the pinnacle of Ming and Qing architecture. The complex is laid out according to the needs of a sacred ceremony as it was believed to be the one place on earth with direct access to heaven for the emperors, who were regarded as celestial go-betweens. It was a place of worship for the Ming and Qing emperors.

Wang Fu Jing Street
Wang Fu Jing is one of the most bustling sections of Beijing and is a favourite shopping destination. There, you will find all manner of goods for sale, from watches to fine clothings, and from modern electronics to chinese antiques. For the foreign traveller, the foreign language bookstore might be of special interest, as they carry many novels in various western and chinese languages.
On Wang Fu Jing street itself, one can also find many good places to get a bite, including a Dunkin' Donuts and one of the largest McDonald's in China. Of course, there are also other places for chinese food like Beijing Roast Duck. Well, Wang Fu Jing is a great place to shop!


All in all,to say that we have just barely enjoyed ourselves is an understatement; we had a wild and memorable time in China!Here are some photos, bearing testimony to our fabulous stay in China... Enjoy! =p

Credits to all...=)

Buddy's doing her homework..So i got to entertain myself this way!!! Dont know why the computer cant log in to MSN!! oh welll... Ate alot again...yup..her grandfather was kind of cute cause he loves to take dishes for us when everyone rejected..haha...
Even my buddy's mom rejected...It was funny!!

Im currently staying at her grandpa and grandma house...yup... andf today when we went home, we took a bus back.. However, i think she remembered the wrong bus and so we got lost!! haha.. in the end we decided to take a cab back...=)Quite exciting..haha... but the bus trip wasnt a gd experience...It was during peak hours and it was just sooo crowded that There was no breathing space..Let alot feel cold..haha.. But overall it was okay...

Classroom experience today was alright i guess... Most of them were quite friendly, mainly the girls i guess.. The teachers were really funny and hilarious. And i realised the paper they used are soo thin quality...plus they have seat numbers too.. so it's quite cool... Furthermore, most of them bring fruits as snacks...yup yup... Guess i will stop here for now...

KyLin...=)

Haha... just bored.. hmm.. those of you who have any pictures sent me ya... so i can do a wonderful slide show.. =)

Finally the Tianjin bloggy is done... Spent a considerable time looking for a suitable template... Not so girly... Haha.. so I hope this template is alright for everyone!!!

Do give me your blog links if u have... and if ur buddy in tianjin have one.. yup...

Remember to leave ur comments and password and user name will be given later... =)

Just saw the newspaper... Beijing's lowest is -2 degree... Oh no.... Thats cold!! haha... Take care then everybody!!! =) and smiles...