By Mia D.
Today we woke up feeling sad, knowing that we would be leaving later in the day. All of our time spent becoming closer with new people and making memories would soon come to an end. But to start off the day, we visited the Yu Garden.
The Yu Garden was built by the emperor during the Ming Dynasty as a gift to his parents. Chinese gardens are very different than Western ones, and are typically made up of collections of large and small rocks. The Yu Garden in particular is known for its juxtaposition of religions: Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism. The garden serves as a place of meditation and relaxation and represents these religions’ spiritual practices.
Beautiful rock structures were placed over top of ponds with large trees and plants growing all around. There were various pagodas as well, which were areas dedicated to students to quietly study in the past. While in the garden, many students enjoyed the beautiful landscapes and were given the chance to reflect on the knowledge gained from our experience, and the peacefulness of the garden itself. You could feel the spirituality and peaceful presence as soon as you stepped inside.
Next, we headed to a mall where we were given time to eat lunch and explore. At the restaurant we were excited and sad at the same time, as this would be our last meal in China. We spent time talking to each other, sharing stories, and savoring our moments together as a group. After that, we split up and spent time shopping. Many of us bought cute things to keep as memories.
Finally, we drove to airport and got ready to fly to Beijing before we flew home. Even though we were simply flying, our group was enthusiastic the entire time because we got to play card games like Uno and War. These times, not just on the plane but throughout the trip, reminded us of the Quaker spices of Simplicity and Community. This was due to the fact that we didn’t need anything crazy to keep us entertained, but just our friends we have made along the way. Finally, after almost 18 hours of flying, we landed in JFK, bringing back not only our souvenirs and luggage, but also the friends, community, memories, culture, and knowledge we gained along the way.