INNER MONGOLIA SEPTEMBER 2016 PREPARED BY THE HUTONG FOR BEIJING CITY INTERNATIONAL SCHOOL ITINERARY & DAILY SCHEDULE 4 Jingpeng Morning DAY LOCATION ACTIVITIES Breakfast and check-out Drive to a local school 1 BCIS Afternoon 17:30 PM Meeting Local School Exchange everyone at BCIS Lunch Departure for Beijing North at 18:30 9/7 Yurt Camp Afternoon Wednesday Drive to the Yurt Camp 9/4 Beijing North - Evening 20:49 Overnight train Check into yurts Sunday Chifeng from Beijing North to Chifeng Grassland Activities Train Station Yurt Camp Evening Dinner 2 Chifeng - Morning Bonfire party Yulong Desert 6:52 Arrival at Chifeng Mongolian breakfast 5 Yurt Camp Morning Drive to Yulong Desert Breakfast Yulong Desert Activities Grassland Hunt Through History 9/5 Yulong Desert - Afternoon Check-Out Monday Wudan Lunch Lunch Drive to Wudan Wudan Map Quest 9/8 Yurt Camp - Afternoon Thursday Xilinhot Drive to Anvil Mountain Wudan Evening Active snack break Hotel Dinner Drive to Xilinhot Hotel Check-In Hotel Check-In Wudan - 3 Morning Xilinhot Evening Daqing Mountain Breakfast and check-out Hotel Final Dinner Drive to Daqing Mountain Packing Lunch Xilinhot - Beijing 9/6 Daqing Mountain Afternoon 6 Morning Tuesday Daqing Mountain Hike Flight Breakfast and check out Drive to Jingpeng 9/9 Drive to Xilinhot Airport Friday Flight to Beijing (8:25-9:35) Drive back to BCIS Jingpeng Evening Hot Pot Dinner Hotel Check-In INNER MONGOLIA SEPTEMBER2016 2 TRIP LEADERS TRIP LEADER: ANETE ELKEN Anete comes from Estonia and has worked with The Hutong for more than two years. Anete majored in Chinese language and culture and keeps learning about China and Chinese culture every day living in Beijing. One of her favourite ways to learn Mandarin Chinese is practicing Bilingual improv theatre and performing with Beijing Improv Bilingual Troupe every month. She enjoys an active lifestyle and despite the pollution loves running and is always preparing for another marathon. TRIP LEADER: KRISTEN LUM An enthusiastic ex-cheerleader from sunny California, Kristen has been living in Beijing since 2006 and has witnessed the city’s great transformation before and after the 2008 Olympic games. Biking everywhere she goes, she loves to share her admiration for Beijing’s winding hutongs, tasty traditional street snacks, and quirky cultural fun facts. If she’s not hiking a remote section of the Great Wall, she’s digging deep to uncover untold stories of China’s past or tagging along with Beijing’s creative artists because cool can be contagious (didn’t you know?). As one of Beijing’s prominent food bloggers, she’s also got an insatiable appetite and will try pretty much everything at least once. INNER MONGOLIA SEPTEMBER2016 3 THE HUTONG EDUCATION’S CHINA TRAVEL SURVIVAL GUIDE EATING Everyone who eats Chinese food (Even people who grew up in China!) has to Mealtimes are often the highlight of learn how to use chopsticks at some The Hutong experience; however it is point and practice makes perfect! Each possible there may be a couple surprises person has their own personal way of along the way. Chinese food in China gripping, so don’t be afraid to ask for might not taste like the Westernized advice and remember that the main thing Chinese food found abroad, and you is to enjoy the food, no matter how you may find that your conceptions of what get in your mouth! is “Chinese Food” will change over the course of your trip. In China, eating is a LEAVING WASTE bustling, communal activity where dishes At many points in China’s recent history are served “family style” dish-by-dish and food was scarce, so nowadays you shared by everyone at the table. Every may see many Chinese order too much person has their own rice bowl or plate food as a way to show their newfound and we all take bits of each dish and wealth. In traditional settings it is actually put them onto our own personal bowl or impolite to finish all of the food on the plate. A word of warning, just as there table as it says to your host that they did are no boneless chickens in nature, there not prepare enough food and you are still are no boneless chicken dishes in China hungry! No need to worry about this on so be careful. We encourage all of our our Hutong adventure. We do our best to students to seek challenge and try a little order appropriate amounts of food to cut bit of each dish. Who knows? You may down on the amount of waste. You can discover a new favorite food! help us by doing your best to finish as much as you can and don’t forget to tell CHOPSTICKS: the restaurant staff how good it tastes! Every participant on our programs will receive you very own pair of Hutong MEALTIME ETIQUETTE Chopsticks and will be responsible for The biggest no-no is to leave your keeping them clean and bringing them chopsticks sticking straight up in your to every meal. If you have never used rice bowl as the upright chopsticks chopsticks before, don’t be embarrassed! resemble incense offerings at funerals. INNER MONGOLIA SEPTEMBER2016 4 THE HUTONG EDUCATION’S CHINA TRAVEL SURVIVAL GUIDE Other chopstick-related tips include although you’ll be glad to know that not using your chopsticks to point at all of the hotel rooms we use will have someone across the table (it’s considered western-style toilets. You may come rude) and never, ever use your chopsticks across some very primitive bathrooms and bowl as a drum-set unless you want where there’s little more than a hole in people to think you are a beggar! the ground and the plumbing leaves a lot to be desired! Think of the thrilling stories BREAKFAST you can tell your friends back home once you’ve taken care of your business and Depending on your program, you may made it out with your nose and dignity encounter breakfast foods that are very intact! Finally, restrooms in China can be different from your normal breakfast quite the social place with little privacy back home. Take this opportunity to afforded. Just grin and bear it and make embrace diversity and try the local it part of your China adventure! fare as you fill up your body with the energy it will need to get through the SHOPPING morning. Chinese breakfasts will include a healthy mixture of rice porridge, eggs, On your program, you may head to a vegetables, and Chinese-style breads; market or store to pick up some souvenirs take this opportunity to stretch outside to take home. In most stores in China your comfort zone! you are expected to bargain and don’t be surprised if the initial price is several TOILETS times higher than what you should actually pay. Double-check with your Everyone has their own outrageous Hutong trip leader to see if you should stories about using toilets while travelling expect to haggle and what the usual outside major cities in China. So when prices are for what you’re trying to buy. nature calls, it’s time to seek challenge! Never be afraid to walk away, as you can Things have improved a lot in recent usually find the same items somewhere years, but the motto is always to be else! Also, once you hand over money prepared. Be sure to carry tissues with to purchase something, It is yours with you as there will often not be any toilet no returns so make sure it’s exactly what paper provided in bathrooms. In most you want! of China, squat toilets are the norm, INNER MONGOLIA SEPTEMBER2016 5 THE HUTONG EDUCATION’S CHINA TRAVEL SURVIVAL GUIDE LANGUAGE BARRIER of foreigners are quite a sight for locals so be sure to smile more and have patience In bigger cities like Beijing and Shanghai, when people also want to take your it’s not uncommon to run into locals who picture! can speak a little bit of English, but a majority of China’s 1.4 billion speak only SAFETY Chinese. Not to worry! When someone wants to communicate with you and Chinese streets are significantly safer you don’t share a common tongue, it’s than in most counties or major cities amazing how much can be said without around the world and violent crime words. Whether it be with a calculator involving foreigners is very uncommon. if you’re shopping or charades, hand- Nevertheless, petty crime can be a gestures and miming when making new problem and there are stories of swindlers friends, a little patience and a big smile or pickpockets who frequent high-traffic goes a long way! tourist areas. Therefore, it is important to keep your wits about you but in general, PHOTOGRAPHY be aware of your surroundings, and take care to secure valuable items like wallets, Travelling through China, you’ll find bags, and mobile devices. photo opportunities around every turn. From exotic landscapes to mesmerizing The greatest danger to travelers are locals, you’re going want to have your often the most mundane aspects of city camera charged every day lest you miss life. When crossing the street, be sure that perfect shot. Be sure to not take to wait until you have the right of way photos inside of temples as doing so is to cross, regardless of what the locals seen as disrespectful. You should also are doing, and make sure to look both avoid taking pictures of Chinese soldiers, ways. Cars may not stop for red lights police, or government offices.