Journey to the East
May 12, 2025 – May 27, 2025
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Day 1 – Bay to Beijing
Author: Kash Brown It’s Official—We’re headed to China! After months of anticipation and prep, we’ve finally kicked off our Eastside China Immersion Program with a long flight from SFO to Beijing! Since getting selected in March, the excitement’s been real—and now that we’ve landed, it’s all starting to sink in. This program, hosted by Hebei…
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Day 2 – Tianjin Vibes, Cultural Exchange & AI Robots
Author: Kash Brown Rise and shine—our first full day in China was packed. We were up early, dressed in matching blue polo shirts provided by Hebei University of Technology, ready for our first cultural deep dive. The shirts were fresh, but let’s be real—they ran super small. If you normally wear a medium, you were…
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Day 3 – A Day in Tianjin – Ports, Culture, and a Night on the Water
Author: Jazmin Carrillo Morales We had an early wake-up call on Thursday, May 15. After breakfast at the hotel and a two-hour drive, we arrived at the Tianjin Harbor, one of the busiest ports in the world. Our tour guide met us there, he was very knowledgeable and passionate about the port’s history, current operations,…
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Day 4 (Pt. 1) – Beyond the Label – What ‘Made in China’ Really Means
Author: Nohely Peraza On May 16 we traveled from Tianjin to Fuping by bus, about a 3 hour drive. Fuping is located in a more rural area of China. General Secretary Xi Jinping visited Fuping County in December 2012. Fuping had been considered one of the poorest villages in the country, and the government worked…
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Day 4 (Pt. 2) – Fuping’s Work, War, and Welcome
Author: Lorenzo Lopez What’s good everyone! Day 4 was a day full of travel, fun, and adventure! We started off with breakfast as usual, before driving 5 hours to Fuping. On the way there we stopped at a local gas station in a desert-like environment with rolling hills. Not much for sight seeing at this…
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Day 5: Echoes of the Past, Seeds of the Future
Author: Bryan D’Mar Zepeda-Carranza The day after checking in to our hotel in Fuping, we started the morning by visiting one of two rural villages in Fuping. Historically, the area served as an important military post helping the Chinese army push back the Japanese; its mountainous terrain made it suitable for guerrilla warfare against the…
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Day 6 (Pt. 1) – Xiong’an – Smart Cities, Spicy Lessons, and Shared Stories
Author: Staci Edwards (Xiong’an and Chili Farm) On Day 6, most of the group members began to feel settled in. We were making new friends, laughing at each other’s jokes, and trying new foods with one another. For some of us, this was our first time traveling internationally, but the positivity of Bill Kwong, Joy,…
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Day 6 (Pt. 2) – Xiong’an – A Trip to the Future
Author: Dennyce Martinez Arriaga Where to start… I suppose I should start by stating that for some time now, I’ve identified as a luddite. Luddite (n): A person opposed to new technology or ways of working. Xiong’an, China, you’ve certainly changed my mind about tech! Visiting the City of the Future, the Smart City Museum…
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Day 7 – Politics, Culture, and Connection
Author: Kash Brown | Contributor: Maira Chavez Ortiz We kicked off Day 7 the same way we had most mornings—up by 7:30 AM, breakfast by 8:00, and on the charter bus by 8:30. At this point in the trip, we’d all settled into a rhythm. The nerves had eased, friendships had grown stronger, and we…
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Day 8 – Planes, Precision, and Pastries
Author: Antonio Valverde | Contributor: Kash Brown Today started off a little differently than usual. The night before, we were informed that one of our group leaders wouldn’t be joining us for the rest of the trip—she had tested positive for COVID. The following morning, one of the students who wasn’t feeling well the day…
China Blog Daily Post
Bay to Beijing
Journey to the East