Chinese Culture – Intensive Learning @ MFS

Chinese Culture, Day Four — Trip to Chinatown

April 2, 2023April 2, 2023Chinese Culture

Today we went to Chinatown in Philadelphia. During the first half of the day we visited Chinese Culture & Arts and learned about the history of instruments and the different types of music that helped shape Chinese culture. Our tour guides gave tutorials on how to play and allowed the class to play traditional...

Tea and Tai Chi

March 30, 2023March 30, 2023Chinese Culture

Today in Chinese Culture, we started our day off by watching traditional Chinese opera. We watched three different types: Cantonese, Shanghai area, and northwestern China. The kind of opera differs by region. Then, we watched a few videos about Chinese Tea Ceremonies. We got to sample Pu’erh tea, which is a type of fermented...

Chinese Culture, Day Three — Homemade dumplings and wontons

March 29, 2023March 30, 2023Chinese Culture

On day three of Chinese Culture Intensive Learning we learned how to make traditional Chinese dumplings and wontons. We made three different types of dumplings for everyone to enjoy. We made vegetarian, pork, and beef dumplings. For vegetarian dumplings we used a plant-based dough while the other options used different dough. First we mixed...

Chinese Culture, Day Two — Weaving, acupuncture, and group games

March 28, 2023March 28, 2023Chinese Culture

The day started with a brief review of the Qin Dynasty and Han Dynasty, which we learned about on the first day. We mentioned the Silk Road, Confucianism, and regional differences. Expanding on the topic of regional differences, Ms. Li showed videos of various dialects in China, which she says are “like a whole...

Chinese Culture — History, art forms, games, and food

March 27, 2023March 27, 2023Chinese Culture

We learned about Chinese history, art forms, games, and food on the first day of Chinese Culture. In the morning, we learned about the Shang dynasty, Spring and Autumn dynasty, the Warring States, the Qin dynasty, and the Han dynasty. Each dynasty had its own unique legacies that impacted Chinese cultures, such as Confucianism...

Chinese Culture, Day Five — Porcelain, Dim Sum and Shopping

March 25, 2022March 25, 2022Chinese Culture

Today, Thursday 3/24, we explored the Philadelphia Art Museum, ate Dim Sum for lunch, and shopped at a local Chinese market. In the museum we explored numerous exhibits of Chinese culture including porcelain pottery, replicas of villages, common art, and weapons and armor. The exhibits made the places feel as if we were actually...

Chinese Culture, Day Four — Taiji, acupuncture, and more food

March 23, 2022March 23, 2022Chinese Culture

Our fourth day of Chinese Culture IL started with a taiji session. At 9:20, we went into the Blue Gym and learned about the uses of taiji, which helps blood flow, increases energy, and helps build muscle strength. After that, we practiced taiji and found that it requires consistency, balance, and flexibility. At around...

Chinese Culture, Day Three — A visit to the Pearl S. Buck House

March 23, 2022March 23, 2022Chinese Culture

By day three, starting our day with a faux tea ceremony has become tradition. Today, we tasted black tea with a hefty amount of creamer. (The consensus was that yesterday’s jasmine tea was too bitter.) While sipping our tea, we watched the movie The Good Earth, a film based on the 1931 novel of...

Chinese Culture, Day Two — Tea & traditional music

March 22, 2022March 22, 2022Chinese Culture

This morning, Chinese Culture tried jasmine tea in a mock tea ceremony. Then, our group ventured into Chinatown in Philadelphia, PA, to learn more about traditional Chinese music. We met with professors of traditional Chinese musical theory and performance. They had instruments resembling those original Chinese instruments that are 5000 years old and explained...

Chinese Culture, Day One — Kites and calligraphy

March 18, 2022March 21, 2022Chinese Culture

We began our introduction to Chinese Culture with a very fascinating and interactive traditional Chinese calligraphy lesson from an outside presenter. Our teacher, Raymond Zhu (Zhu Laoshi), was quite well-versed in the art of calligraphy and Chinese fan painting, and he brought in a family heirloom to show: a centuries-old book of handwritten Chinese...

Chinese Culture Day 5

March 28, 2019March 28, 2019Chinese Culture

On our last full day of Intensive Learning, we were taught gong fu fan by zhang Lao shi. It was fun to learn, but scary knowing that we will have to perform in front of all the local IL programs tomorrow. After 3 hours of practice we traveled to Yi Pan in Mt. Laurel...

Chinese Culture Day 4: Cooking & Calligraphy

March 27, 2019March 27, 2019Chinese Culture

For our 4th day, we focused on cooking and calligraphy. In the morning we learned calligraphy from Mrs. Feng (Feng Lao Shi) who showed us how to draw orchids in the Chinese calligraphy style. After our lesson on calligraphy it was time to cook, and cook we did. Each of the 8 assigned groups...

Chinese Culture Day 3: NYC

March 27, 2019March 27, 2019Chinese Culture

Today marked our very anticipated trip to New York City’s Chinatown. We traveled to MOCA (Museum of Chinese in America) and learned about Chinese history in America. After MOCA, we traveled to a Chinese restaurant in Chinatown to eat Dim Sum and bond with our group. We had a great time; the favorite food...

Chinese Culture Day 2

March 25, 2019March 27, 2019Chinese Culture

We started off day 2 with a lesson on ancient Chinese culture and Confucianism. We watched a 2 hour long movie titled “孔子” which explained the backstory of Master Kong and the China he lived within. After watching the movie and having a brief lecture, we went outside and flew kites. Each group selected...

Chinese Culture: Day 1

March 22, 2019March 22, 2019Chinese Culture

We began the day with a lesson on traditional Chinese medicine and acupuncture. We had a special visitor named 钟医生 (Dr. Zhong) who taught us the background history of Chinese medicine. After the lesson, it was time for everybody to have a little fun, so Dr. Zhong began to demonstrate. She began by asking...