凤凰国际

Day Four: Attend International Innovation and Entrepreneurship Fairs with Special Envoy of Mayor of Phoenix, Global Sister Cities’ Mayors Forum: Downtown Chengdu: Chengdu Convention Center

Royal: One thing that I would suggest for students next year is to bring shower sandals because the shower is often next to the toilet. The conference was amazing despite the fact that we didn’t meet any people because plans changed and we weren’t able to attend the Mayor’s dinner.

I noticed that everything in China is run off of respect.  The chain of command and someone’s status is crucial. We walked around Chengdu’s shopping streets and noticed that everyone stares at us.  It feels like we are celebrities!

Also, the Chinese love my braids, it is quite amusing actually.  If you want good food in China, I recommend finding a Japanese restaurant.  Also, it is extremely beneficial to have a Chinese “tour guide” to show you where the best shops are.

McKenna: I woke up this morning and had soy milk and this dumpling thing for breakfast.  My host family dropped me off at the hotel so we could go to the Global Innovation and Entrepreneurship Fair Conference at the Intercontinental Hotel.  The conference made us feel official, and lots of people took pictures of us!  They are not used to seeing foreigners.  The guy next to me tried to discreetly take one of me, lol. After we heard city officials talk, we met up with Tom and Tommy, friends of my Grandpa Decker. They took us out to a great big lunch in downtown Chengdu and we explored the shopping areas.

We decided to spend the rest of the day shopping.  We had a little fun and took picture and met people while we were sipping mango drinks.  It was fun to shop and bargain with the Chinese.  After a long day of shopping, we headed back on a long (seemed hours long) journey back to the hotel.  It was a fun car ride, you could tell we were all delirious from being tired.

When we finally arrived back at the hotel, I met up with my host family.  They brought their aunt and uncle for me to meet, the parents of her cousin who I had met yesterday.  It was fun talking with them in the car, they had a lot of questions.  We first stopped at my host sister’s house. The house that I am staying in is their grandparents, so this was the first time seeing my host sister’s house.

I met her grandmother, and she showed me their garden which was surrounded by a beautiful pond.  Waiting for her dad to get home, we played songs to each other that we knew on the piano (she is better than I am). One her dad arrived home, they took me to a city which was a part of Chengdu but 30 minutes away. Despite being very tired, it was fun trying the famous BBQ in this city and walked around. We headed straight to bed. Can’t wait for the irrigation system park tomorrow!

Maya: Last night, there was some confusion and I stayed in the hotel room instead of heading home with my host family.  This morning, I woke up very early and dressed for the conference.  I dressed formally and with some heels.  On the way there, I saw a woman cleaning the streets with an old broom. We passed by the world’s largest building. When we arrived at the Intercontinental Hotel, we were introduced to Dr. William Brashears, Director of Global Education at the Thunderbird School of Global Management which is now a part of ASU. He also teaches in universities in China. 

When we walked into the conference, we grabbed our translators and sat down. Never in my life have I felt so popular when every person in the media too pictures and videos of us.  People were pulling us aside and asking us for photos while giggling. I wondered if there were any other blond haired women in the room but I couldn’t find any.  People tried to take pictures of us without letting us know.

After the opening speeches, we met up with Tom and Tommy for lunch in Dr. Yang’s favorite restaurant.  The lunch was in a private room and was absolutely amazing! We went to ice cream and Tommy went back to school. 

Shops in Chengdu are so small and they are all selling the same things. What I liked is how they tried to get you into their shops! I enjoyed bargaining. We went to a large shopping street and people stopped to talk to us while we drank mango drinks.  It amazes me how many people stare and say hllo.

Later, we met some friend of Dr. Yang’s and they recommended a restaurant with dim sum and fried rice.

When I arrived back at the hotel, my host family was waiting for me. Linda, my host sister’s home is about 15 minutes from the hotel.  We walked to get hotpot and it was a strange experience. Hotpot is a large cauldron of chili powder and vegetables or meat.  Linda had me try everything. At dinner, I showed my family pictures they said that my mother was beautiful and my brothers were cute. They thought that Robert was sooo handsome.  I also had to sign my autograph on a ton of paper because Linda’s classmates think that I’m from Hollywood. 

Chinese people are more serious than we are. When I went into the bathroom after Linda had showered, she was so embarrassed that she had left her clothes on the ground. The bathroom has a hole in the ground for a toilet and a shower head, no actual shower. At the end of the night, we exchanged some gifts and she love the American candy and shirt from Dr. Yang.

When I went to bed, I have never laid on anything so hard in my life. We are going to wake up at 8 a.m. tomorrow to go hiking and Linda is so excited!