The Germantown Academy Chinese program hosted an annual field trip to Philadelphia Chinatown earlier this week. This trip serves as a meaningful way for Chinese learners from the higher-level classes to immerse themselves fully in the Chinese community, experience the culture firsthand, and apply their language skills.
"The trip was a wonderful slice of authentic Chinese experience and served to motivate students’ learning back in the classroom, providing them with an opportunity to see real-life applications of their language learning out in the world," Upper School Chinese Teacher Tsung Tsai said. "It was an eye-opening day that brought students one step closer to becoming global citizens and left them with rich experiences to bring back to the classroom and the GA community."
During this year’s trip, students visited a Chinese bakery and tried a variety of breakfast breads, and then they went to a traditional Chinese medicine store to learn about Chinese medicine practices. Some of the students even gained first-hand acupuncture experience! Students then went to a Chinese restaurant, where they got to order food in Chinese.
After lunch, students visited various historic sites in Chinatown, such as the Friendship Gate, the Buddhist temple - Fo Shou Temple, the Chinatown Plaque, and the Chinese Cultural Center. They also visited landmarks such as Chinatown Engine 20 - House of Dragons, Arturo Ho’s Mural, and 10th St Plaza with the lion statues. Beyond these more historical sites, students also visited modern cultural hot spots like novelty stores, internet gaming cafes, Chinese supermarkets, and bubble tea shops.