Final Day in China

Our last day in Hangzhou began with a morning final quiz over the material we have learned the past two days, one last trip to Trust Mart, followed by a farewell lunch at the Louwalou Restaurant. The Louwalou Restaurant is one of the oldest and best known restaurants in Hangzhou and specializes in the famous Beggar’s Chicken. Beggar’s Chicken is a whole chicken wrapped in lotus leaves and then cooked in a clay shell. When they serve it a person gets to break open the clay-incased chicken with a hammer. Jose did the honors for our group.

After lunch we all had a moment to speak about our time in China, and to talk of our plans for the future in regards to Chinese language and culture instruction. Earlier in the day I gave Cherry, our Chinese teacher, several gifts that I brought with me from home. I gave her an Indianapolis calendar, some Brooks School Elementary pencils, keychain, t-shirt, and some coins including the new Presidential Dollar coins. She surprised me by showing up at our lunch wearing her new Brooks School Elementary t-shirt! Below you can see me pictured with her in her new t-shirt.

After lunch I, along with several others, elected to head back to the hotel to organize for tomorrow’s journey home. After getting mostly packed and ready, Jose, Jessica, Katie, and I went out to Pizza Hut for a final dinner here in China. The evening’s activities now include finishing packing, weighing my suitcase, checking out of the hotel, and getting as much sleep as possible before our 5 AM departure from the hotel tomorrow for Shanghai Pudong International Airport.