Traveling to a foreign country is a great way to take learning out of the classroom and into the real world.

Every two years, Jeremy Bateman, the AP Human Geography teacher, takes a group of students to a foreign country to experience a different culture and to explore new places. This year’s destination: China. Over the course of eight days, the group traveled to Xi’an, Shanghai, and Beijing. Their goal was to become immersed in China’s unique culture.

“China is completely different—the language, the writing, and even the body language are different. It made it harder to just order food or ask the price of something,” Bateman said.

Being absorbed in the sights and history of a foreign country was invigorating for the students.

“In China, we went in depth with the culture and the history, which was completely different from what I experienced when I traveled to other countries,” Ellie Min (10) said.

The group experienced a variety of places in their travels.

“We toured the Forbidden City, Summer Palace, and Terracotta warriors. We also climbed the Great Wall and bicycled along the city wall in Xi’an,” Zoe Wolfe (10) said. “We visited the Jade Buddha Temple in Shanghai, then toured a silk production facility.”

Walking around the city and interacting with the locals was a favorite part of the trip for many. As they traveled throughout the cities, Lily Zeng (10) noted how interesting the architecture in China was.

“There’s a juxtaposition of old buildings right next to quite modern ones,” Zeng said. “You’d see run-down apartment buildings and crazy-designed skyscrapers. There also may be traditional Chinese buildings among skyscrapers as well.”

Even for those who had already been to China, it was fascinating to experience the country in a new way with friends instead of family. Xi’an was, for many students, one of the highlights of the trip.

“We got to explore the city, and I loved it,” Zeng said. “At night we met this random group of ladies who were dancing, and they let us join…It was just overall a very fun night.”

This trip was a positive experience for all of the people who went on it. When asked if they would ever consider going back, the answer was a resounding yes.