My time spent over this summer in Shijiazhuang Foreign Languages School (SFLS) has been transformational. Not only was this an amazing opportunity to explore and see contemporary Chinese culture through visiting shrines, castles, temples, museums, but a unique chance to see China through the people we met on the trip, not as a tourist, but through an authentic local experience. This was achieved through meeting and interacting with students and staff from across the school that provides a genuine picture of life in China. We had the pleasure of students inviting us to meet their families and show us some of their favourite activities and food from Chinese Hotpot and making traditional Chinese medicine, to vibrant and spicy Sichuan cuisine and Chinese sports. I would say that this was a particular highlight and a rare opportunity to really get to know local people.

Every day presented itself with a new challenge in directing the teaching and progress of the Cambridge-SFLS Summer Camp where we taught some of the brightest and interested young people. We had to revise, adapt and create a series of lessons in each of our subjects and think outside of the box on how best this may engage students across the inevitable language barrier. My subject, Law, presented a unique challenge in how it might be relevant to students across the other side of the world. However, through blending the passionate gaming culture with an introductory analysis of rules and laws within game systems, students really understand how they were designing a system of laws in miniature. Having never taught in the classroom before, I found it truly thrilling how students took on the task with similar vigour to that which I had put in to planning the lessons. This made every day I was teaching, not a chore, but an exciting chance to see how students may react to the lesson plan each day.

This is in the context of the school itself with a special thank you to Principal Li and Jinduo Liang who guided us through the process the entire way. They both truly made SFLS and Shijiazhuang a home away from home halfway across the world. Moreover, for anyone with an interest in education, SFLS is at the fore of educational advancement with vibrant international links with other countries (Canadian and Russian delegations were there whilst we were teaching). This provides an outward looking approach to how they may improve the outcomes of the 12,000 students that attend this school. It was fascinating to learn of the scale, the great provision of facilities (swimming pools, tennis courts, botanical garden, kitchens, woodworking rooms and my favourite, a ski slope) and style of teaching. I am grateful of the chance to have glimpsed such an innovative institution that prioritises education to such a high degree and rigour.

After each morning of teaching, the school had kindly planned excursions to various sites across Hebei and Shijiazhuang such as trips to hot spring resorts and trips to the ancient city. This gave an incredible insight into Chinese history, culture and leisure far beyond the reach of a self-planned trip to China. Further to this point, I would argue that precisely because you do not stay in the most well-known cities in China (apart from the short stay in Beijing) that you get a better idea of the less toured parts of China and see exciting sites not many other international tourists have seen before. This is reflected not only the prices of many things compared to the bigger cities of Shanghai and Beijing, but also in the hospitality off strangers in gifting us free drinks, sweets or tokens. I will never forget the warm hospitality of my time in Shijiazhuang.

Finally, T.S. Eliot once said, ‘At the end of our exploring, will be to arrive where we started and to know the place for the first time’. I think this quotation strikes the right chord in that upon reflection, having returned home, I fully appreciate the full breadth of what has been a transformational experience of a contemporary cross-section of China. I hope that this programme between Pembroke College and SFLS continues and flourishes into a long-term partnership for future Valencians to come. It is with great thanks to Geoff Hayward, Becky Coombs, Kate Parsley, the LEAP Programme and SFLS themselves to have made this happen in its second year running and I hope that any Valencians reading this take inspiration and apply to be a part of this amazing programme.

I will be sure to be back sometime soon Shijiazhuang!