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Manhattan Mandarin Travel

Immersion Excursion
June 20 - June 30

All High Schoolers + College Students Welcome!

Beijing, Xi'an, Hangzhou, Suzhou, Shanghai
 

In June 2018 we ran our first Immersion Excursion. We spent two weeks in our favorite spots in China: the French Concession in Shanghai, the ancient tea fields of Hangzhou, the Terracotta Army and ancient city walls of Xi'an, and all the must-see spots of Beijing. We did all this while encouraging our students to speak only in Mandarin, and while also providing a total 25 hours of dedicated Chinese class time!​

The Itinerary

Beijing 

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Day 1

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  • Check into the hotel 

  • A Peking duck feast with our friends from Ivy Gate (Jamie's Beijing-based SAT tutoring business)

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Day 2: Great Wall, Summer Palace, Kong Fu in the Hutongs

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  • Morning - Breakfast - Class - Daily Assignments

  • Bus ride out to the Great Wall (non-touristy section)

    • 1 hour class on the Great Wall's history and lunch on top of a watchtower ​

  • Afternoon - A nice afternoon walk around the old Summer Palace

    • Aman Hotel for tea​

  • Evening - Dinner and Kong Fu in the Hutongs​​

    • Cooked by Jamie's friends - 3 generations of kong fu masters still living by the Bell Tower​

    • Majiang lessons in the local park

    • Evening Kong Fu class between the Bell Tower and the Drum Tower

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Day 3: Tian'an'men, Forbidden City, Houhai

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  • Morning - Breakfast - Class - Daily Assignments 

    • Walk through the hutongs to Tian'an Men Square

    • Tour the Forbidden City and climb JingShan

  • Lunch - Mr. Shi's Dumplings (Jamie and Harry's favorite local dumpling spot!

  • Afternoon - Class overlooking Hou Hai

    • Explore the Nanluoguxiang area - have tea in the courtyard of a Hutong restaurant​

  • Dinner - Cooking class with The Hutong School

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Day 4: To Xi'an!

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  • Morning - Stroll one last time around the Beijing neighborhood

  • Midday - High speed rail to Xi'an

  • Mandarin lessons about Xi'an on the train! 

Xi'an

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Day 4: Arriving in Xi'an

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  • Check into the hotel 

  • Evening - Head to Hui Min Jie on the hunt for delicious yang rou pao mo, rou jia mo, and biang biang noodles!

  • Cooking class

  • Evening stroll around the Bell and Drum tower while learning about the silk road

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Day 5: Terracotta Warriors, Biking the city walls, Calligraphy

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  • Morning - Early morning bike ride around the city wall

  • Head out to explore the Terracotta Warriors

  • Afternoon - Calligraphy class in the park

  • Evening - Dinner with our friend and tour guide Sophia and her family at a mutual friend's family restaurant​​

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Day 6: To Shanghai!

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  • Morning - Breakfast - Class - Daily Assignments 

  • Midday - High Speed Rail to Shanghai

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