THE INDO-China EXCHANGE PROGRAMME
From the 22nd to the 27th of January, 2019, 11 delegates from the Shenzhen (Nanshan) Concord College of Sino-Canada attended a Round Square Cultural Exchange Program at the Dhirubhai Ambani International School.
The purpose of the exchange was to experience and learn about the culture of India. One can research about a country and its festivals to know about it, but there are some things, which one can only experience. The exchange programme enabled delegates to feel what they wouldn’t have been able to by flipping a book; they experienced what it’s like to live in India. They were encouraged to celebrate the festivals with their host families, which enabled them to truly appreciate the heritage and culture of India. The goal of this Round Square Exchange was of course for the delegates of both the participating countries and schools to immerse themselves in each other’s cultures, learning about the little things, like clothes or food as well as the larger ones like values or important traditions. And I think it’s safe to say that the activities planned for the Chinese delegates did just that.
Their trip started off with getting settled in the guest house and getting a while to relax. That afternoon their activities started off with a tour and introduction to the school. At lunch, they got one of their first tastes of Indian food as well as meeting their hosts and getting a feel of the week that lied ahead. After lunch, the FRC group held a robotics workshop for the delegates. In a relaxing session on yoga with Miss Shilpa, they learnt how to perform different asanas as well as the significance of each asana. Later it was time for the hosts to finally take the delegates home and get to know each other.
The next day, they had an early start, with a visit to the Kanheri Caves and Sanjay Gandhi National Park. Later, back at school after lunch with their hosts, the delegates learnt and played kabaddi with Paresh Sir and Hari Sir followed by a lesson on how to dance with the lezim. The dispersal was the same as day one.
Day 3 was filled with multiple artistic activities. It started off with a drama session with Mr. Pillow, filled with games; then some Indian Music with Miss Sivarangini and Mr. Niranjan based on sur/taal/raga. The IndianDance session that followed had Miss Prarthana’s students introduce and demonstrate the basics of Bharatnatyam, a form of Indian classical dance. After lunch, the day ended with a class led by Siddharta Sir on Indian Tribal Art that ended with pieces ready to be taken home.
Day 4 started off with a visit Mumbai’s Film City to witness the behind-the-scenes and the work that goes into making the movies and T.V. shows of India. It ended with an enriching, interactive session with the children of the N.G.O. Across the Road. Day 5 started off with flag hoisting on the occasion of Republic Day and the inter-house Indian Music competition filled with amazing performances. The assembly ended with an introduction and insight to SSCSC and China by the visiting exchange students. The rest of the day was spent in Mumbai Darshan, along with the host students. The trip included beautiful temples, some amazing food at SukhSagar, a walk along Colaba Causeway, The Gateway of India and of course the infamous Dhobi Ghat.
A day of cultural immersion, the last day, gave visiting delegate a chance to relax and spend their time with their host families. Around 9 p.m. that night, everyone assembled at the International Airport to say their goodbyes and after tons of pictures and hugs the trip was over, and it was one that left behind a lot of happy memories.
Our Reflections:
The Chinese exchange was great! I was hosting two delegates so that in itself was a new experience. It was definitely a learning experience. Along with learning about another culture, their experiences, their traditions, their ways of life; I also learnt how to deal and behave with different people.They were incredibly warm and very receptive and accepting towardsthe new culture they were exposed to. We conversed about the deep rooted beliefs in our respective cultures that went beyond the visible cultural differences that one can see easily. Playing tour guide was really fun, sharing the history of our city, it’s food, it’s people was great. It was almost as if I myself rediscovered my city. All in all the Chinese delegates exchange was a brilliant experience and an opportunity, one that I’m really grateful for.
- Dhaniti Parekh 9B
During the week the delegates were over, I learnt a great deal not only from their experiences and stories but also from their point of view on global matters. A sense of pride washed over me as I showed them around the iconic places of Mumbai. Over a period of time my entire family felt connected to my delegate and Irealized the difference yet the similarity between the two cultures. My delegate student stunned and inspired me as he was an intelligent and creative person who taught me a lot of things through his extroverted attitude and vibrant interactions.
- Neel Maheshwari
In the month of January, 2019, a group of students from grade 9 hosted exchange students from SCCSC. This was a wonderful experience for me as in the summer of 2018, I had visited Shenzhen for the first time for an exchange programme. I had found that experience extremely enriching, which is why I wanted to expose my delegate to Indian culture, just the way my host in Shenzhen exposed me to Chinese culture. We visited The Bombay Store; a place that has several souvenirs that were part of Indian culture. We also visited parks and temples, where I taught her how to pray. I made her try various Indian cuisines.Meeting people from another country allowed me to see my own country from another perspective. All in all, it was a wonderful experience, and if I could, I’d do it all again.
- AdyaRohira
When we hosted students from SCCSC I thought it would be a great opportunity to not only learn about Chinese culture but also to learn about how they are the same as us and yet so different. I learnt that they have very different ways of living and even though we spoke two different languages they tried hard to speak English and did not let the language barrier affect anything. I found the experience exciting and I would surely do it again.
- AarnaDalal
I was quite hesitant about hosting a student as I’m not too comfortable with interactions with new people. But I regretted nothing about this exchange. I hosted Lamar and he was a really nice and affable person. We went out with him and other delegates a lot and it was a lot of fun. Lamar showed me some practices from his own city, like tapping the table in thanks with different amounts of fingers to convey different amounts of respect. We also visited a multitude of key-places on Republic Day. Dhobi Ghat was very interesting for me as well, as I had never observed it so closely before.
- Ayush Gupta
The exchange programme was a great experience for me. It was the first time a foreigner was going to visit my house and stay with me. I had been to SCCSC, during the summer of June 2018 and this opportunity provided me the responsibility to make it a hospitable stay for my delegate and to teach them a lot about our Indian culture. My delegate certainly loved the Indian food and also loved the Indian style of dress. She would never hesitate to try anything new and also told me a lot about her culture. In all this was a great experience and I really loved it!
- Ria Mittal
My experience with my Chinese delegate, Alex, was a very pleasant one. While speaking to him, I learned a lot, not only about theChinese culture, but also got a different perspective about how the world was like for him. While we spoke, I found out that we had quite a few common interests, a few being sport and music (he likes Nirvana).
- AtharvaNihalani