Michelle – Busy Day
It’s been a pretty busy day.
I woke up at 5 AM feeling a little hazy from the jet lag. Elizabeth and I got lucky with our room location, because we are directly facing the mountains, and we even saw a part of the Great Wall from our window.
After calling my parents, seeing my dog over WeChat, and putting on my blazer and skirt, we headed to the main building for breakfast. The food here is so good and fresh and I had classic Chinese breakfast foods.
Then, we crossed the bridge to the gym, where we quickly set up our posters before judging began.
While everyone was waiting, I was approached by a Chinese student and asked to introduce my project. It was really interesting explaining my project in English (for what she could understand) and explaining some other parts of my project in Chinese. She could understand most of my project, because she told me that she has been studying Chinese since primary school.
During the breaks, we spoke with the two Australian students, who are both super nice. Similarly to us, they had around 13 total hours of flying, but there was no time change for them.
After lunch, judging continued, and we stood by our booths. I walked around a bit and was really interested by the Mini Maker Fair, because almost all of the projects are physical and tangible. I know the public will be really interested in that tomorrow.
We were exhausted after the two periods and took a quick nap before the welcome ceremony/banquet.
At the dinner, the food was absolutely delicious, and several adults gave speeches to the international delegations. We were also given gifts as we left – upon unwrapping the gift once I got back to my room, I discovered that we had received a beautiful floral vase. I just hope I can fit it into my suitcase on the way back!
Later, we explored the area around the campus, including the libraries and local stores.
I am planning on waking up at 5 am (shouldn’t be too difficult given my jetlag) to watch the Duke vs. Kansas game (Go Duke!). Excited for my presentation tomorrow at the Student Symposium and for the other events planned.