Discover it by travelling the world

In the first two weeks of the minor ‘Doing Business with China’ my classmates and I were having two weeks of introduction, with various subjects, for example an art workshop, Chinese religions and ethics & technology. Some of the workshops and seminars were very interesting to me, other did not meet my expectations. 

Workshops

The first weeks we had multiple workshops to get to know each other, myself and the Chinese culture more. The workshops were we learned about each other and yourself was 1) art workshop, 2) field trip to the MuZIEum in Nijmegen, 3) ethics & integrity and 4) identity and global citizenship. During the art workshop we had to draw a portrait of how we see ourselves. After that drawing, we had to mix the paintings and start changing little aspects of how you experienced that person during the first days. After this we had to connect the paintings and make it one big poster. In figure 1 the final result of the four paintings made together is shown. During and after this workshop I considered myself more creative than before. Hereby I do not mean creative when it comes to drawing, but thinking of solutions in difficult situations. 

Figure 1 Art workshop's result

The fourth day of our introduction, we went to the MuZIEum in Nijmegen. During this field trip, we experienced how it is to be blind or partially sighted. We entered a world which the other senses suddenly play a far more important role than used to. After experiencing the darkness for over an hour, I felt really satisfied with seeing again. It was terrifying to feel how it is to be blind and experience the world without seeing anything. What I have learned from this field trip, is to stay calm, whatever happens, and get used to the situation. I linked this trip to the trip to China, as we might experience a culture shock there; you do not know where you are and you do not know anyone.

The workshops ‘Global citizens & global history’, ‘Ethics & Integrity’, ‘Ethics & technology’ and ‘Identity and global citizenship’ were about the history and identity of citizens, ethics in combination with integrity and in combination with technology. All these workshops were about the history of mankind and I figured out that it was very good for myself as well, certainly the ethic ones, as these are about making the right decisions for yourself and the planet.   

Seminars

Next to the workshops, a few seminars were given about Chinese religions and Chinese art. To me, the seminar about Chinese religions was very interesting, because I did not know a lot about this subject. The guest lecture was given by a very knowledgeable professor, specialized in Chinese religions and history. In the beginning of the lecture he used a Buddhist singing bowl to meditate and interrupt the session in a good way. In figure 2 a picture is shown of this happening. 

Figure 2 Use of a Buddhist singing bowl before the lecture started

Besides the Chinese religions seminar, a seminar about Chinese art was given. This seminar was about the history of Art in China, compared with the West. I did not found it really interesting, as the subject did not met our minor content. 

Presentation

After the two introduction weeks we were asked to do a little presentation about these two weeks, to wit, it needed to contain development goals or achievements we wanted to set for ourselves. During this presentation, I showed a small clip of CNN’s Culinary Journeys. To me, this trailer shows how travelling and meeting other cultures can effect somebody; my statement was ‘Discover it by travelling the world’. Below this clip is shown. 

The development goals I set for myself were 1) find my own creativity, according the art workshop, 2) learn and understand the Chinese culture, and 3) appreciate and respect other traditions. By setting the first goal, I need to find my own creativity, for example, in finding (business) solutions. The second and third goals are a little bit harder, because these are broad sentences, but as I am learning Mandarin and the Chinese culture, I think it is important to get to know the culture and find out what the do’s and don’ts are while having a business relationship with Chinese. In the figure below, a picture is shown during my presentation. 

Figure 3 Presentation after the first two introduction weeks