Our trip to China
Y9 and 10 students tell us about their fantastic trip to Beijing to visit their exchange partners.
🧳 北京之旅行程表 (2025年4月4日 – 12日)· Beijing Trip Itinerary
| 📅 日期 | 🗓 星期 | 📌 中文行程 | 🌍 English Description |
| 🛫 4月4日 | 星期五 | 晚上八点我们从英国希思罗机场出发，飞往北京首都国际机场。 | 8:00 PM: Depart from Heathrow Airport, UK to Beijing Capital Airport. |
| 🏯 4月5日 | 星期六 | 参观天安门广场，观看升旗仪式；游览故宫（紫禁城）等。 | Visit Tiananmen Square to watch the flag-raising ceremony. |
| 🍜 4月6日 | 星期日 | 轻松活动安排，去附近的中国饭店。 | Enjoy a relaxing day and go to a nearby Chinese restaurant. |
| 🏫 4月7日 | 星期一 | 前往北京大学附属中学参加文化交流，包括：舞龙、舞狮表演和古筝演奏等活动。 | Visit Beijing University Affiliated High School for a cultural exchange: dragon & lion dance, guzheng performance, and more. |
| 🐼 4月8日 | 星期二 | 与笔友们一起去北京动物园，观看可爱的大熊猫。 | Visit Beijing Zoo with pen pals to see adorable giant pandas. |
| 🧗4月9日 | 星期三 | 一起去爬长城！体验“不到长城非好汉”的历史豪情。 | Hike the Great Wall of China! Feel the spirit of the ancient saying “He who has never been to the Great Wall is not a true hero.” |
| 🏞️ 4月10日 | 星期四 | 参观天坛、颐和园和当地小市场，在市场里可以练习口语。 | Visit Temple of Heaven, Summer Palace, and a local market to practise speaking Chinese. |
| 🎭 4月11日 | 星期五 | 学习画京剧脸谱、跳中国民族舞蹈，还有一些中文课程。下午参观科普展。 | Paint Beijing Opera masks, try Chinese folk dance, and attend some Mandarin lessons. In the afternoon, visit a science exhibition. |
| 🛬 4月12日 | 星期六 | 收拾行李，返回英国，结束难忘的北京之旅。 | Pack up and fly back to the UK, concluding our unforgettable Beijing trip. |
Sydney (Y10) explains what she enjoyed about the trip.
星期三，我们爬了长城。虽然天气非常炎热，但风景既美丽又宁静。长城很难爬。在长城上，有很多野猫，它们非常可爱，但有点儿生气。爬完长城后，我们都非常累，但同时感到很自豪！中国的食物都非常美味。早餐我们在酒店吃，有鸡蛋、面条、米饭和蔬菜。晚饭我们每天都在当地餐馆吃。星期四，我们在一家特别的烤鸭店用餐，观看了厨师在桌边现场制作烤鸭。鸭肉真的又香又甜，非常好吃。很多菜都非常辣，比如牛肉和菜花。我觉得中国的食物比英国的更美味。
On Wednesday, we climbed the Great Wall. Although the weather was very hot, the scenery was both beautiful and peaceful. The Great Wall was quite difficult to climb. While we were there, we saw many wild cats. They were very cute, but a little grumpy. After finishing the climb, we were all extremely tired, but also felt very proud!
Chinese food was absolutely delicious. We had breakfast at the hotel, which included eggs, noodles, rice, and vegetables. For dinner, we ate at local restaurants every day. On Thursday, we dined at a special roast duck restaurant where we watched the chef prepare the duck right at our table. The duck was fragrant and slightly sweet—truly delicious. Many of the dishes were quite spicy, like the beef and cauliflower. I think Chinese food is even tastier than British food!
Christina (Y10) describes her trip to Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City.
Beatrice (Y10) recounts her visit to a Chinese school.
去中国学校
四月的时候，我和同学们一起去了北京。在那里，我们与中国的笔友共度了三天，留下了难忘的回忆。
星期一，我们参观了他们的学校（北京附中）。每个星期一早上，学校都会举行升旗仪式，我觉得这个仪式非常有意义。升旗仪式结束后，我们参加了他们的体育课，体验了各种各样的活动。我先练了功夫，然后打了乒乓球，不过我乒乓球打得不太好。那天下午，我们学习了舞龙和舞狮，既有趣又富有文化气息。
星期二，我们和笔友一起去了北京动物园，看到了可爱的大熊猫。我觉得它们既可爱又有趣。之后，我们参观了国家植物园，那里风景如画，美不胜收。晚上，学校还特别安排我们去宜家著名的餐厅品尝北京烤鸭，大家都觉得非常美味。
最后，星期五我们再次回到他们的中学，参加了学校举办的科学博览会。每组学生都展示了自己的科学项目，我们还要从中选出我们最喜欢的一个。除了这些活动，我们还听了一场关于人工智能的讲座，由一位计算机科学教授主讲。对我来说，这个话题非常吸引人。
这次经历为我们带来了许多新奇而令人兴奋的体验。我不仅交到了很多新朋友，而且我的汉语水平也有了很大提高。此外，这次交流也激励我继续努力学习中文。
Visiting a School in China
In April, my classmates and I went to Beijing. While we were there, we spent three unforgettable days with our Chinese pen pals.
On Monday, we visited their school (Beijing High School Affiliated to Beijing Normal University). Every Monday morning, the school holds a flag-raising ceremony, which I find very meaningful. After the ceremony, we joined their PE class and took part in a variety of activities. I practiced kung fu first, then played table tennis—though I’m not very good at it. That afternoon, we learned about dragon and lion dancing, which was both fun and culturally enriching.
On Tuesday, we went to the Beijing Zoo with our pen pals and saw the adorable giant pandas. I thought they were both cute and amusing. Afterwards, we visited the National Botanical Garden, which was incredibly scenic and beautiful. In the evening, the school arranged for us to dine at a famous restaurant to try Peking duck. Everyone thought it was delicious.
Finally, on Friday, we returned to their middle school to attend a science fair organized by the students. Each group presented their own science project, and we had to choose our favourite. In addition to the science activities, we also attended a lecture on artificial intelligence given by a computer science professor. I found the topic absolutely fascinating.
This experience brought us many new and exciting opportunities. Not only did I make many new friends, but my Chinese also improved significantly. Moreover, this exchange inspired me to continue working hard in learning Chinese.
Flora (Y9) really valued the cultural experience.
今年四月，我和同学们一起去了北京。我们参观了北京大学附属中学，见到了我们的中国朋友，还一起参加了丰富多彩的文化活动，比如画京剧脸谱、观看舞狮和武术表演、学习民族舞蹈等。我们还爬了长城。长城非常雄伟，虽然我们爬得很累，但沿途的风景非常美丽，令人难忘。除此之外，我们还参观了故宫、颐和园、天坛和动物园。在动物园里，我们看到了可爱的大熊猫，大家都非常兴奋。
这次旅行中，我们不仅品尝了美味的中国菜，也吃了美式快餐，感受到了中西文化的不同。我觉得这次学校旅行特别有意义，不仅让我玩得开心，还让我学到了很多关于中国历史和文化的知识。我希望以后还能有机会再去中国。
This April, my classmates and I went to Beijing. We visited the High School Affiliated to Beijing University, met our Chinese friends, and took part in a variety of rich cultural activities, such as painting Beijing Opera masks, watching lion dance and martial arts performances, and learning traditional folk dances.
We also climbed the Great Wall. It was incredibly majestic. Although the climb was tiring, the scenery along the way was stunning and unforgettable. In addition, we visited the Forbidden City, the Summer Palace, the Temple of Heaven, and the zoo. At the zoo, we saw adorable giant pandas, and everyone was very excited.
During the trip, we not only tasted delicious Chinese food but also tried American fast food, which gave us a sense of the differences between Chinese and Western cultures. I think this school trip was especially meaningful—not only was it fun, but I also learned a lot about Chinese history and culture. I hope I’ll have the chance to visit China again in the future.
Dua (Y9) shares her favourite excursions in China.
四月四日，我们十个人去了北京。十天后我们回来了。这次旅行中我们创造了很多难忘的回忆。
我最喜欢的三个景点是：
1. 长城（Great Wall of China）
长城是中国最著名的景点之一。我们参观了风景优美的慕田峪段，那是我最喜欢的部分。
2. 颐和园（Summer Palace）
颐和园建于1750年，是乾隆皇帝为他的母亲庆祝六十岁生日而建的夏日行宫。这里风景如画，有很多山、水、湖泊，还有许多人造建筑，比如宫殿和桥梁。1998年12月，颐和园被列为世界文化遗产。
3. 紫禁城（Forbidden City）
紫禁城非常大，是明清两代皇帝的皇宫，建于1420年，最初是永乐皇帝的住所。五百多年来，它一直是皇帝居住和处理朝政的地方。宫殿的墙壁是红色的，象征繁荣和幸福；屋顶是黄色的，象征皇权。紫禁城里有很多相连的庭院和宏伟的建筑。
这次北京之行不仅让我看到了中国历史文化的辉煌，也让我对中国古代建筑和传统有了更深的了解。我希望将来还能再去中国，探索更多有趣的地方。
On the 4th of April, 10 of us set out to visit Beijing, the capital of China. Ten days later we would return from an exhilarating experience having made memories that would stay with us for life. My top three attractions are as follows:
- The great wall of China, one of the most iconic landmarks in the world, was built over centuries to protect against Northern nomadic invaders. We visited the Mutianyu section known for its well-preserved architecture and stunning views. This was one of my favourite places to visit and it was absolutely thrilling with hill landscapes which the Great Wall meandered around.
- Yiheyuan was constructed in 1750 by the emperor Qianlong serving as a summer residence for his family. He created it as a gift for his mother for her 60th birthday. It was extremely beautiful with hills and open water combined with palaces, halls and bridges. The Summer palace is the most well preserved imperial garden and in December 1998 it was declared a world heritage site.
- Zijincheng was built to serve as the palace for the Yongle emperor, completed in 1420. It was a private sanctuary only accessible to the emperor’s family and eunuchs, hence the word forbidden. As I entered, I was shocked at the sheer vastness of it, an area large enough to fit more than 50 Buckingham Palaces. For five centuries this was the seat of imperial power, a political centre which functioned as the home of emperors and their court. It was a series of interconnected courtyards built in a symmetrical layout. The walls were vibrant red and the roof was yellow with the red conveying happiness, good fortune and warmth, associated with the element fire. Yellow is the colour of the royal family representing the emperor’s presence and authority. There were also large bronze lions popular as symbolic guardians and intricate designs of dragons on the roofs.
Conclusion:
This trip to Beijing not only allowed me to see the splendour of Chinese history and culture, but also helped me gain a deeper understanding of traditional architecture and customs. I hope to return to China in the future and explore even more fascinating places.