I did not have much interest in China besides the food, so naturally I never even thought of applying for Korea & China Future Forest. What did catch my attention, however, was the fact that this organization was established with the vision of strengthening ties between Korea and China through planting trees in an effort to prevent the yellow dust from flying in from China. To make a long story short, I was chosen as one of the 120 members to become a member of Korea & China Future Forest.
The schedule was quite tight during our stay from March 22 to 26; we made our way from Xian to Lanzhou by train and from there took a plane to Beijing. Each time we arrived in a new city, we first set off to the local university to meet our new Chinese friends and had a wonderful feast together. We planted trees in desolate mountains that had the driest soil that I had ever seen. We made quick trips to some famous sites of China including the Great Wall, and I will never forget the red carpet welcome we received at the Northwest Normal University in Lanzhou when we went to watch the spectacular cultural performance played out by many of the talented music and dance students there. The media attention was incredible as well. Local Chinese broadcasters and two Korean journalists followed our every move.
Korea & China Future Forest does not simply imply the building of a ?orest of trees. It strives to cultivate young Koreans in learning about China, the sleeping dragon, and to prepare them in becoming future China experts.
I was lucky enough to be in a group that bonded so well and had so much fun. Eating lamb on a skewer in the bustling Wang-Fujin Road is one of our group? most cherished memories.
Our journey doesn? end here. Our trip to China is really what triggered us to become more informed and aware of China and its great potential. We will continue our activities here in Korea through programs provided for us by the Korea & China Future Forest. No one is forcing me to, but I believe I need to start learning some Chinese!
Lee Soo-a
(International Studies, 2)
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