Aquinas student first to participate in exchange program to China

　　The doors to China were opened for Trish Young this summer.

　　The 17-year-old La Crosse Aquinas High School senior was the first American student to be part of the Youth for Understanding International Exchange program in China.Young daughter of Tom and Jane Young of Dresbach, Minn. had studied Chinese at the Concordia Language Village program based in Moorhead Minn. the previous six summers Last summer she studied Chinese for a month and received high school credit for it.

　　She said she always wanted to go to China and decided on this summer when the Youth for Understanding program was extended to China for the first time.

　　“But then the American spy plane incident happened in China they weren’t sure program was going to happen.”Young said.

　　She said other American students pulled out of the program leaving only her.

　　“I was the first and only American to go so far.”Young said.

　　“I was a little nervous but it worked out for the best. I knew someday I had to go to China, and this was a great way and a great time to go.”

　　Jane young, Trish’s mother said she was advised not to let her daughter go, but the China trip was a natural extension of Trish’s education. Trish was taken to the culture and we felt this was just right.”Jane Young said.

　　The overseas program promotes cultural understanding and a global education. For Young, her studies of Chinese culture and language came alive during her three-week stay in China.

　　“I had a good understanding of the culture, but to experience it is completely different,”Young said.

　　Young, who studies Spanish in school, said her Spanish is better than her Chinese, but her Chinese was good enough to get around in the country.

　　She left the United States June 20 for Beijing, the capital of the People’s Republic of China where she stayed with a host family.

　　Her host parent’s both were managers of companies who had a teen-age daughter and they complied with the one-child rule in China.

　　Young said she was fortunate to be in China during the announcement of Beijing as the site of the 2008 Summer Olympics and the 80-year anniversary of Chinese communism.

　　“The announcement of the Olympics was so exciting because the Chinese people jumped up and down, and screamed”she said“There were fireworks in the streets.”

　　Securing the site for the Olympics was a source of pride for the Chinese people. Young said.

　　Young went to school for a couple days with Swedish students who were enrolled in the program, then traveled the country by train before returning to school again. She took craft language, history and culture classes.“I was surprised how much I knew but yet how cool it was,”she said.“I felt right at home, and I want to go back, maybe for the Olympics.”

　　Young saw the Forbidden City and the Summer Palace, but she was most impressed with the Great Wall of China and Tian-an-men Square.

　　“The Great Wall was so huge, and it goes on and on.”Young said.

　　In Tian-an-men Square, she saw the body of Mao, the founder of the Chinese Communist Party, and history museums.“It’s a place where people come and meet.”She said.

　　Young said she found the Chinese food in China had more flavor than Chinese food here, and people ate a lot but more slowly—over two to three hours.“I loved the food,”she said.“What I found pathetic was the American fast-food restaurants like McDonald’s and KFC moving into China.”

　　Her host parents didn’t know English, but their daughter had studied English in school. The two teens traded stories about their lives.

　　“I was impressed with how loving and caring my host family was and the Chinese people, and how much honor they have,”Young said.

　　They were very polite, and they love Americans and want to know all about us.”

　　Many Chinese people stared at her because they knew she was American, and some asked her to have pictures taken with their families, Young said.

　　“This experience was more than I expected,”Young said.“It was somewhat of a cultural shock even though I knew what to expect. To actually see things and experience things that I studied was amazing, and I have a better understanding of the people and the culture. I want to go back.”

　　译文

　　中国之门为你打开

　　17岁的美国La Crosse Aquinas高中学生Trish Young(杨)是参加国际学生交流协会(Youth For Understanding)中美间暑期文化交流项目来华的第一位也是唯一的一位美国女孩。当时正值中美撞机事件发生不久，多数美国申请学生立即改变了计划，但杨义无返顾的来到了遥远的中国。杨说：“她的妈妈开始建议她不要去中国，但想到中国之行能让女儿开阔视野，增长见识，便同意了女儿的请求。”

　　来华前，杨在美国参加过为期1个月的中文培训课程并顺利拿到毕业证书。期间她学习了中文，了解了许多中国的历史、文化。中文的学习更是让杨对中国之行充满信心。

　　杨住在首都北京一个主人家庭，中国父母均为公司的管理人员。他们遵守中国的基本国策，家中只有一个孩子。他们的女儿与杨同龄，能用英语交流，他们相互介绍各自生活中的闲闻趣事。杨非常喜欢她的主人家庭，她的中国父母和很多中国人一样，富有爱心与同情心，讲文明礼貌，对美国人很友好并愿意更多的了解他们，了解美国文化。杨说：“她真的很幸运，能在中国和中国人民一起庆祝申奥成功(2008年)和中国共产党诞辰80周年”。在北京，给杨留下印象最深的是雄伟的长城和天安门。在毛主席纪念堂，杨瞻仰了中国共产党创始人毛主席遗容。

　　杨很喜欢中国的小吃，她很奇怪为什么美国快餐能占领中国市场。

　　杨的中国之行，带给她的不仅仅是学习上的收获，还有两国文化背景不同带来的文化震撼。但这让她更深刻的了解了中国。杨说：“我一定还会回来的！”

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