Spring Break in the Quaker State

During Spring Break 2013 Anqi Zhang participated in a trip to Pennsylvania through the Student Government Association.  For their first activity the students visited an American Civil War museum and battlefield, and they took an evening ghost tour related to the war.  The next activity was the sweetest: a visit to Hershey’s Chocolate World where students personalized and packaged their own chocolates!  They studied the key characteristics of “good” chocolate and browsed thousands of varieties in the factory.  The students spent the following morning volunteering at a community center, and in the afternoon they visited an Amish town.  They were able to view traditional living quarters and vibrant Amish quilts, and they completed the stop by experiencing the local musical drama.  The group spent the final day admiring downtown Philadelphia.  What an exciting trip!

Anqi said of the SGA excursion:

“This trip is quite impressive. I learned several different languages, the table etiquettes, the manner of going to church, the methods of chocolate making and wall painting. During the journey, I met people from different countries and many of them became my friend. In the bus, the members are from 7 different countries and we use 13 different languages. We used these languages to write a letter of thanks to the diligent driver, expressing our appreciation for his hard work during the past days. I will surely introduce my experiences to my friends, so that they can come to appreciate the cultural customs of Pennsylvania during the spare time.”

Anqi Zhang (Center Left) with friends at the Hershey Chocolate factory.	Anqi is excited to study and taste gourmet chocolate!

 

More details and photos of Anqi's trip with SGA are available in our Student Writing Samples section.