Conor's Semester in Shangai 安竹学期在上海: Xiamen: 厦门

Sorry to those of you who check this regularly because there has been a bit of a delay in my posts. I have found myself busy exploring all that China has to offer and have neglected my blog a bit. These pictures are a little old, I took them during my break for the Mid Autumn Festival 2 weeks ago. I traveled with two other students to Xiamen, in Fujian province, for what we dubbed Fall Break 2013 (because we saw it as our Chinese version of American spring break since we went to the city of Xiamen). Although Xiamen has many historical landmarks and temples it is also known for its beaches. We therefore referred to it the "Miami of China" to make our classmates who travelled to different cities jealous. We tried to balance our days between soaking in the Sun on the beach and visiting temples and historic sites. All in all it was a great trip and we made it out right before the typhoon struck.

Trains in China are phenomenal and can get pretty crowded during peak holidays.

Our groups obligatory arrival selfie in Xiamen after an 8hr train ride down the coast.

The city of Xiamen is actually located on an island. We figured given the circumstances we couldn't pass up the opportunity for some sea food.

I felt like I was on lost as we headed to Gulangyu Island off the coast of Xiamen. Xiamen (formally known as Amoy) was one of the first treaty ports opened to foreign trade following the opium war. This island became home to all the foreign merchants and dignitaries in the city and is now an historic park. The statue is of a famous Chinese soldier looking out to Taiwan (parts of which can be seen from Xiamen).

Outside of China's major cities many people have never seen westerners before. On this trip I took over 30 pictures with various groups of people who were not accustomed to seeing white people. Many also told me I was so handsome and looked like various American movie stars, which certainly didn't hurt my self-esteem.