China Program 2011 – Week 1 – By Professor Tiefenbrun
June 2, 2011
We have just ended the first week of our 3-week China Program in Hangzhou, China. We have a very big group: 89 American law students from TJSL and 32 Chinese students from Guanghua School of Law. The first day we all had a fantastic tour of the beautiful city of Hangzhou and a trip to the ancient Linyin Temple with the laughing Budda, the giant warrior statues, and the breathtaking Temple cradled in the midst of weeping willows, bamboo trees, lotus leaves on ponds, and caves and stones that all transported us back thousands of years! We had a lovely Welcome Reception at the law school where all the Chinese students and professors introduced themselves to the American students and professors. The first week of classes went very well, and all of us adapted quickly to the “special characteristics” of China. Javade Chaudhri, the Keynote Speaker of our international conference held on Friday May 27, arrived on late Thursday night. All 22 speakers arrived from the US, China, Canada and Macau on Thursday night, and we had a nice dinner for our out of town speakers. Dean Rudy Hasl gave welcoming remarks at the Conference on Friday. The Conference was a smashing success and very Chinese in style: ceremony, celebration, gifts, Certificates for this and that, and high level scholarly presentations. I thoroughly enjoyed working with Professor Qian Hongdao to make this Conference on the Rule of Law in China a success. Saturday morning a large group of 52 students out of 89 went on a wonderful weekend trip to Suzhou where we ate special dishes of the region, took a fantastic boat ride on the famous “Grand Canal” and then went to a silk factory to see how silk is made and to do some good shopping. We are all working and playing very hard, having an exceptionally good time and making many new Chinese friends. My Chinese is improving daily, and the students are learning all about China, its rich history and culture by listening to Chinese music, going to the most beautiful Chinese gardens of Suzhou, and by opening their mind to a new and different way of life. Doesn’t get much better than this! We have a wonderful group of students and professors, and we are all becoming good friends.
Regards,
Professor Tiefenbrun