#jeniphermpondela

Hi, Y'all,

It’s Jenipher here.

Shanghai has been magical. The friends I made, the experiences I gained and the special moments I had will live with me forever. I came to Shanghai unsure of what my experiences would be like. Will the locals know English? Will I have to walk around with a translator? I am happy to say that I was lucky that some locals had a basic grasp of English so I was not totally lost and WeChat helped a lot in translating.

I got a chance to explore China one last time and went to Leshan to see the Giant Buddha. It was an interesting experience.

I also got to see various monk statues and remains of other Buddhas that were sculpted at around the same time as the Giant Buddha.

I also got to see the blue dragon in the East and the white tiger in the West which are very important animals in Chinese culture as they are two of the animals believed to protect the four directions.

Overall, it was an enlightening and enriching experience.

I spent Christmas in Shanghai and it was fun. I got my window-shopping in, bought some gifts for friends and tried to find an ugly Christmas sweater. I was unsuccessful in the last endeavor.

The tune of Ice Ice Baby keeps playing in my head every time I see this photo.

I also a cute little reindeer with butterflies all over it.

My friend invited me to her Christmas party. I really enjoyed it. We got matching glow-in-the-dark face paints.

I loved my experience in Shanghai and I will definitely visit again if I get the chance. Thank you so much for this opportunity.

Have a Merry Christmas!!!!

我爱上海!!!! 我爱中国!!!

Jenipher J. Mpondela

Computer Science

Hi y’all,

It’s Jenipher here.

December has been a weird hybrid of “Ooh! Finals”, “I wanna go home” and “I don’t wanna leave”. When I think about Finals, I’m filled with dread. When I think about my friends back at Michigan I wanna go home. When I think about the Michigan weather, I get more than a few second thoughts about returning. December was so short but I got a chance to go see Pandas at Chengdu.

Naptime pandas.

Snack time panda

Hide and Seek Panda.

Bamboo & Chill Panda.

My roommate’s Small Red Raccoon Bear or simply the Red Panda.

It was interesting to learn what the Chengdu Research Base of Giant Panda Breeding was doing to help save the Giant Pandas. There was a lot of information on the lifestyle and evolution of the Giant Panda. My roommate is shocked that the Red Panda is more related to the Giant Panda compared to the raccoon. She still calls them Red Raccoons. I’m letting her live in her picket fence.

My Panda Experience

Jenipher J. Mpondela

Computer Science

Hi yall,

It’s Jenipher.

November has interesting and eye opening. First, it was my first time going to a Disney park. It was so fun. The trip included Mary my roomate, Hooks, Braden, Zoe and me. We got to ride Tron 4 times. One of my current favorite rides. I also enjoyed the Pirates of the Caribbean rides.  The rides here are so lifelike and they put a lot of thought into them which makes the more memorable and exciting.

Magical both during the day and at night.

There was a Tron Chevrolet Challenge were you had to race other people and you’d get a grand prize in the end. I wasn’t that interested in the competition but I liked how the cars looked.

We passed by the Alice in wonderland maze. We are all Mad!

OFF WITH THE HEAD!!!!!!

Well! We can’t forget about the Marvel universe.

The castle is so pretty at night!

Tian Tai Mountain trip

It was an interesting trip. My eyes were opened to the importance of staying fit and actually going to the gym. Hiking at least 900 steps is no joke. I almost change my no gym policy to “My God I need to work out”. I was breathing so heavily when I got to the exit. I need to start working out again. I’ve gotten too lazy and my stamina is awful now. Though I was so happy to see the sights. It was all interesting and I took some pictures.

Hi y’all,

Jenipher here,

We had golden week which was at the end of September and beginning of October. I participated in the Student Ambassador program where I went my buddy Jin. Tonglu in Zhejiang province is her hometown and it is located in the southern eastern part of China.

We end the first night with barbecue and I introduced to a chinese treat called green tongue. It is a green jelly-like frozen treat that looks like a tongue when melted.

Then explored some temples that were created to honor Chinese medicine.

Then Jin and her friend got interviewed for a local new station.

At the end of the we had dinner with Joe and his buddy Gary.Jin loves taking pictures of food before anyone eats it. The next day I got a chance to drive a boat.

Then got a chance to meet Jin’s family and actually go to a karaoke place.

And I had a photo off with Jin. I still don’t know who won. I took other pictures of things I thought were awesome.

Hi y’all,

Jenipher’s back!!! I don’t wanna bore you all with orientation stuff because the registration day was tiring and we had a scavenger hunt to help us get around but I still get lost. I miss Google Maps !!! :’-( People were taking pictures of me or Children point at me wherever I walk around. It leaves me feeling like a hybrid of a celebrity and zoo animal. Some even come up close and take a picture of me. I told some of my friends that next time that happens I’ll respond in kind. Take a picture and I’ll take one back. The results have been hilarious.  

We recently had a long weekend because of the Mid-Autumn Festival. My friends and I decided to go to Nanjing because everyone was exploring China, why shouldn’t we?

Who am I kidding?!! My friends planned the trip and I tagged along. I was embracing the hermit life a lil bit too much. I got a chance to see some sights and took some pictures.

My name is Jenipher and I am new to blogging so bear with me. I’m heading to China in a few days and I’m feeling a bit nervous. I haven’t even left but I’m missing it already. I hope all goes well.

Before landing in China I have to got to Japan for a few days. I’m going to participate in a cultural exchange program that my sponsor has organized. OMG! I’m so nervous. I can’t speak either Japanese or Chinese. I think this will be an interesting experience for me.

Before I arrived in Japan I passed through Chicago O’Hare and I got to take a pic next to this bad boy. One hour layover then I’m off to Japan.

When I got to Haneda airport in Tokyo, I was so excited and a bit apprehensive. I was in a new place and I didn’t know anyone there. There was a person sent to pick me up at the airport. We missed each other and I was walking around the airport for at least 30 mins. I exchanged some of my dollars to Japanese Yen and took a pic with a goofy poster to pass the time while walking.

Then “lightbulb moment” I decided to call her. I know! I know! Eyeroll! Why didn’t I do that before? It seemed that when had passed each other when I had arrived. I promised myself that I’ll stay put next time.

Lacey, the person who was to pick me up, was so sweet. I explained how things are done in Japan and helped me get access to my source of life. Guess what it was? Hint, it’s not tea or water.

Those who guessed soda are correct. I didn’t waste time and I bought myself some Fanta.

Kudos to Japan for one having no food colouring in their sodas and confusing me. Imagine the big bottle there was ¥170 and the tiny one was ¥130. I was so amused when I found out. Another thing that surprised me were the automated toilets. It was the first time I experienced them.

My few days in Japan were so great. I made new friends and was able to see Mt. Fiji and some neat places. I had a translator who helped me with the language barrier problem so I enjoyed my stay immensely. I almost didn’t want to leave. I also learned how to write my name in Japanese katakana.