*Theme meetings have not really begun so this post is more of a personal post rather than a theme heavy one!
Week 1
So it’s our first week in Hangzhou and the weather is around 20Deg! It’s a nice change from the hot climate in Singapore but it comes at the price of rains that last for the duration of the whole day.
I arrived here as part of Batch 1 of ALP16, so we had about a day before batch 2.
Yuquan campus is very different from SUTD, it seems to be more of a park/botanical garden than a campus. The people here are friendly too, and the constant honks from ebikes and cars that whizz past you adds a certain charm and element of excitement to the environment.
After the batch 2 peeps had arrived, we headed down to ZiJinGang campus for our project theme briefs where we learnt more about the projects that we had chosen to join. For myself, I opted to participate in the theme “China of China”, in which we would learn about the history and techniques involved In pottery making, with a focus on patterning techniques and material properties, before culminating our project with a 1 week village visit to learn from the local craftsmen the art of pottery making!
(Obligatory squad photo infront of the IDI Canteen)
One of the major tourist attractions in Hangzhou is 西湖, or West Lake. It’s a lake that is surrounded by numerous temples, artificial islands and is generally a giant meeting square/park for the locals. As we explored the area, we caught a glimpse of local culture such as people line dancing in the opens square, or couples walking hand-in-hand along the lake.
I’m still taking time to get used to the differences here between Singapore and Hangzhou. Something that really surprised me was their extensive use of Alipay in society. Alipay acts as a mobile credit card that allows for easy transfer /payment through scanning of QR Codes, which contributes to a cashless society. This is something really cool and quite interesting to be able to go out without having to bring your Wallet. Maybe a possible capstone project?
So that about sums up week 1. It has been dumpling eating and long walks day after day. Looking forward to what comes next!
