VICTORIAN YOUNG LEADERS TO CHINA PROGRAM

Going to China as a participant of the Victorian Young Leaders to China group was an absolute life-changing event in my life. The amount of new friends, new education and new experience I've encountered was mind-blowing.

At times, though, I did get a bit sick and tired of using Mandarin every day (as my mother tongue is Cantonese) but I did quite enjoy the occurrence to try something new.

One of my favourite aspect during the 6-week camp was the 'Great Soccer Match,' where it was Australia vs China&Japan (16-20) where we won 6-1. This event will always be an unforgettable event for me as it was one of my biggest games ever.

This camp made me build confidence in myself. At the start of 6-week journey, I had no intention of speaking to or making any new friends, but it has really sparked my mind on how it can be quite easy to do so.

Overall, this camp has changed me as a person, both mentally and physically, to become more observant and culturally aware. I'd definitely recommend this, or any other camp to anyone who is skeptical on going; in a couple years time, you will be regretting.

By: Christian Lee

This trip will be a memorable experience in my life, during the 6 weeks I learned alot about myself as well as chinese history and culture. Whether it would be going out on excursions or just studying in class, the trip made me much more confident in myself and improved my chinese language skills dramatically.

By: Richard Tan

Taking part in the Victorian Young Leaders to China Program was probably the best decision I've ever made. I'll be honest, after it was certain that I'd be going, I was terrified. I didn't want to go at all. When we got there I still felt the same and everything felt so surreal. As the weeks went on, it was definitely tough adjusting to the new routine. All I wanted to do was sleep but amazing events, opportunities and new experiences would come your way every minute of each day and soon having that empty free time felt so insignificant. I mean I went to THE Great Wall of China and even after 6 weeks I still can't believe it. When we got back, I don't think any of us 'changed' or felt 'different' because we didn't. We did grow but it was from within we opened. We've learnt to be more confident and comfortable in our own skin which has made us in a way more happy and grateful. A lot of us haven't seen it yet but the people around us.

By: Charloette Eggelton

Going to China for 6 weeks was one of the best experiences I've ever had, and I am so glad that I took part in this leadership program. Not only did I get to improve my independence, confidence and resilience, I also got to meet lots of new people and truly immerse myself in the Chinese culture. Some of my favourite experiences included going to the Great Wall of China, and many other tourist attractions, making friends with and meeting my buddy's family, eating some unusual food such as squid on a skewer, and really just getting to know China and it's differences and similarities to Australia. I definitely recommend this program to students in the future because your perspective on so much will be changed and you'll make really strong relationships with the people around you!

By: Ricki Morton

This year has been a good year but the Victorian Young Leaders to China Program made it one of the most memorable years of my life (so far). Going to a new place with new people and having new experiences was really eyeopening. It not only let me discover many new things about myself but also about the different places in the world other than Australia. Seeing the Great Wall of China, making amazing friends with the other Australians who came and with the Chinese students, seeing the amazing architecture and temples and all of the Chinese classes are just some of the highlights of the trip. I have definitely improved with my Chinese and it really helped with my work ethic and language skills. I am so glad that I went on this trip. It has given me many awesome new memories that I know will last me a life time.

By: Jacki Rogers

After 6 weeks in China, I am finally back. Taking in the life, culture language and basically, anything I could get my hands on. I am going to miss China, but some of the things that I learnt there and helped me grow could include The Great Wall. Now probably one of the best things we did in the whole trip, The Great Wall was an experience like no other. If it was the challenging climbs or the astonishing views, The Great Wall put us to the test and we got our rewards. My favourite highlight from Shanghai would be the Chinese Buddy homestay. Now homestay would probably not be the correct word for what we did as I never went to his house but the stuff we did was really fun. The first Saturday we went to a shopping place where we could bargain and I bought some earphones, the second week we went and saw the new movie, Dr Strange, in 3D! The third and fourth week we also went shopping but in different places of Shanghai so we were really taking in the culture. Overall China was an experience I will never forget.

By: Matthew Carolan

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