BOSTON WISE SHARES CHINESE CULTURE WITH PCC

by Vanessa Cardin and Fay Heffernan

Traditional Chinese culture has been impacting the world for centuries. On Tuesday, June 9th in the Academic Welcome Center, Boston Wise paid a visit to the students of PCC. Boston Wise, a Chinese student exchange program, spent the second Core Course of the summer describing the many aspects of Chinese culture, so the students can feel more connected to their Chinese friends and learn more about China. They started off explaining the four arts in Chinese tradition. The presenter brought on stage Dr. Rosie Lee of Berklee College to describe a traditional Chinese instrument with 21 strings. A performer then amazed the crowd with her rendition of an East Asian piece. The second of the four acts was the game of Go, one of the first board games ever to exist. It is similar to chess, and is played with black-and-white stones where the goal is to fill up the majority of the board with your color before your opponent is able to.


The presenter used videos to describe the final two arts: Chinese Calligraphy and traditional ink painting. She showed an image in which people could determine their Chinese zodiac, the majority being born in the Year of the Monkey (2004) or the Year of the Rooster (2005). Four volunteers were then challenged to paint their Chinese zodiac in 10 strokes using black ink. The results were unique compared to the original images.

Along with the four arts, Boston Wise brought in three young girls in cultural clothing to perform a lovely Chinese dance. They received a deserved standing ovation. The final demonstration came from a man who shared a form of meditative martial art called Tai Chi. As a final note, the speaker from Boston Wise mentioned a program where American students could live in a Chinese household for a new experience. Journalism members reflected on hearing multiple students discussing the opportunity as they left the auditorium.