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WCE will post emails and pictures for the WCE China Softball Trip while it is in progress!! Please encourage
family and friends to view the WCE Web Site!
2007 WCE China Softball Trip
12/27/2007 Thursday - Our 20 Member WCE Softball Delegation led by Coach KT Allyn (Marysville-Pilchuck and WCE Board) departed from Seattle as
scheduled at 1:13 pm and should arrive on time in Hong Kong (after transferring planes in Seoul/Incheon). (Very impressive check in - 20 Members
checked in for their flight and cleared through security in less than 1 hour!!!) Continue to visit this page for pictures and emails from the
daily activities of the trip! Encourage family and friends to view the WCE Web Site and follow the trip!
12/28/2007 Friday Hong Kong (7:30 am Seattle Time 11:30 pm Hong Kong Time same day) We have just spoken with Randy Li (our outstanding Hong Kong
Tour Operator). Our 20 Member Softball Delegation has arrived safely in Hong Kong (earlier than scheduled) and are currently on their way to the
Regal Riverside Hotel where they will have a very short meeting and will then get a well deserved night's rest. Tomorrow the delegation will take
the Hong Kong Island Tour, practice, and play their first game against a Hong Kong All Star Team (3:00 pm). Their adventure has begun. We will
continue to post updates however we may not receive pictures for a couple of days.
12/29/2007 Saturday (6:30 AM Seattle Time 10:30 PM Hong Kong Time) We have received another update from Hong Kong with pictures!! Our WCE Softball
Team WON their game in Hong Kong this afternoon. WCE defeated a Hong Kong All Star Team 8 to 1 (the game was called after 7 innings). It was the end
to a spectacular day in Hong Kong where the weather has been perfect! Prior to their Game our Team spent the day touring Hong Kong's major sites
(Victoria Peak on a clear day, Repulse Bay with its magnificent Buddhist Statues, and the Floating Village of Aberdeen Bay where some members have never
stepped on land). Tomorrow the delegation busses to Guangzhou, China and we should receive more pictures!!! (Their practice today and game in Hong Kong
has given Coach KT Allyn enough information to prepare her Team for the Softball Tournament in Guangzhou.) (Students will be able to send and receive emails
tomorrow once they are in Guangzhou at the White Swan Hotel.)
12/30/2007 Sunday (6:30 AM Seattle Time 10:30 PM Guangzhou Time) Coach KT Allyn (our exceptional Coach) emailed to inform us that the delegation is great,
the players are all getting along very well, and the they are having a wonderful time. We have also received our first email with PICTURES from Michael Xiao
(our outstanding Tour Coordinator in Guangzhou)!!!! Our delegation has arrived safely in Guangzhou, China. They traveled from Hong Kong to Guangzhou, China by
Bus (this bus ride allows students to view the China Countryside with its joint venture factories and growing cities). After their first 10 course Cantonese
Lunch and checking into the spectacular White Swan Hotel (send emails to the White Swan Hotel), our delegation visited the Guangxiao Temple (One of the four
most famous temples in Guangdong Province, it has a history of 1,500 years. The temple enjoys a very important position in the Buddhist history in China. Many
famous monks from home and abroad have come to preach here since the Eastern Jin Dynasty (317-420). In the temple, there are Mahavira Hall, the Sleeping Buddha
statue, bodhi trees and East and West Iron Pagodas.) Tomorrow the Guangzhou International Softball Tournament begins!!!
12/31/2007 Monday (7:00 AM Seattle Time 11:00 PM Guangzhou Time) We have received another update from Michael Xio in Guangzhou, China. According to Michael
EVERYONE is thoroughly enjoying their visit to Guangzhou. Our Students began their very busy day (after the best American Buffet Breakfast they have ever had
at the White Swan Hotel) exploring the Chen Clan Temple (The temple is a compound complex consisting of nine halls, six courtyards and nineteen buildings connected
by corridors, all separated by walls from the outside world. A pair of stone drums in front of the entrance door, measuring 2.55 meters (about 8.36 feet) in height
and two colored drawing pictures of door-godof four meters (about 13 feet) height are said to be the best in Guangdong.) and visited a Traditional Cantonese Mansion.
In the afternoon, WCE played the Tianhe High School Softball Team and WON! The Friendship Exchange (gift exchange, taking pictures, exchanging emails, and cementing
friendships) after the game was once again the Highlight of the Day. Pictures Below! More Tomorrow!
1/1/2008 Tuesday (7:00 AM Seattle Time 11:00 PM Guangzhou Time) Both Coach KT Allyn and Michael Xiao (our exceptional Guangzhou Tour Organizer) have emailed updates
(Michael attached more pictures) on our delegation. Our Members had another outstanding day. Today our delegation visited Peizheng Middle School (started by an American
in 1889, yes the same year Washington became a State!). The School Visit is very special and our WCE Students have many more Chinese Pen Pals. After an exciting School
Visit our delegation toured Guangzhou City (some of its most important sites including Dr. Sun Yat Sen’s Memorial Hall and the Five Goat Statue which is the symbol of
the City) with 20 Students from Peizheng Middle School who speak perfect English. The Tour with the Local Students is always the highlight of the trip to China.
Lunch was at McDonalds, dinner at Lianxianglou Restaurant, and sightseeing and shopping Up & Down Nine Pedestrian Road (a local street market) all with the local Students.
In the afternoon our WCE Softball Team won their third Game against Peizheng High School. Peizheng’s Coach Xu (Former Player on China’s National Softball Team) and
Coach Allyn are good friends and were very happy to see each other again. Coach KT Allyn informed us once again that everyone is having an outstanding trip (as the
pictures clearly show) and that tomorrow is the Big Game! Happy New Year!
1/2/2008 Wednesday (7:00 AM Seattle Time 11:00 PM Guangzhou Time) GREAT NEWS on another beautiful day (66°F with a low of 50°F)!! It was a clean sweep in China as our
Softball Team WON again today defeating the Conghua Softball Team (the Guangdong Provincial Team for a Province with 70 Million People with the Coach who never smiles).
Pictures are posted below!!! The day began with an exciting visit to a local Kindergarten to watch the National Flag Raising Ceremony and take part in the Mini-Olympics.
The visit to the Kindergarten is always one of the highlights of the trip and warms everyone’s heart. The day concluded with a Cantonese Banquet (also note pictures below)
and Gift Exchange while enjoying a Cruise on the Pearl River and the beautiful night view of Guangzhou City. Tomorrow our Team returns to Hong Kong!
1/3/2008 Thursday Hong Kong (6:30 am Seattle Time - 10:30 pm Hong Kong) We spoke with Randy Li (our Hong Kong Tour Coordinator). Our WCE Softball Delegation returned to
Hong Kong by Express Train (this train ride offers members an opportunity to view farming by water buffalo and hand as it has been done in China for thousands of years)
and checked back into the Regal Riverside Hotel. In the afternoon the delegation took rapid transit from the hotel to Kowloon to visit Nathan Street (a local shopping area),
rode the Star Ferry across Victoria Harbour (the #1 Container Harbor in the World), and also rode a Double Decker Bus to Mong Kok to visit Bird Alley, Flower Market, Women's
Street Market, and the local Sports Stores. In the evening the delegation attended the “Symphony of Lights” a 14-minute laser and architectural lighting and music show that
illuminates Hong Kong's Victoria Harbor. Tomorrow our Delegation will visit Stanley Market and pack to return to Seattle!
1/4/2008 Friday Hong Kong (7:00 am Seattle Time - 11:00 pm Hong Kong) Once again we have been informed that it has been a wonderful trip. Rosita (our outstanding Hong Kong Guide) today
took our Softball Delegation to Stanley Market (this a tour to the former quaint British Colonial Fishing Village of Stanley on Hong Kong Island for an opportunity to view
the paintings of local artists, sightsee, and shop). Tomorrow our delegation returns to Seattle at 10:45 AM and must clear US Customs in Seattle which can take 45 minutes to
an hour. Please double check (800-438-5000 or www.koreanair.com) the arrival time of Korean Air Flight #25! You will not see your Student until they arrive in the main terminal
from the South Concourse. Their baggage will be collected at International Baggage Claim #1. We look forward to seeing everyone at the airport tomorrow!!!
1/5/2008 Saturday (6:30 AM Seattle Time) Randy Li (our outstanding Hong Kong Coordinator) emailed that our Delegation departed from Hong Kong HAPPY and on schedule. According to
Korean Airlines our Students also departed from Incheon Airport as scheduled however they will arrive a little early at Sea-Tac at 10:29 AM. Please double check (800-438-5000 or
www.koreanair.com) the arrival time of Korean Air Flight #25! You will not see your Student until they clear US Customs in Seattle (which takes 45 – 60 minutes) and arrive in
the main terminal from the South Concourse. Their baggage will be collected at International Baggage Claim #1. Welcome Home & Happy New Year!!!
Pictures from 2007/2008 Trip are below:
WCE Reminder:
If you receive an exciting email or picture from one of our delegation members, please forward the email or picture to the
Washington Cultural Exchange Office and we will post it! Our email address is start@wce.org.
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