Photos taken by Kalina Sabala Montes (Yale University), Student Correspondent for CET Beijing, Summer 2025
For our first excursion with CET Beijing, we had the opportunity to visit the Great Wall of China, one of the country’s most magnificent and detailed works of architecture. During our visit, we traversed the steep hills and winding trails of the walls, making our way to the highest point we could find. Along the way, we stopped to take pictures of and enjoy the seemingly never-ending landscape that stretched out before us, not even able to reveal the entirety of how far the fortifications truly expanded.
The part of the Great Wall that we visited is known as Badaling, a well-known attraction among tourists for its accessibility and access to the monument’s more well-preserved structures. While the hike is easier than that of other parts of the wall, the hike was regardless, nothing short of strenuous: at some points, we were walking at a forty-five degree angle with only handrails to hang on to! However, we felt the satisfaction of completing our difficult journey once we had reached the top and looked at the view that spread out before us. Throughout our walking, we also stumbled upon the entrance to a cable car, which allowed us to zip through the forests that outlined the Great Wall to return to our meeting point.
During the rest of the weekend, my friends and I took the opportunity to explore the hobbies that young people in Beijing participated in. Navigating the public transportation system took a few trial and errors (plus a lot of phone battery), but we made our way to a popular shopping mall known as Xi Dan (西单), where we noticed the impact of American businesses and economic development on Chinese culture through the many brands and stores that we recognized.
After spending our free time wandering throughout the streets of Beijing, we began our second week of classes with a lot to look forward to. Starting off the week, my friends and I attended our first Culture Class (文化课) of the program. Throughout CET Beijing, teachers offer students the chance to participate in a distinct aspect of Chinese culture, from writing calligraphy to trying traditional recipes. For this week’s culture class, we learned about Baduanjin (八段锦), a traditional Chinese exercise that highlights eight gentle and flowing movements designed to target specific parts of the body. The exercises promote the flow of energy and balance and are believed to have numerous health benefits including improved flexibility, reduced stress, and cardiovascular health. We all gathered underneath the sunlight to practice the simple, yet concentrated movements.
Throughout the rest of the week, my friends and I explored Capital Normal University in search of new study spots to prepare for our second weekly exam. From the two-story cafeteria to the busy desks of the library, to the Starbucks located in the mall across the street, we found different places to review the 50+ new words we learned each day. Regardless of the work, there was lots to look forward to, including our upcoming trip to Chengdu, where we’ll be tasked with creating a vlog based on a research topic of our choice.
As a student in Pre-Advanced Chinese, we begin to learn more advanced language concerning the political, cultural, and societal landscape in China. For example, for this week’s test, we covered topics concerning sustainable finance, the environmental impact of electric transportation and renewable energy, and the effects of artificial intelligence. By covering topics as such, we develop a more advanced vocabulary that can be used to describe more complicated topics that are progressively becoming more evident in our daily lives.
After ending our classes with lunch at Chinese Table (中文桌子), I quickly packed the necessities, and most importantly, my camera, for our second excursion to the Forbidden City Museum (故宫). Immediately upon arriving, I was in awe of the detail present in the architecture, as it seemed like no matter how small you looked, there was something else to uncover. The vast size of the Forbidden City was also severely underestimated—we spent the rest of the afternoon wandering around the endless number of palaces and exhibitions, marveling at the historic artifacts and pieces of art that we saw. The following week, we’ll be staying for five days in Chengdu, where we’ll dive into a topic of our choosing as we visit various historical and cultural sites in the trending city.