[Revisited] Shanghai World Expo 2010

During the summer of 2010, I was in Shanghai, China. I was there for a study abroad session. Before we went there, I and some of the other people in my trip were excited to visit the World Expo. I didn't really know what to expect, but I had learn about previous World Expos in a few of my classes. I'm blogging about the Shanghai World Expo 2010 because I didn't during 2010 about the World Expo and I would like to keep it as a memory that I can reflect back on. In addition, the Yeosu Expo of 2012 will be approaching soon and I can't wait to see how the pavilions would look like.

I guess another reason I chose to blog about the Shanghai Expo 2010 now is that I have the pictures in my computer, but I haven't really done anything with it. I would rather blog about it, than for it to not be shown. Otherwise, it would only be looked at when I decide to look back at the China albums for 2010.

Here is a view of the Shanghai 2010 World Expo while I was on a bus. I really did not expect the expo to be that huge.

This is only a picture of some of the tour buses that took people to the expo. There were more buses than this though. And, definitely more people, which was apparent due to the large number of buses.

Another view of the expo from inside a bus.

The thing about blogging about something that happened years ago is that I forget some of the things I saw or where it happened. In this case, I do not remember which pavilion I was in for this picture. However, I don't think I would have remembered months after the expo.

Another view of a pavilion I went in. Each pavilion has the opportunity to showcase something that they feel represents the country. There might be people from the country there representing by selling products or by wearing outfits.

I'm not sure which Pavilion this is since I cant read the characters.

The USA Pavilion was one of those pavilions that I just skipped by, but wanted to go inside!

I didn't get to go to a lot of the pavilions at the expo. Actually, it is physically impossible to go to all of them in one day. There are lines for the popular pavilions. There are a lot of people in China, as well as tourists. The expo is huge and you cannot walk the whole entire pavilion during the day. I would recommend sticking with at least 5-10 pavilions that you want to go. You might not even get through all of them, but at least you prepared yourself in getting to pavilions that you really wanted to see.

This was the China Pavilion. I didn't go in though. I heard the line was long for China's pavilion. I think it looks amazing.

Another pavilion, but I don't know the name of it.

I remember seeing this pavilion and though it looked great! Again, don't remember the name of the pavilion. It must be been really nice to been inside.

I would like to say that this is the pavilion for India. I think it looks great, but it seems incomplete. I think it could have been designed further.

Since the expo was so huge, the pavilions were divided up. The Latin American pavilions were next to each other. The North American pavilions were next to each other and so on. I ended up going to the side that had the Asian pavilions.

I really like the design the Kazakhstan. I didn't do in however, as you can see there was a line for the pavilion.

I thought this was a very beautiful sight. This was in one of the pavilions that I went to and don't remember which one it was.

I apologize for how blurry this picture was. I must have been walking or in a rush and took this picture real quick.

The Ukraine pavilion! It looks great.

Liechtenstein was one of the pavilions I ended up going inside. I don't think I have heard of this country before going.

I didn't go inside Egypt's pavilions. But, it seems very cool! And, there's a line, so it must have been nice inside!

While walking around the expo, we ended up in the African part of the expo. There was a performance going on at the African Square.

 What I noticed when looking at the different pavilions was how some were very well developed and designed, while others weren't. Many countries invested a lot in their pavilions, but I guess those countries had a lot of funding to do that. And, that they wanted a well designed pavilion.

I really like how Croatia's pavilion looks like. I thought it looked very nice. Too bad I couldn't go in more pavilions that day. I think I ended up going to 6-8 and most of them were just random ones that I wanted to check out.

Tunsia's pavilion. It has a very interesting look to it. It sort of reminds me of business, like a hotel.

Lithuania's pavilion looks very simple, but I like it. I like the colors.

This is the Russian Pavilion! I don't know why I kind of remembered that this was the Russian pavilion, despite it not seeing the name anywhere on the picture.

Oh, and there were ice creams trucks at the pavilion. I think that was great since it was very hot and humid, and the ice cream bars were good too!

Turkey's pavilion! This was another pavilion that I had to skip due to the shortage of time.

This is South Korea's pavilion. And, yes, North Korea and South Korea had their own separate pavilions that were not right next to each other. It was hard to forget this pavilion. It was very unique and I like the design of it.

Although I didn't get to go to most of the pavilions, I still enjoyed looking at the designs of the pavilions that I did get to see. I was impressed with a lot of the pavilions and did not expect to see such impressive infrastructures. The feeling of going through some of the pavilions almost felt like I was making a trip to that country itself. It felt that way because many others also wanted to go there and looked at what that country would look like and what they would have.

Study Abroad Potluck Reunion

I had a potluck reunion for my 2010 study abroad group in Hangzhou, China yesterday. I planned the event, but I was more excited to see those familiar faces again. A couple of hours before the event I had no idea what I would bring or if I would make anything. I decided to go to the supermarket to see what they have. When I first walked in I noticed the bakery items; then, the hot foods that are ready to eat, and then chips and candy. I walked around for a bit. I was so close to buying the marinated chicken since all I would have to do is turn them around until they are done.Then, I had the idea of making spaghetti. I dont know how to make a lot of food actually, but spaghetti is something me and most of my family members knows how to make. I did not know how much of the spaghetti people were going to eat, but I bought one of those party trays. I bought double of everything except for the ground beef, but after I made the dish I realized that I should have bought another one of that too. After I finished making the dish I had to quickly get ready to pick up three other people. However, one of them didnt need a ride there, but only back. After I finished picking up the two people, I received a phone call and was going to ignore it because I was driving. But, I told one of my friends to answer the phone and it turns out that someone needs a ride in Sacramento.

When we arrived at Professor Burnett's place.Three of the other students were there and didnt start eating yet. Soon, the other guest arrived and we began eating. While we ate we caught up with each other. It was nice actually. I enjoyed some of the food that the others brought. For dessert, someone brought apple pie, but I am actually not a fan of fruit pies, so I did not want to eat anyone of the pie. Before we left, we helped Professor Burnett with cleaning up a bit. I got someone to bring home the tray of spaghetti I made. We also had a group hug before everyone left!

When I was taking a few of my classmate back home we had a pretty interesting conversation. I also visited one of their apartments and tried out the "game chair". The "game chair" is this chair in which you sit and you could feel the vibe of it through the chair. Its nice because it can feel like a massage and goes with the beats of the song.

Bon appétit

I was been previewing a couple of restaurants, bakery, and other food places in Sacramento that are reviewed by people on Yelp. I would like to visit the popular ones that seem very appetizing to me and I plan to visit all of them by the end of my summer break. Ah, summer is going to be so fun and yummy. Although I am numbering the places that I want to go they are not marked in priority or how they could fulfill my appetite. I also think that going to these different restaurants in my area will help me be more familiar with what Sacramento or Elk Grove can offer.

1. Ettore's European Bakery & Restaurant (went!)
2. French Toast at Tower Cafe (tried!)
3. Java Time Donuts (not yet!)
4. Le Croissant Factory (not yet!)
5. Five Guys (been there!)

Missing out on Sweden

Today I woke up early to turn in the withdrawal for Sweden summer study abroad program. I am bummed that I missed out on going to it this summer, especially because of finances. I should have prepared more for it financially. It would have definitely been a experience that would open up my mind. I was also interested in taking women's studies classes there, as well as the history courses. I think it is one of the biggest regrets that I would not be going there for the summer. It absolutely fascinated me when I was learning about its culture. Also, Swedish found like a very cool language to learn, especially since around 10 million? people know the language. I wanted to see if what I have learned was real or more intently I wanted to experience it, rather than read or ponder about it. So, what now since I have turn in the application? I think that I should work on future travel plans by earning money and planning further ahead. Since I will not go study abroad in Sweden, there is always the possibility of exploring on my own with the purpose of leisure and learning through experience.

Things to do during the Summer

This is a list of things I can do during the summer if I ever find myself bored or wanting to do something fulfilling.

1.Choose atleast one written type of source to document what your summer experience. It could be through online blogsites, journal, diary, or a saved document. In addition, be sure to take a picture of anything and write about it or make a note even if it is the most random thing. Make a Summer Scrapbook & collage.
2. Look at pictures taken from the digital camera and old cameras and do something with them. Do a collage, poster, or something creative.
3. Choose one of the summer challenge/wellness goals.
4. Post atleast one freelance writing.
5. Pick 5 careers you see yourself doing. Eliminate three and describe why you sticked with those. Start looking for jobs that lead to those careers and how to prepare for them after graduation.
6. Apply or start working/interning.
7. Pick a topic that you are interested and become a master in it.
8. Learn how to play any kind of instrument.
9. Go see a play.
10. Visit a museum.

11. Try to go to a festival or a concert.

12. Watch the sunrise and sunset.
13. Go to a midnight screening of a movie.
14. Sketch something that you randomly admire.
15. Read a book that a friend recommends.
16. Learn how to put make up on and to not fear it.
17. Participate or make a scavenger hunt.
18. Do a Marathon of some sort. Game, Movies, etc.
19. Have a bubble bath.
20. Write a thank you letter or "thing" to atleast 3 people or organizations you appreciate in life.
21. Do something you have always underminded yourself in and prove yourself wrong.
22. Make a portfolio for college freshman, sophomore, and junior year!!