Last Tuesday, we got up early in the morning, to visit the Tulou Cluster (Hakka Earth Building) in Nanjing County, which is built by Hakkas from Northern China to avoid wars in the ancient times. We gathered at 8:00 and met our guide, Tom. Along the way, we had a rest and went to the store, which was full of local products and artefacts, especially coffee. We enjoyed our meal in a local restaurant, and the tofu was extraordinarily delicious. Some of the food was made of herbs, and I bet it must have been a challenge for the Dutch students!

First, we went to the famous Tianluokeng Tulou Cluster, whose symbolic building is figuratively nicknamed Si Cai Yi Tang (four dishes with a soup ), named after what it looks like from a distance. Most Tulous are round and some others are square. We went downstairs and into the Tulous. Wood and earth weather with the years, however, these wooden houses with earth walls stood still as if time never went away. Both Chinese and Dutch students thought it a wonder, a miracle.

Then we went to another famous spot, Yunshuiyao. This is a traditional small village, with streams flowing silently and far away from the outside world, like Xanadu. There is a huge Tulou called Yuchanglou in the center of the village, which was built 708 years ago. The Yuchanglou is famous not only for its ancientness but also for its structure. The wooden pillars that the Yuchanglou consists of are inclined. It still survived after so many earthquakes. This historical supernatural building reminded me of the ancient times again and brought me back to nature. Then we took a nice picture in the middle of the stream.

Finally, it took another 3-hour drive to get home. And thanksto Check-IT, we enjoyed a nice trip except the long drive! Haha. Maybe this was the last time that all the check-it 14 group went outside together. But the memories will never ever fade away.

I have spent my whole term in Check-IT. This is the first but will never be the last time that we work with Dutch teachers and students. We have harmony with the Dutch students. We study together, work together and celebrate together. I felt free but organized at Check-IT. Check-IT means you have to schedule yourself in advance, and stick to it. It’s all the same in project but totally different from the way that we work. We work on real projects and use Scrum. The different ways of thinking are also worth learning. It is a little hard in the beginning, but I got used to Check-IT soon and find it a good place. Even though I have to take swimming class on Thursday afternoon, and I miss most of the cultural class on Thursday afternoon, I will never forget the pleasant time I spent in Check-IT.