Midwest and Asian Cultures Combine for Local Student:

The voice of Hawarden native Derek Nolan mingled with the vocal repertoire of Chinese college choir students. There were no land, language or cultural barriers, for at least a few songs.

"You're singing with somebody half way across the world. You hardly know each other, but you're connecting through song," Nolan explained of his amazing experience. "That's been one of the best experiences of the trip, those concerts and then singing with them."

Nolan was one in a group of 80 Morningside College students, instructors and alumni to participate in the college's recent trip to China. They visited Hong Kong, Guang Zhou, Xi'an, Beijing and Shanghai.

The college choir, political science students, alumni and staff toured the country May 12th-27th to learn about the culture of China, perform with Chinese college choirs, investigate the political climate of China and expand their knowledge of what it means to become a globalized world.

"I think it's going to open eyes for people to want to participate with them more. We might as well be working with them," Nolan, a Business Administration major with emphasis on Economic and Finance explained of the group's experience in China. "When we talk about the globalized world, it has to happen. We have to open our eyes. We can not be isolationists."

And for Nolan, who is preparing for his senior year at Morningside College, the trip half way across the globe was not only a college choir trip, it was a chance to learn more about the Chinese education system and mingle with Chinese students.

The students experienced several Chinese colleges through the choir's performances.

"We had four, and three of those were at colleges or universities," Nolan explained of the choir performances. "They were joint concerts, so we got to sing with their university, and we sang too. So, it's like a cultural exchange."

The Morningside College Choir sang in a variety of languages for the people of China.

"We sang in English, and Latin. We had a Chinese one. And then we had one in Mongolian," Nolan noted. "It was really kind of fun. We toured the world through folk songs. We did African folk songs, we did Irish and Scottish folk songs. English and then Chinese and Mongolian."

But, for Nolan, the highlight of the performances was their rendition of a popular Chinese hymn.

"When we started singing it, everyone started clapping and going crazy. All of a sudden we're singing in their language and they love it," Nolan explained.

At one of the schools, a group of English majors were sent to meet with the American students to practice their speaking skills and learn more about American culture.

"Each one of them was assigned, they had to go meet somebody from the choir and go talk to them," Nolan explained. "We spent about an hour talking with them just about different things."

When the choir wasn't preparing for a performance, the group toured many famous sites.

Visiting Tiananmen Square, the site of the upcoming Beijing Olympics, The Great Wall of China, The Terra Cotta Warriors and a variety of museums, restaurants and other landmarks also filled the two week journey.

"You look off in the distance and you see it keep going," Nolan recalled of the Great Wall of China. "It's so big."

The travelers climbed a portion of the 6000 mile long winding stone wall for an hour and half, and were exhausted. Nolan noted the view from the structure was hazier than expected, due to blowing sands from the nearby Gobi Desert.

Visiting The Terra Cotta Warriors was another amazing experience for Nolan. A sea of thousands of terra cotta sculptures were unearthed when an emperor's tomb was excavated in China. The sea of warrior statues is considered to be the 8^th Wonder of the World.

"Each single one of them is different. They had artists or sculptors who made them. They're modeled after real people too," Nolan noted of the warriors, who even had ranks assigned to them.

While in Beijing, the group was able to see some of the buildings where the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games will take place.

"We drove by it. It's not opened to tourists right now. They're making sure this goes right," Nolan noted about Olympic Park.

A new airport, construction of housing for the athletes and the elimination of factory pollution were all visible changes noted by Nolan, as the Chinese people prepare for the 2008 games.

"They shut factories down in Beijing just to eliminate pollution. They've really tried to clean up," Nolan noticed. "There's tons of marketing and media, and all the Chinese people are excited that it's there."

During the trip, the Morningside group experienced the unfortunate aftermath of the recent earthquake in China.

***This article was originally published in the Hawarden Independent / Ireton Examiner by Sedgwick Publishing.***