Transforming Youth? Indeed

This years application process has been really fun and competitive. Not only have I seen growth in myself but also in the other returning applicants. There has been a huge development from the me last year till now. Being apart of this scholarship program has made me more mature and has rubbed a few life lessons upon me. I have wandered all my life but not yet truly traveled the difference is wandering is meaningless, but travelling is for fulfillment and education. I truly want to experience what traveling really is being that it's my last try to win the scholarship I analyzed my mistakes from last year and tried not to repeat them. Performance wise I feel like I stepped up In certain areas of the application process, I put lots of time and effort into every step. When it came to preparation that was my strong suit, I was ready for everything that was threw at me and when it came to gathering information I was on top of it even when I had to miss seminars because of Sat and Act. One big thing that continued to run through my mind was not to procrastinate and having that on my mind kept me on track. I also felt like I improved during the San Francisco trip I was more engaged into the conversations and truly understood and correlated with what was going on.

One thing that I can say I really connected to while on the San Francisco trip was the story of Sun Yet-sen. His leadership and courageousness impacted the world and made a huge impact in peoples lives. He led groups of people in order to establish what he thought was right for everyone he represented. I can relate to how he felt as of being a leader and standing up for what was right, I face situations like that every single day except for in his case he led more people. Being a leader in sports and trying to be a positive role model to my younger siblings I can feel the connection between my life and his. Overall I can truly see the transformation between myself from last year in this process from now.  If given the chance I would take full advantage of the opportunities given to me and utilize my time into making sure that every assignment is completed to the best of my abilities plus more.

-Malik Lee

Back Alley History

       Finally we have made it to the end of this extensive yet rewarding process. Though it took a lot of dedication and focus, I thoroughly enjoyed the moments I got to spend learning and competing with students who are set apart in the level of determination they show and exhibit in their pursuance of this scholarship and academic excellence. The tour in San Francisco was long and tiring, but at the end of the day, I enjoyed and appreciated what I learned and who I walked with. I learned things about San Francisco and history itself you wouldn't in regular textbooks. I also am beginning to recognize what is and is not held as significant within our culture, as I observed how audited history can become when significant social and racial issues and events are left out; though they are often the reason for our present. (google images)
       San Francisco is the home to thee beginning of Chinese-American history; it holds a lot of historic significance for the city and California in general yet the area is not protected. There are laws built to prevent a total annihilation of the area by builders and development, yet because of the issues our country has with the treatment and preservation of other cultures, the area is poverty ridden and completely separate; hidden from the public eye. In the beginning, the district was riddled with Tongs, prostitution, drugs and crime. Many Chinese came for gold but were sucked into a life of turmoil with little acceptance by Americans or the Irish immigrants. The effects of this are lasting and very apparent, reflecting the issues many minorities face living in America. It's so baffling how significant a place can be for the growth of a city ye get zero recognition. You would never dream that some of these sad buildings hold the stories and history of generations of greatness. When we passed the former office of Sun Yat-Sen, the "father of modern china", I was baffled at the condition of the building itself. His office sat atop a closed off gambling room, with no indication that a great man had once thought and resided there. No plaques. Zero recognition. It broke my heart to see that there was no move to recognize a man who basically brought a now very powerful nation into the modern era. If this is of little significance just because he wasn't in the white house, our country has a lot of growing to do.
          


(google images)
       This tour was a testament to how American culture is built on the backs of those who come to add to its richness, yet the prejudice often found here leaves holes within our own history. I loved this way of learning where I was able to get a better. more full story instead of hollow facts found in my textbook. I was able to personally see and feel connected to a history I have nothing to do with yet also feel its effects. It was engaging and eye opening in ways I couldn't teach myself, and I appreciate experiences such as these greatly.
Simone Sheppard

Gold Mountain

Yesterday we kicked off the day bright and early and made a swift entrance into San Francisco also known as Gold Mountain. We met up with our tour guide Rick Evans who also was the same guide from our trip last year so I knew we were in good hands. We moved from different locations in San Francisco's little China town getting a real deep and in depth understanding of the history of its becomings. Little china started off as just 12 blocks they felt restricted and had no rights, there were a fair share of entrepreneurs but on the other hand there were the ones who wanted to make a quick buck and resulted in selling opium and making money off of prostitutes, and gambling. All the Chinese wanted to do was to come over In search for gold but there late arrival led them into a life of infamy. As we walked through little china the history grew more vivid with each step we took. We learned about a man named Sun Yat-Sen who was the first president of his people and spread a democracy he took over china but fail to beat his communist rival commander Mao. This let to a split in the two groups, china being let by Mao and the democratic group being moved to Taiwan. Our tour guide Mr. Evan made this story very interesting and easy to understand, he spoke with a certain tone of voice that made you eager to hear what he had to say and that was very exciting. We walked passed an alley where Sun Yat-Sen office resided In and another tour group walked right passed it without talking about him Mr. Evans as well as myself found that really funny. That just made me feel more confident in him and made It for sure that he knew what he was talking about.

(photo cred. Google img.)

Later on in the tour he told us how a huge earthquake led to an even more vigorous fire to break out and destroyed all of little china town except the st Mary's cathedral which was only destroyed from the inside. Most say the church didn't fall because of the Bostonian bricks and others say god held it up. After the fire little china town was rebuilt as a tourist attraction with little original authenticity. When we first walked into little china town Mr. Evans pointed out that the first few stores weren't even owned by Chinese descent. San Francisco's little china town has a very straight forward and discrete History and there modern day structure needs work, but I believe over time they will cease the problem at hand and fix it for the better of the historical landmark that it should be.

(photo cred. google img.)

-Malik Lee

Temple? Chinatown is place to get exercise

At 7:15 a.m., we got in the cars and headed toward San Francisco. As we got half way to San Francisco, most of the people were sleep and creating questions so they can ask our tour guide, Rick Evans. Rick Evans was the best tourist guide that I have ever had. At 9:00 am, Rick started our tour by telling us why the Chinese came to America. The Chinese came to America because of gold rush in 1849. I think the reason why the Chinese came to America because wanted it to be more then whites and African Americans living America. First, Chinatown was originally 12 blocks long, but after the fire in April 18, 1907 at 5:17 a.m. The new (current) Chinatown was made in 1907, one year after the fire and earthquake that happened in San Francisco. There was only one temple that stayed up and still up after the fire and earthquake and that temple was built from Italy; The Saint Mary Church.

Chinatown made the type of crimes in California. The first crimes that the chineses had were drugs, prostitution and gambling. The person that was working on these crimes was people that was called tongs and was the first “Chinese Mafia.” The Chinese came into San Francisco by wearing all black. Today Chinatown is made as a theme park. Some people think that Chinatown is fake and that they took down the false materials that Chinese brought from China. I think that it weird that we went to a place that wasn’t a real place, but a theme park for tourist to come into and she how Americans made Chinatown the way it is today. The only Chinese culture in Chinatown was the dragon street lights that were built in 1916. The government can’t do anything about Chinatown so; Chinese have no new housing because there is a 24-inch height limit.    

 

The new information that learned about Chinatown was the Tin How Temple. It all started when we had walk up 3 flights of stairs at 11:30 a.m. When we got to the top of the temple we spent sometime to catch are breath and look around before Mr. Evans began to talk. The Tin How Temple is a temple that any religion can go into the temple and do traditional practices. The first step you have to do is to bring oranges/foods to the temple for the gods know that you are in the room. Next, you have to light incents to also tell the gods that you are in the room. When we first got into the temple you can smell that sense of incents. When I walked into the temple I smelled nothing but incent and thought that I have to learn more about this temple.

The next step is to make a paper looking hat, with three sheets of papers underneath it. After you make the hat and the papers you then have put the sheet of papers in the furnace, (that’s why they have the temple on the top floor). The topic of the temple that caught my eye the most was that the Mr. Evans said that you can buy paper materials for the person that died. For example, if your uncle died then you will so the practice and buy him some paper money, they got a stack of paper money for 50 cent in Chinatown. You will put the paper money into the furnace and your uncle can use that money to pay off the debt from the devil. You probably thinking that it is weird that you put some money in a furnace and your uncle give it to the devil, but the Chinese believed in the afterlife and making shore that the people that died have a great life into the afterlife. You can also buy a credit card, I-Pad, clothing, and a brand new car. This temple was the first temple that can be used for fortunes. You can get your fortune after you give respect to your dead relative. Warning, the fortunes are not like the fortunes that you get from a fortune cookie.

Chinatown was a great place to learn new things about a culture that I had never known that I can study about. Threes more important topic about Chinatown but I liked the temple the most. The temple was the most important topic to me was because if I want to understand more about a new culture, then I have to learn from there religion or most talked topic of Chinatown. Chinatown was an awesome place to visitor and I wished that we have never left Chinatown. Rick has given us a map with the entire topic that we learned about in Chinatown. I will be coming back to Chinatown with my family and friends. I like to thank Ms. Everett and all the people that helped Ms. Everett in the study of Rome and the Chinatown trip. The classes and the trip was the best time and the places that I got the most information about Rome and Chinatown. If I don't get picked this year, then I will do it again next year.

-Roynell Anderson    

                   

 

The Golden Mountain

Waking up at 5:30 in the morning I was ready to go to San Francisco I had such a fun experience last year with all of the fellow applicants. Well my car didn't think that I needed to go because it wouldn't start so I had to wait for my uncle to bring me his car. I was so scared that I was going to be late. By the time I got to Sac High I was so tired and hungry but so eager to get on the road. I’m not very much a morning person I have to give my body a little bit of time to wake up before I am social and Courtney, so before 7:30 I’m a little bit of a zombie. Aurea and Kiarra sure did wake me up. The car ride was fun I got to connect more with everybody in the car and all we talked about was superheros and music. It was a great start to the day. The car ride was nice too, no traffic, we got to San Francisco pretty quick we were in the car for maybe an hour and a half. As we drove into San Francisco and we were on the Bay Bridge looking at the city I was listening to my iPod and the song Take Me Out by Franz Ferdinand came on and as soon as we just left the tunnel the song changed tempo and got me so excited and a little impatient to get out of the car.  

Photo Credit : Courtney Bucknor 

We waited in front of a Starbucks for Mr. Evans, our tour guide.  While we waited we all just talked and got to know each other a little bit better. When Mr. Evans showed up I was in game time mode ready to learn. We stepped to the side of the street to get a good look at the gate that was at the entrance to Chinatown. Originally the “gate” was a symbol of China because in China there are gates that are in front of a town or village, but in San Francisco its not really respected in that way it’s just there to tell you that you're about to enter Chinatown. Chinatown is made up of a number of cultures not just Chinese, but the Chinese are the majority. The first 10 blocks into Chinatown are owned by Israelis. To show us how mixed Chinatown is Mr. Evans showed us a building that was right across the street on the corner when you enter into Chinatown. The building on the bottom was of Israeli brick , the middle was  French Baroque style, and the top was Chinese. If thats not diversity I don’t know what is! Before going inside to Chinatown Mr. Evans wanted to give us the history of how the Chinese came to San Francisco for the gold rush. Chinatown was more of a ghetto that the Chinese were trapped in.  Chinatown was a place where crime, drugs and prostitution took place; because of this not a lot of people wanted to go to Chinatown.

Photo Credit : Google Images 

The Chinese people faced discrimination due to the way they looked and how they spoke.   When the Chinese came to San Francisco they showed up in black attire and with long braids. They were put in Chinatown to be separated from the rest of the city. Chinatown was filled with prostitution, opium, and gambling.  Mr. Evans told us that the earthquake and fire of 1907 really wiped out the financial district and Chinatown. The only thing that survived was St. Mary’s Catholic Church.  As San Francisco started to rebuild that part of the city the Chinese asked the city to allow them to move back into that area with the promise of cleaning up the drugs and crimes that overran that part of the city. San Francisco allowed them to move back into that area and later would use it as a tourist attraction.  Looking around Chinatown there are hints of China’s culture but none of it is authentic - it’s all for show for the enjoyment of the tourists that come and visit. The buildings in Chinatown are interesting, they are Western style architecture with bright balconies and roof tops. I felt like these details tried to create the appearance and set the scene for the visitors to believe themselves in a foreign land and not in San Francisco. This almost made me feel sad because I know the richness of this culture is not represented as I’m sure they would like to see it.

St. Mary's Square
Video Credit : Courtney Bucknor 

Sun Yat Sen
Photo Credit : Courtney Bucknor 

As we continued on with our tour we went to St. Mary’s Square.  Here in this peaceful and quiet place you are greeted by a huge statue of China’s first official president named Sun Yat Sen.  In this setting Mr. Evans began his history lesson about China’s history - history that many other tour guides forget to include on their tours.  Did I tell you that I have some Chinese in me?  One of my great great grandmothers, I guess were Chinese.  Anyway back to the story about President Sun Yat Sen.  Apparently he lived in San Francisco and from this distant land he planned the Chinese revolutionary war thousands of miles away. It is believed that St. Mary’s Square is where he spent a lot of time planning the war. We saw his office in an alley that is now known for its underground gambling. It’s kept secret so that tourists won’t come and disturb the illegal gambling that is going on inside the apartments below. When you enter the alley there is a plaque explaining the alley’s significance, but it is painted to blend in with the brick so that tourists aren't drawn to go and explore the alley and disturb the local gambling.  Just so you know we were very safe and we also didn't disturb the gambling patrons.  As we were finishing up that part of our tour in that alley that shall remain a secret - another tour group walked into the alley and walked right past the plaque without a stop or explanation - if only they knew!  

Tien Hou Temple
Photo Credit : Courtney Bucknor 

Mr. Evans always finds a way to provide us with aerobic exercise.  He led us up three flights of stairs to the Tien Hou Temple. When you first look around there are over a hundred of lanterns hanging from the ceiling.  These lanterns represent people’s wishes for the goddess Tien Hou to grant. Mr. Evans told us that people come to this temple to say prayers and ask for guidance. In order to be able to pray to goddess Tien Hou your chi (ying and yang) must be balanced and you check it by dropping two wooden blocks on the floor.  You will know if your “chi” is balanced by the way they land on the floor.  Then you grab a cup that is full of sticks and you are supposed  to shake it until one stick falls out. On the stick is a number and that number is on a fortune card that gives you your answer. This isn’t just for those that are living.  People come here to give to those who have passed away.  A person buys something that represents things that the deceased person liked.  It can be clothing, money, even electronics and then they burn it in their loved ones memory.  But wait it’s not real it’s just paper! It’s just something that symbolizes their loved ones likes.  It’s really cool. I’m definitely going to bring my family its an amazing experience. One thing that I appreciated is that it’s open to everyone.  No one is restricted to enter based on their religion it’s an entirely spiritual experience.

The View From the Temple
Photo Credit : Courtney Bucknor 

Photo Credit : Courtney Bucknor

So out of the temple and into Portsmouth Square where men and women gamble out in the open while their children/grandchildren play on the jungle gym near by. Crazy! Mr. Evans explained that we were in the exact spot where the American flag was raised that started the Mexican- American War. I was trying to restrain myself from geeking out. Thanks to Mr. Evans I gained a whole new respect for where I live.  Throughout the whole entire tour we all were reminded of Sacramento multiple times. Living in Sacramento I really don’t think of how much of an impact we have had on United States history.

This San Francisco trip was bittersweet because I was able to bond with my fellow candidates and also this is the end of the competition. I’m so thankful to Context Travel , Sac High and St. Hope for making this opportunity available to me. This trip definitely inspired me to learn more about where I’m from, I never thought there could be so much history in Chinatown. All I've known about Chinatown is that it’s a tourist attraction and that it was a place where the Chinese resided when they immigrated here.

We ended our day walking back through Chinatown heading for a place to eat.  These chapters of history closed behind us as we walked through the Chinatown gate we entered.  As we walked back everything I saw around me now had meaning. Thank you Mr. Evans for being such an AMAZING docent! I came home with a rekindled respect for my city and the city of San Francisco where I know there are many more historical facts and secrets that have yet to be told.  Well I have a whole lot of information to tell my mom once again!

Context Travel Applicants of 2013
Photo Credit : Mrs. Everett 

- Courtney Bucknor

A Truly Fascinating Place

           The China Town walk was an amazing experience. I would like to thank Mrs. Everett, Ms. Mills, and Mr. Evans for the incredible opportunity to tour such a beautiful and fascinating place. Mr. Evans was a wonderful guide! He gave us in-depth information about the history, demography, and society of china town while we toured the neighborhood, sites, and historic monuments. Mr. Evans even took us to places in China Town that most tourists don’t go. Despite being long, the tour wasn’t at all boring. The passion Mr. Evans showed during the walk told me that he truly loved what he does and that made the experience all the more enjoyable.

The Main Gate To China Town (Photography By Myself)

            The thing that amazed me most about China Town was how everything changes after you enter the main gate. As you walk deeper into China Town, the beauty of your surroundings begins to evolve into something much more authentic. The deeper you go, the more you start to experience the true China Town. The highlight of the China Town walk for me was definitely the Tin How Temple. The Chinese don’t build temples on the ground floor of buildings; they build them on the top floor because they believe that the higher the temple, the closer you are to heaven so to get to the temple you must climb three flights of stairs but trust me, it’s worth it. Once you enter the temple you are immediately hit with the delicate fragrance of burning incenses and the mesmerizing beauty of the temple’s altars and colorful lanterns the cover the ceiling. Tin How is the goddess of Travelers and people can come to the temple to get a blessing from her altar. People also come to the temple to burn paper in order to provide aid to their dead loved ones in the afterlife. I was really disappointed that pictures weren’t allowed inside the temple because the temple was so beautiful and words simply don’t do it justice.

            Another great part of the China Town walk was the Fortune Cookie Factory. The smell of freshly made fortune cookies was so inviting. Mr. Evans provided us information about the factory, the history of the fortune cookie, and allowed us to try the “reject” fortune cookies. After the tour he allowed us time to buy our own bags of freshly made fortune cookies. I didn’t buy a bag myself but my generous peers allowed me to try some of theirs and they were delicious. Inside the factory the women who sell the cookies charge fifty cents a photograph but it was worth it. An interesting fact about the fortune cookie is that the fortune cookie was actually invented by the Japanese. I still regret not buying my own bag of fortune cookies.

The Fortune Cookie Factory (Photography By Myself)

            After the walk I was exhausted and tired but filled with a burning desire to one day return to China Town and experience everything it has to offer. I loved being able to come home and share my incredible experience with my family who now shares that same desire. I really wanted to have authentic Chinese food in China Town for lunch so that was my only disappointment. I didn’t just go home with some cool souvenirs; I went home with better knowledge of the history of Chinese immigrants in San Francisco and a passion to return to China Town in the future. 

-DeRael Edwards

The Tin How Temple

                     The Chinatown walk in San Francisco was absolutely amazing. Our tour guide, Rick Evans, knew so much about the history of Chinatown and was able to teach us Sac High students. On this trip I learned why the Chinese moved to San Francisco, who the mafia of China was, and much more. The tour of Chinatown was an experience that I will never forget.

            Even though we visited many places in Chinatown, one place really stood out the most to me. When visiting the Tin How Temple the colors, the aroma, and the decorations really caught my eye. The room was mostly the colors gold and red. All the gold and red made the room pop. Not only did the room pop, it also smelled really good. This is because when you go to the temple you are supposed to grab a handful of incense, burn them using the fire from one of the altars, and place three in front of each altar. Placing incense in front of the altars shows your presence. When I first walked into the temple the smell reminded me of my grandmother’s house. My grandmother always burns incense and her house always smells great. The decorations of the temple also stood out to me. Many lanterns hung from the ceiling, oranges were placed around the altars, and there were pieces of paper and crowns. Everything just came together so well and I loved it.

Photo Credit: Google Images

            I found the different activities that take place in the temple to be very interesting. People burn paper, pay for a chance to make one of their wishes come true, use sticks to determine their fate, and much more. These activities sounded strange to me at first but once I learned what they were for I understood. For example burning paper sounds like a strange thing to do but it is very interesting. This activity is for giving gifts to those who passed away. Many stores sell objects such as clothes, watches, and more that are made for this while the temple gives out fortune paper and a crown. The fortune paper and crown is to give good luck to the person who passed away. Stores also sell paper objects such as money. The money is burned to give to the devil to stay away from the person who has passed. Learning that stores even sell credit cards made out of paper was funny to me. Other than the money there are more things that can be given to the person who passed. These things included clothes, technology, and more. I found this to be a great idea. Even though someone is in their after life they may still want to look nice and have the latest technology. This gives them the opportunity. I thought this was very interesting and unique.

            I learned so much from the tour of Chinatown. This was an amazing experience that I will carry with me. I would like to thank Mr. Evans, Mrs. Everett, and Ms. Mills for this trip. I am definitely going to go back when I get the chance.

-Haven