FROM "An Ascetic Travel of Culture" to "Travel Without End," Shanghai-based writer Yu Qiuyu has explored the cultures behind various historical scenic destinations. All the places he visited have witnessed civilizations and wisdom of the ages. In the traveler's words, "We see a movie of history."

Today, when students go abroad to study, those historical scenic spots may not be their destinations. However, customs, cultures and different views on education still impress them more. A new group of Jiading students has recently been abroad. During their stay overseas, they observe, experience and learn - and give us reports.The students who blazed a trail of learning abroad

(Tao Jiming and Pan Zheng)

In the middle of the 19th century, the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) was facing great challenges from Western countries whose industrial civilization influenced China heavily, as well as attracted many Chinese people.

More and more Chinese began to learn from the Westerners.

After Shanghai was opened up, Western knowledge and culture became a fashionable trend. Jiading was also affected a lot. Many students in Jiading began to learn science and mathematics and some even studied abroad.

In 1872, Jiading student Niu Shangzhou became one of the first group students sent by the Qing government to study abroad. By 1949, the number of students from Jiading studying abroad had increased to over 60. At that time, it was a big number.

From Jiading, three students?- Niu Shangzhou, Zhou Chuanjian and Zhou Chuan'e - set forth. They were quite young and not so bounded by traditional ideas. They stepped abroad bravely and blazed a fine trail for those that followed.

Most of Jiading's students abroad entered well-known universities, such as Harvard, Yale, Oxford and Cambridge. And many of them became successful: Gu Weijun became a leading diplomat; Zhang Junmai became a famous expert on Confucius; Zhang Jia'ao was the top economist for the Republic of China; Tong Shiheng was the first to suggest developing Pudong; Liao Shicheng became a great educator; and Zhang Changshao, Chen Bangdian, Niu Huisheng and Niu huilin became famous doctors.

It was not just a world for men. Jiading girls also studied abroad then like Ge Chenghui and Gu Jingwei. They were not only the first female students abroad, but also the first female doctors in China.

There was no path at all before anybody stepped on it. But as more and more people left their footprints, it became a path.

Now that studying abroad has become easier, we should not forget those explorers who first left their footprints.

Thinking small but achieving big for the environment

(Xue Jingsong)

When I walked out of the Narita International Airport, I was attracted by cars with yellow license plates. In Japan, these license plates are only found on small cars - small size and small displacement.

To my surprise, the vice mayor of Yao City, Yamamoto, who was my tour guide during my visit, also drove a yellow-plated car. He said that in Japan, you can enjoy a lot of benefits if you purchase a small car and the tax is only half that of big cars.

Later, I found that the Japanese environmental protection officials only use small cars and, vehicles for city cleaning mostly use natural gas as fuel. Through these details, I realized how Japan attaches importance on environmental protection.

Walking in the streets of Yao City, I saw no littering. Japanese people have good habits, and the classification of garbage is done well. Actually they're educated to have these good habits from childhood.

In Yao City, some school buildings were built in the last century and look a bit old, but they're clean inside. If you want to enter the building, you have to change your shoes. When you want to go to the toilet, change them again. After lunch, students will clean the desks and corridors until there is no dust any more.

The classification of garbage has been carried out in Japan for some time. One government official said they had done a lot to promote this practice and sent a lot of information to residents.

On collection day, households and shops divide their garbage into different sorts and put them outside their gates in the morning for the local administration to collect.

The garbage that cannot be recycled but can be burned is sent to the power plants and burned to help generate electricity. In Yao City, 300 tons of garbage are burned in power plants every day. The dregs after burning will be used in reclamation.

Preserving the old parts of the city is another interesting feature in Yao City. Since most residential houses and areas are private, it's not easy to carry out renovations because it must be approved by all the residents.

In the early 1990s, Yao City planned to renovate the old areas and spent about 100 million yuan (US$14.6 million) on it from 1993 to 2002. Now the construction finished. Most buildings have been preserved in old style. Some new apartments have also been built in the old styles to keep the vision unified.

Although my trip to Yao City was short, Japanese people's attitude toward the environment has left a deep impression on me and brought my thoughts back to Jiading - my hometown.

(Translated by Pan Zheng)

Singapore - an island nation with much to offer

(Shen Mengdan)

In Singapore, what impressed me most is the diversity of people from different races, backgrounds and cultures.

Singapore is an island nation of immigrants, including Chinese, Indians and Malaysians, just like a mini world. In schools, students of different nationalities study together. Usually this would lead to some discrimination, but not in Singapore.

People of different races understand and respect each other. The schools also consider a lot when setting courses. For example, the Chinese language course is optional, since the Malaysians don't study it, and on Friday afternoon all the students are free because there should be free time for those who need to go to church.

When the word "foreigner" is mentioned, Singaporeans relate to "open." Singaporean students show a passion for "openness." When we walk through a corridor and meet some local students, they will often greet us with simple Chinese. Some shy girls will just smile at us.

I once read an article about Singapore: At the time it was founded, one officer said to the then Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew that China has the Great Wall, and Egypt has the Pyramids, but Singapore had nothing. Lee didn't agree. "Sunlight, we have sunlight. That's enough," he answered. From that time, Singaporeans have protected this land full of sunlight.

They can sit on the ground since there's no dust. They never wear slippers at home since their feet don't get dirty. During the 10 days together with the Singaporean students, we felt every detail in their hearts for protecting the environment. If there's litter on the ground, they will immediately pick it up and throw it into a litter bin.

Once when I went shopping with two friends. We asked the shop assistant to pack the three gifts we bought in three different plastic bags and never realized that such a demand was not so reasonable here. While the assistant was packing the presents, she said: "Why not use fewer plastic bags? It's good for the environment." We felt quite ashamed.

Some of the little facilities in public areas also make newcomers feel good. I found two big electric fans in a bus stop shelter. When you turn them on, they blow a gentle breeze and a few minutes later they will turn off automatically. These are the details that foreigners appreciate.

(Translated by Pan Zheng)

'Chinese students are good at knowing, Western students are good at doing'

(Ni Chao)

During my time in Hauraki City in New Zealand, I visited three schools. Although this could only give me a limited idea of education there, what I did see and hear still showed the huge differences between the educational systems of the two countries.

The classrooms in New Zealand look like workshops in a factory, which impressed me a lot. The classrooms are much more spacious than ours, while desks and chairs are also totally different. Six to 10 students can sit together behind one big desk, learning together.

There's no room under the desk to put books. Actually, in many classrooms you cannot see a single book. Instead, there're many tools and equipment, from knives to computers, filling the whole room.

Learning in such a classroom, of course, requires students to practice more and get practical knowledge, which is not what happens in our country.

In China, the education system mainly focuses on theoretical knowledge, while paying less attention to practical things.

Although we always say we should combine knowledge with practice, we emphasize theories much more than practice. Maybe electric circuitry on paper is easy for Chinese students to understand, but to install a little lightbulb might be a big problem for many of us.

Homework for students in New Zealand is also different from ours. There's more real stuff instead of letters and numbers on paper. I've seen one lamp, one radio, and the biggest one is a wooden sculpture.

Different homework sends different messages. Two kinds of educational ideas produce two kinds of students - Chinese students are good at knowing, while Western students are good at doing.

Before I went abroad, I heard that foreign schools often teach in small classes. In Jiading, there are also some schools that use this small-class method for certain subjects.

In my New Zealand visit, I saw the real small-class teaching. The smallest "class" is just one teacher and two students. In New Zealand, even if there's only one student who needs to learn and catch up with others, the school will try its best to provide opportunities.

Personalized learning is an important part of education, while in China, by contrast, it's just like industrial production - the same textbooks, same classrooms, same content. This may reduce the cost of education, but the effectiveness of education is decreasing as well.

The visit to New Zealand cannot completely reflect its education system, but at least it may bring us some new thoughts, and help us improve our personal education.

(Translated by Pan Zheng)

Learning about hospitality the Malaysian way

(Ni Qing)

Somerset Maugham once said of Malaysia: "If you've never been here, you've never seen the beauty of the world."

As perhaps the most beautiful island country in the world, Malaysia lets every foreign visitor enjoy and relax.

However, since I went there to study hotel management, I paid more attention to local culture of food. After a few years' study, I appreciate Malaysians' special interest in food.

Malaysia covers only 329,000 square kilometers but enjoys rich natural resources. Rubber, palm oil and pepper are major worldwide exports. There's only one season, summer, which makes plants grow fast. Add good tourism, fishing and a small population, this Southeast Asian country is very rich. These "rich" people spend a lot on eating.

Whether in the capital Kuala Lumpur or other cities, restaurants, as well as the sidewalk snack booths always enjoy a good business. Many Malaysian families seldom cook at home, they often eat in restaurants. It's hard to believe that they will drive nearly 100 kilometers only for a dinner.

One of my classmates once invited me to dinner. He drove for over one hour and took me to a common little restaurant, just to eat the stewed pork there. Looking at his blissful expression, I got a sense of how much the food matters.

It is said that some Malaysian family spends about 2,000 ringgit (US$550) on food each week. It's very common to see people eating out from morning till night, and those sidewalk snack booths sell fresh specialties.

During my study in Malaysia, observing hotels and restaurants was an important part of learning. I learned something else that's very interesting: Many hotels rated three stars or above hire some elderly people as staff.

The idea is to make guests feel at home. However, many foreign visitors feel uncomfortable when a 60-year-old porter smiles at you and holds your luggage and packages.

After a while, I got used to these kinds of customs.

After I came back to Shanghai, I often recalled those days in Malaysia, with delicious food and aromas filling an entire street.

(Translated by Pan Zheng)