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Lewiston-Port
sophomore pays unique visit to China by Susan Mikula
Campbell
Fifteen-year-old Lewiston-Porter High School sophomore Rachel Goodman had only been on a plane once before, but she took off this spring on an adventure of a lifetime, traveling to China. Not only was it a huge trip for someone who had previously only flown to Washington, D.C., on a class trip, but this time, she was traveling alone. Former Lew-Port student Shannon Gallagher and her family had moved to China in the summer of 2003. Shannon’s dad travels a lot with his job in General Motors. The two girls have kept up their friendship by e-mail and during summers when Shannon returned to this area for visits. “She wanted to show me what it was like over there,” said Rachel. “It was pretty easy because her parents used air miles to send me there.” Rachel’s parents, Karen and Steve Goodman, were a little uneasy about sending their only child off alone on such a long journey, but decided it was an opportunity that couldn’t be passed up. They sent her as an unaccompanied minor, so someone would be there to help if she needed it. “I was nervous, what with the world the way it is today, but it was quite an experience, something I couldn’t say no to,” said Rachel’s mom. With a day’s travel each way, Rachel left March 23 and returned home April 2. “At first, it was very intimidating; everything was completely different,” Rachel said. “It’s a whole different culture than ours.” The girl from the small town of Lewiston suddenly found herself in a city of 10 million people – Shanghai. She doesn’t speak Chinese – “I just said “Hi” to everyone.”
A ‘Different Experience’ Like any teen-ager, she enjoyed shopping, but even that was a different experience in China. They went mostly to markets, where Rachel discovered she was expected to bargain for what she wanted, with her friend’s help. “It was almost like a shouting match.” Apartment buildings were close together, with laundry strung everywhere and colorful rooftop gardens. Travel was primarily by bicycle or taxi; someone driving a bicycle with a bin attached to the back picked up the garbage. Chinese youngsters would point at them and call any white person a “westerner.” Compared to this area, she found the city dirty, and her friend wouldn’t let her use most public restrooms, unless they were in an American business such as Starbucks or McDonalds. Chinese babies she saw didn’t wear diapers and just used the street. Beggars were common. “I learned that people aren’t all the same at all. I went there thinking something and came back knowing a lot more,” Rachel said. Friends surprised Back at Lew-Port, Rachel found her friends shocked and surprised at her adventure, wanting to know if she’d been scared. Some, she thinks, didn’t believe her stories until she brought in pictures. The experience, she said, made her more independent and willing to experience new things. Catching Travel Bug “I loved it all. I really want to go back,” Rachel said. “I loved just watching people, seeing how different everything is from what we’re used to. I would go back in a heartbeat. I had a lot of fun.” Rachel apparently has caught the travel bug. She’s planning to join a Lew-Port trip to Spain next Easter. She also wants to go to Florida in July to visit her aunt. “Now she wants to go everywhere!” her mother said.
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