Hopkins-Nanjing Center Blog

Student blogger Amanda Walencewicz (Certificate '20) reflects back on her winter break spent traveling throughout Thailand, Japan, and South Korea earlier this year. For my Chinese New Year break, I wanted to explore a couple of new places in east Asia (Thailand and South Korea) and return to one that I’d really enjoyed in the past (Japan). Leaving Nanjing at the end of January, I had no idea that my month of travel would end up being much longer than anticipated, and am grateful that none of my vacation plans were impacted during that early period of the coronavirus outbreak.  I first flew from Nanjing to Chiang Mai, Thailand for a week of solo travels. Staying at a villa in Chiang Mai’s Old City, I spent my days walking around the city, visiting temple after temple, and hitting up as many restaurants recommended by friends as possible. Traveling alone was peaceful and refreshing, sort of a reset button after the end of the semester at the HNC. The highlight of Chiang Mai for ...

Student blogger Brandy Darling (HNC Certificate '20 + SAIS MA '21) shares her experience and offers advice on attending the HNC virtually.   HNC ladies go to Brunch in Nanjing before Winter Break.  Ever since the Hopkins-Nanjing Center began online classes in February, I have been finding new ways to adjust to being home while taking classes in Mandarin. Our classes are in Beijing time, so my first challenge consisted of making sure I went to class on the right day at the right time. My next biggest challenge was having a school-life balance. Especially during self-quarantine, it’s easy to fill your day with doing schoolwork, however, I become more efficient if I set aside time for schoolwork as well as personal time. Johns-Hopkins University offers a free subscription service for the Calm app which has positively impacted my mental health. The meditation sessions, sleep stories and calming music come in handy throughout today as I engage in yoga and even sit t...