Gap Year Summer Abroad Program in China - The Silk Road
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About
Travel through China's most beautiful and rugged natural landscapes while learning about contemporary issues of human rights, religious practices, and minority representation.
More than half of China’s land is populated by less than 5% of its population, mostly minority groups, many of whom inhabit the rugged lands in the northern and western parts of the country. Worlds away from Beijing, the far-western province of Xinjiang is a land where vast desert basins meet 20,000-foot peaks; where Central Asian cultures blend and exist in stark contrast to eastern China. Dragons’ Silk Road Program features an overview of this region’s history of trade and ancient linkage with all of Eurasia. Amidst Asia’s most striking landscapes, we survey a huge diversity of ethnic customs and religious traditions: those of Uyghur, Kyrgyz, Kazakh, Tajik, Mongol, Tibetan, Hui, and Han communities.
We offer comprehensive, personal home visits so that we can answer your questions in person. One of our expert staff members will present on our program options and share stories from their own formative Where There Be Dragons program. To request a home visit in less than 2 minutes, fill out this form.
- Minority issues, environmental studies, ancient and modern history, political studies, religious and philosophical world-view of disparate Central Asian cultures.
- Extensive train and bus travel, domestic flight, tent and yurt camping, remote village home-stay.
- Introduction to Islam, Buddhism, Taoism, Confucianism, Marxism.
- Extensive hiking in Karakoram range of Himalayas as we try to reach the base of the glacier at Mt. Muztugh Ata, trek through Tibetan wilderness, numerous day hikes.
- Engage in simple Mandarin, Uyghur, and Tibetan language study.
