26 Dec East Side Story: Nanjing Weekend Excursion
It was time for a breath of fresh air. Literally. We said farewell to the massive crowds and highly urbanised scene of Shanghai for the more laid-back city of Nanjing for the weekend. Let the field trip begin!
Day One
With hundreds of years of history and only two days to see the former capital of China, our itinerary was filled to the brim. This included challenging our 
much unpractised fitness levels, by climbing the dozen flights of stairs up to the mausoleum of Dr Sun Yat-sen (the Father of modern China) on Purple Mountain. It is dubiously named so for the purple clouds which occasionally appear at its peak.
It was then a gastronomic journey through the numerous stalls around Confucious Temple (Fuzimiao). The food safari included and was not limited to; the ever-so delectable xiao long bao dumplings, toffee fruit, fresh jackfruit, and a savoury, saucy dough that no one in my group could seem to identify.
Despite our DIY walk-a-bout feast, there was still (unbelievably) enough space in our stomachs for dinner at the Blue Marlin.
Day Two
The morning kicked off with a visit to the much-coveted Nanjing Museum. There was thousands of historical artefacts, some which left me in awe, such as an ox-shaped lamp which was economically friendly , and some which baffled me in wonder, such as pillows which use to be made out of porcelain.
Our last stop was to be the Nanjing Massacre Memorial Hall. As our visit also coincided with National Memorial Day, the area was packed with locals and tourists paying their respects. To be blunt, it was a very sombre place to visit, with the words “300,000 DEATHS” etched repeatedly throughout the exhibition, alongside numerous stories from hundreds of victims.
The trip finished on a high note with a German lunch, before it was back to the bustling city of Shanghai.
Believe it or not, this is just a small portion of what the Absolute Internship team organises for us during our internship in Shanghai. Other social events have included exercising our brains to solve our way out of a locked room at Mr.X, unleashing our inner diva with KTV karaoke, and taking day trips to the ancient water town Zhujiajiao.
As my internship in Shanghai draws to a close, I am amazed at how much I have achieved in these four short weeks, and how much of Shanghai I still have to discover. Shanghai, you definitely have not seen the last of me!
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