It is a rare honour to say that you and a group of fellow dancers were given the opportunity to represent Ireland in China.
As a student of Dancing Jewels Ballet School in Killenard, Eleanor Corbett had that privilege. A group of 18 dancers led by Sviesa Joha, took part in the International Arts Carnival of China last month.
Eleanor, a TY student in Scoil Chriost Ri, says it is impossible to sum up this trip but she is going to try.
She said: “People have asked me to describe it but all I can answer is that it was amazing and surreal and that there was so much that happened that it feels like a lifetime.
“It will be a lifetime I long for once more, because now that I’ve been, I know it’s a place I must go back to. This is my diary of my nine days there.”
Check out her day by day account of the trip below:
Day 1: Shanghai
Preface: All following activities were organised by Ms Rose Zhao the Official Authorised Organiser of China festivals (Beijing YYBY International Culture and Tourism Co. LTD)
After leaving Dublin on Thursday morning and arriving in Shanghai on Friday morning, all that can be said is that your perception of time gets warped and you don’t even get the chance to get jet-lagged.
It’s a good thing, however, that we didn’t have any shows that day. For one, most of our party’s luggage was delayed (and therefore the costumes). Secondly, the months of preparation were not enough to fully take in China itself.
After a quick visit to Shanghai Bund to take in the skyline it was time to shop. Nanjing Road reminded me of Times Square in New York.
With bright billboards and endless shops of trinkets, we made our way to a twelve-storey luxury department store with spiral escalators that reminded me I have a fear of heights.
I avoided all the fancy designer shops, opting for a Starbucks over a handbag.
And if you thought that was a long enough day, you’d be wrong. We all piled onto a beautiful moonlit river cruise and got our first group photo and first mosquito bites.
Day 2: Shanghai
Up bright and early, not for dance but for Disneyland. We all broke off into our respective groups and tried out the rides. We started out strong on a carousel.
I got the cutest pony, then my mother and I headed to the river rapids. Essentially, we decided to pick whichever rides had the shortest queue. In hindsight it should have been clear why the wait time for that particular ride was shorter.
We also didn’t think about why everyone seemed to be wearing ponchos, but were quick to figure it out. We got absolutely drenched! It put Emerald Park’s “Viking Voyage” to shame.
Vowing then to ignore future wait time we saw on the map a Zootopia adventure ride and entered the city of Zootopia. If you think Ireland loves that movie you’d be wrong.
I found that all throughout the areas I visited, Zootopia trinkets were everywhere. At Disney everyone had Nick or Judy ears on.
I enjoyed a mung berry pawpsical and a fun police chase in the most wonderful recreation of the movie.
The best ride though was TRON, the coaster was designed so your seats were like you were on a motorcycle and you would speed off at nearly G force.
We ended the day with a run through of our dances. There was nothing but excitement for the following day.
Day 3: Shanghai
Up early again (this was to be a recurring theme) for our first day of dance. We headed over to a traditional tea ceremony enjoying about eight different variations, my favourite being their oolong which we bought a container of.
After this we had a quick shopping stop and somehow I ended up with a rice gelato (it was yummy).
I soon came to notice another trend. People were fascinated by us. A group of western girls, we constantly had our photos taken and got the feel of real celebrity treatment but also realised how uncomfortable it could get.
However, it seemed it was completely innocent, so I just had to make the habit of being camera ready.
And here came what you’re reading for. We arrived at Shanghai Baoshan Theatre for the opening ceremony and were put into a room with studio mirrors and enough space for our many costumes.
We also got our first sneak peek at some of the other countries’ dancers from Latvia, Bulgaria and New Zealand.
After getting ready and quickly rehearsing, we all entered a state of calm. Time passed in a second and it was finally time to begin.
When I got on stage that’s when the movement took over and I started to realised the power and importance of dance. You enter a state where you cannot think of anything but your movement and you forget everything else.
When it was over I was simply happy it went so well. All that practice really paid off and we couldn’t have been luckier with the choreography and such a lovely audience.
We were so fortunate to be awarded a Gold award by the Shanghai Arts Carnival Shanton Arts Festival.
But it wasn’t over yet: next stop was an outdoor performance at Shanghai Sea World. The audience was even larger and that’s when we ended up on Chinese social media.
It was beyond cool to type in the event in WeChat (a Chinese messaging and social media app) and find videos where people described how much they loved our performance.
That’s what we came there for, to show everyone something they’d never seen before. And we were so lucky to see that in return around every corner.
Day 4: Shanghai to Luoyang
Yet another shopping trip in which I picked up my first souvenir (a small tea cup with koi in the base) and then a 15 hour overnight train journey to Luoyang.
It was sad because we had to say goodbye to our guide Lan, who had been so wonderful.
I have to say it was lots of fun travelling together as a group. We had fresh bedding and got to enjoy the novelty of a triple bunk bed. However I do not recommend their toilets.
Day 5: Luoyang
We arrived in Luoyang tired but determined, and pretty immediately headed to visit the famous Shaolin Temple where we watched a brilliant Kung Fu show.
The imperial and colourful architecture was nothing like what you see here. It was a place you could spend a day painting. Just lovely.
Later in the day we went to a spectacular show about Empress Wu Zetian, China’s first and only female emperor. It started off strong with lasers projected across the night sky and I spent the whole thing wondering how I could possibly write about it.
There were hundreds of dancers in amazing costumes, and even madder, out of nowhere horses charged across the stage with actors dressed as soldiers. Later there were camels and pyro arts. It was breathtaking. I don’t think I’ve ever smiled so much.
Day 6: Luoyang
To start the day we headed to Longmen Grottoes where there are thousands of rock carvings into the side of a mountain that took 400 years to complete.
From a distance you couldn’t see it clearly. It looked like extensive holes in the mountain but as you got closer you saw how intricate everything was.
Off we went to our next performance. In a small theatre all the dancers took seats not realising that all the foreign dancers would be performing for each other.
We really were able to see what everyone else did. The unique dance styles, the energy and national pride all performers brought was truly amazing.
In the evening, we headed to Luoyi Ancient City, where lots of people dress up in traditional costumes and walk around taking photos.
Day 7: Luoyang
Luoyang is known for its peonies, there were hints of this everywhere. The hotel we stayed at was even called the Peony Plaza.
We really understood at the Luoyang Museum how special they are. There was an entire exhibit dedicated to paintings of peonies, each offering a different take. My personal favourites were the bright green and the black and yellow.
It showcased their traditional art style and minimalism, each stroke spoke for itself. Other highlights of the museum were their gold leaf Buddha and this triple glazed pottery piece of a horse with a human head. It was a good display of their art.
We then got a bullet train to head to Beijing, our last stop of the trip.
Day 8: Beijing
Our last day of performances. We headed out to the Great Wall of China leaving the cities for the first time and seeing more rural areas. There was thick greenery and I couldn’t help wonder what kind of creatures were hiding.
We dressed in our costumes and began to climb to the platform on the Great Wall for our last performance. When it was over there was nothing but joy.
We all knew that was a dance that meant something. How many people can say they danced on the Great Wall of China? Not many! A dance is a special act, but to dance somewhere as amazing as China is beyond special.
It really validates the work every dancer has put in since they were small children and brings my wonderful teacher, Sviesa’s long career to a worthy pinnacle. I owe everything I have accomplished as a dancer to that wonderful woman.
Day 9: Beijing
Back in Beijing, we went to the Temple of Heaven, which was a fine example of how in Chinese architecture every detail represents something and as a result each building is a masterpiece.
Then on to the Forbidden City we went. Lions and red walls everywhere and ceramic roofs. It was gorgeous and far too big to see in the hour or so we were there.
We then visited a silk factory, saw live worms and the cocoons they spin that make enough silk to equal the length of a few football fields.
Unfortunately the long and busy days caught up to me on this day so I opted to have a nap before our long flight home instead of going to the last few stops on our itinerary (an acrobatics show and visit to the Bird’s Nest stadium) which I heard were fantastic.
After I woke up there was only a little time before we had to head to the airport and leave such an amazing and surreal trip behind.
Closing remarks
I’m deeply grateful I wrote this diary as although so much happened in such a brief time each moment was worth remembering.
I want to ask readers to follow their passions seriously as you don’t know where it might take you. Who knows, you could end up in China too.
And if you have ever done dance in the past and stopped, consider returning.
I took a break for a little over a year and returned at the start of this year, just before preparations for this trip. It’s remarkable how much you remember and how quickly you can pick things up again.
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