International Students Go Cycling with SCU President along Tamsui River

SCU President Wei-Ta Pan, faculty and staff members, and nearly a hundred international students pedaled together on the sunny morning of November 26^th in this year’s “Biking with the President” event held by the Office of International and Cross-Strait Academic Exchange (OICAE). Starting out from Waishuanghsi campus and cycling along from Tamsui River to the left bank of Bali, they enjoyed natural scenery, played fun games and had a lunch feast for a wonderful memory in Soochow University.

This "special date" provides Pan an opportunity to acquaint with international students and bond with them every semester. As most teachers or administrative staffs just meet with international students by having lunch or dinner together, Pan suggested adding an element of exercise to the gathering for more and longer interaction with students. Before setting out, Pan mentioned that Tamsui River Wetland has preserved a unique eco-environment and a great number of distinctive species, such as the mangrove, mudskipper, which move around wetland on pectoral fins, and fiddler crabs, one of whose claws is much larger than the other. Pan hoped that the students may have wonderful memories about Taiwan’s natural beauty by being observant to its ecological environment.

During the two hours’ cycling trip with pleasant sunshine, gentle breeze and wavering Chinese silver grass along the way, many students held their steps to capture the beauty of nature. When stopping for a rest in Guandu Nature Park, students also seized the chance to take picture with Pan. Later teachers, staffs and students had their tasty lunch together in Tamsui and made toast for this memorable trip. Moreover, the OICAE also prepared a series of entertaining activities, such as quick answer games and playing rock-paper-scissors with Pan, in which all the participants enjoyed with laughter and joy.

Yi Wan, an exchange student from Southwest University of China, said that unlike most presidents of China’s universities, who only show up in some official occasions such as school opening ceremony, President Pan attended the activity from start to finish even though he had been slightly ill, which showed his amiableness and consideration. Wan was also grateful for the teachers and volunteers of OICAE, who spent three months in preparing for the event. Another exchange student from Beijing Normal University, Jing Pan, said with smile: “The Office of International and Cross-strait Academic Exchange was so considerate that it sends us emails all the time to offer us so many diverse activities. There is only one month left before I leave Taiwan, and it will be very sentimental when I have the last meal in Soochow University.”

Everything went well even though it was raining on the way back to Waishuanghsi campus. The trip was rounded off in the cooperation of volunteers, the OICAE, the Office of Military Instruction, Health and Counseling Center and Environmental Safety, Sanitation and General Management Division, etc. The OICAE also announced that they will hold the ancestors worshipping for Chinese New Year on January 14^th, yet another event that international students wouldn’t want to miss.