Soochow Int’l Students Enjoy Scenic Bike Ride with President Pan

On December 15^th, nearly 70 international students of Soochow University pedaled with SCU President Wei-Ta Pan on a 50-kilometer-long bike ride along Tamsui River. Organized each semester by the Office of International & Cross-Strait Academic Exchange (ICAE), this day out with Pan has become a tradition though which Soochow’s international students may experience the vitality and warmth of the University.

Also riding along were International Affairs Center Director Fu-Sheng Shih and Cross-strait Affairs Center Director Yu-Mei Wang as well as three guest professors from China: Prof. Cheng Xu, Prof. Sen-Po Wang, and Prof. Dong-Nan Li.

The light drizzle in the morning did not dampen the participants’ enthusiasm at all, and luckily the sky cleared up soon after they set off down the bike path. Many of the students were excitedly looking for the Kandelia, mud skippers, and fiddler crabs at the wetlands during their break at Guandu Temple. They savored the beautiful scenery along the river before feasting on great seafood in a restaurant at Tamsui Fisherman's Wharf and enjoying entertaining shows prepared by the ICAE during lunch time.

“The weather was awesome. Through this trip, I discovered even more of Taiwan’s beauty.” “Thanks to this event, we get closer to President Pan and with each other. Also, the mud fishes we saw at the wetlands were really lovely.” A student surnamed Chang from Wuhan, China, and a group of French students gave such positive comments.

Not only was this event good for the health of all participants, but it was also a tour that the international students would remember for a long time. All this must be attributed to the joint effort by the ICAE, the Office of Military Instruction, the Health and Counseling Center, Environmental Safety, Sanitation, and General Management Division, the Secretariat, as well as numerous student volunteers.