OCDF China Tours Teen Leadership® Camp Program
Program Length: 2- weeks (revised from former 3-week program)
Time of Year: Summer Break and Winter Break
Target: Ages 12 and up (individual enrollment) (We wish to have a minimum of 4-5 persons in a group so when individuals enroll we will let you know if the group is large enough for the program to be a “go” for that date. If you can let others know so that the group size is 5 and up, we would appreciate that help!)
Location: Beijing and Inner Mongolia (summer) & Beijing and Harbin (winter)
Housing: 3-4-star Hotels
The OCDF China Tours Teen Leadership Program® is designed to meld Chinese culture experiences, sightseeing, volunteering, and exploring so that teens are able to work together as a team to fulfill the needs of an orphan-support site. Daily language tips are included, but language learning is not the focus – engaging with daily life in China is the focus. This program includes a trip to Inner Mongolia (summer) and Harbin (winter).
Note: Parents typically do not participate in this program, but could elect a parent program during the same time-frame if they wish to be in Beijing at the same time (see **Parent Programs below). Group leaders and chaperone positions for each group will be by application to OCDF and based on the size of the group.
2010-2012 Schedules and Updated Information Guide:
| Winter 2010-2012 | Summer 2010-2012 |
TLW3 December 17, 2010-January 2, 2011 TLW5 December 16, 2011-January 1, 2012 |
TLS1 June 25-July 11, 2010 TLS4 June 17-July 3, 2011 TLS7 June 15-July 1, 2012 |
The Teen Leadership Program is a two-week residential program for teens adopted from China and their siblings in grades 7-12 (ages 12-18), focusing on leadership development, image-building, self-confidence, community service, and connecting to people in China. There will be small group leadership projects, including volunteering on-site at an orphan care location in the Beijing area. Participants will experience a homestay weekend with a Chinese family in Beijing!
Program also includes:
- Hiking the Great Wall at Simatai
- Team building activities
- Meeting with orphan care leaders in China
- Chinese hair/makeup/clothes styling for teens with professional photo-shoot
- Hands-on projects with artisans in their studios
- 3-day train trip to Inner Mongolia for Nadaam Festival ~ includes staying in a yurt on the grasslands at Hohot and desert at Baotou (summer) or Harbin for the Ice Festival ~ includes visiting the ice sculptures and the northeast Tiger nature preserve (winter)
- Outings and visits to 2008 Olympic venues
- Music/dance performances
- Great Hall of the People with visits to each adoptee's Provincial meeting room.
- Supervised by OCDF Staff 24 hours a day!
Itinerary
Day 1
Friday: Depart USA (You arrange from Newark, Chicago, Detroit, San Francisco, Los Angeles or meet our counselor in Chicago for United Airlines flight to Beijing)
Day 2
Saturday: Arrive Beijing. Met by OCDF staff at the airport and transfer to the hotel - Welcome dinner at a local restaurant.
Day 3
Sunday: Buffet breakfast at hotel with daily language starter.
Daytrip to Simatai Great Wall - Hike with team activities
Picnic Lunch. Dinner in Shunyi at Mrs. Shannens
Day 4
Monday: Buffet breakfast at hotel with daily language starter.
It’s all about “me” day:
My Chinese face and hair? How-to time with stylists at salon
Professional photo-shoot with traditional and modern Chinese clothing (individuals and group)
My Chinese body? How-to time with Traditional Chinese Medicine - Massage at TaiPan
Lunch at a local Chinese restaurant. Dinner at TaiPan.
Day 5
Tuesday: Buffet breakfast at hotel with daily language starter.
Morning: Leadership Program - What does it take to be a leader? Famous Chinese leaders, famous Chinese-American and Chinese-Canadian leaders today. How to make a difference in your homeland?
Meet with OCDF Social Worker/Psyhologist about “how it feels to return as an adoptee and prepare to volunteer at an orphan care site.”
Lunch at Annie’s in Shunyi – Non-profit Organization Luncheon - participants have lunch with directors of orphan-support organizations where they will volunteer.
Afternoon: Participants go to orphan-care sites in Shunyi to survey needs and discuss roles/leadership of on-site volunteer activities (Migrant Students School, Homeless Kids Shelter, Senior Citizens Hospice, Shunyi Orphanage, Blue Sky Healing Home, Hope Foster Home, Children’s Hope International, etc.).
Dinner at local restaurant.
Day 6
Wednesday: Buffet breakfast at hotel with daily language starter.
Volunteer Day 1: Volunteer
Visit Kite Market
Lunch and dinner at local restaurant.
Day 7
Thursday: Chinese breakfast at hotel with daily language starter.
Volunteer Day 2: Volunteer
Lunch and dinner at local restaurant. Evening performance - Legends of Kung Fu
Day 8
Friday: Chinese breakfast at hotel with daily language starter.
Morning: Beihai Park and visit to Huiling Group Home for Special Needs Adults: Teach a new craft to the Huiling Residents that they can sell in their fundraising shop.
Lunch at Old Beijing Noodle Shop
Afternoon: Hutong Tour with visit to family home and a school or daycare center (depending on time of year)
Transfer to Chinese Family for Homestay Weekend with small luggage for 2-nights- families are screened. Dinner and evening with host family including over night.
Day 9
Saturday: All meals with local host family. Entire day and over night with local family.
Day 10
Sunday: Breakfast with host family.
Group meets before lunch at designated location with luggage. Lunch at Origus Pizza. Afternoon at Olympic Green and visit to Bird’s Nest and Swim Cube from 2008 Olympics. Time to get clothes/luggage and repack for trip to Inner Mongolia/Harbin by train (see what to pack lists for summer and winter attire)
Dinner at local restaurant. Transfer to train station for trip to Inner Mongolia or Heilongjiang Province. Overnight train (soft sleeper) to Hohhot, IM or Harbin, Heilongjiang.
Day 11
Monday:Arrive Hohhot/Harbin and transfer to a hotel for breakfast.
Summer in Inner Mongolia: Morning to grasslands to learn about the lifestyle of people in Inner Mongolia including building a Yurt, milking a cow, and cooking on the grasslands. Set up campsite and have lunch.
Afternoon - Nadaam Festival - visit the famous local Inner Mongolian festival of folk culture, herdsman, horseriding, etc.
Traditional Inner Mongolian Dinner. Evening local entertainment. Stay overnight in Yurt.
Winter in Harbin: Morning local sightseeing including the Russian Church and center-city ice sculptures. Lunch at local hotel. Afternoon – visit to Northeast Tiger Nature Reserve.
Traditional Russian Dinner. Stay overnight at hotel
Day 12
Tuesday: Breakfast at campsite or hotel
Summer in Inner Mongolia:
Morning: Transfer to Baotou
Lunch at local restaurant.
Afternoon: Visit the desert for camel riding and sand dune sliding.
Dinner at hotel. Transfer to train station for overnight train to Beijing (soft sleeper).
Winter in Harbin: Morning and afternoon – visit to Harbin Ice Festival. Dinner at hotel. Transfer to train station for overnight train to Beijing (soft-sleeper).
Day 13
Wednesday:Arrive Beijing and go to “Grandma’s Kitchen” for breakfast.
Traditional Chinese hair washing and head massage at a salon.
Transfer to hotel and settle into rooms (shower, swim, etc.)
Afternoon: Free time to relax and rest. Mid-afternoon shopping at Hong Qiao Market.
Dinner nearby shopping or the hotel – dumplings or Dim Sum
Day 14
Thursday:
Buffet breakfast at hotel with daily language starter.
Morning: Fly kites in Tiananmen Square
Tour the Great Hall of the People and visit each participant’s Provincial Meeting Room
Lunch: Sun Yat Sen Park
Afternoon: Capital Museum and Hands-on Activity in Artisan’s Home
Dinner – mystery trip!
Day 15
Friday: Buffet breakfast at hotel with daily language starter.
Morning: Visit to a company in Beijing to see how people conduct business in China.
Lunch with a business leader at Xiao Wang Fu
Afternoon: Beijing Zoo to see Pandas and Imax at the nearby Planetarium
Peking Duck Dinner at Tian Wai Tian followed by karaoke and dance party with Chinese teens.
Day 16
Saturday: Buffet breakfast at hotel with daily language starter.
Shop til you drop day in Beijing! Visit a variety of markets and shopping venues.
Lunch at a fast-food location.
Dinner at Houhai Lake with time to walk around area in evening.
Day 17
Sunday: Buffet Breakfast at hotel.
Pack to go home.
Transfer to airport for flight to USA. Arrive home in USA.
BRING:
- 1 small suitcase with wheels that is carry-on size (which you will use for weekend homestay and trip outside Beijing), 1 suitcase no larger than 26”, AND 1 Regular-sized school backpack as day-bag (can carry on plane). We suggest you check-in both the wheely suitcase and the larger suitcase.
- Summer Clothing - shorts, t-shirts, socks, underwear, 1 outfit for meetings and simple sandals/slip-on shoes, PJs, tennis shoes, nylon jacket/raincoat, 1 longsleeve shirt or sweatshirt, 1 pair long pants such as jeans or hiking pants, sunhat, sunscreen, bugspray, toiletries, small medicine kit (bandaids, etc.), sanitary products, digital camera, money carrier (OCDF will give you one of these) for cash and traveler’s Visa ATM card.
- Winter Clothing – long pants/jeans, long-sleeve shirts, sweatshirts, sweaters, socks, underwear, 1 outfit for meetings and dress shoes, Pjs, hiking boots, winter parka, scarf, gloves, hat, small medicine kit (bandaids, etc.), sanitary products, digital camera, money carrier (OCDF will give you one of these) for cash and traveler’s Visa ATM card.
Teen Leadership Program Includes:
Airport transfers, hotels, guesthouse/homestay as per itinerary, breakfast daily, lunch and dinner meals as specified on itinerary, all inclusive tour program, sightseeing and entrance fees, bilingual guides and escorts, experienced professional staff, domestic transportation, domestic travel insurance, luggage handling at hotels, all tips & gratuities for guides/drivers, teen program materials keyed to itinerary, crafts, luggage tags, name tags, and t-shirts. International airfare, passport, and Chinese Visa are NOT included.
Cost per teen participant: $2,400.00
This is a teen-only program and as such, parents will not enroll in the program with their child(ren). However, there will be 2 adult support positions available and parents are welcome to apply for those volunteer spots.
A portion of the Teen Leadership program is tax deductible due to volunteer activities. We can let you know what that amount is for your tax purposes.
Registration/Payment Deadlines:
Summer Program: Register by mail by March 1st. Final payment due by April 1st.
Winter Program: Register by mail by September 1st. Final payment due by October 1st.
OCDF accepts Visa and MasterCard.
RT Airfare from US to China with TravNET: Check with TravNET for current prices by calling 1-800-359-6388, or email marta.lacour@travnet.net
Chinese Visa Processing Service: www.mychinadocs.com
Questions? Please visit our OCDF China Tours FAQ page, and be sure to download all the information from our Essential Information for OCDF Travelers section (top right-hand side of every Tour page). Many of your answers can be found in those documents. Please feel free to contact the OCDF staff with any questions. We're happy to help!
Brief Background on OCDF China Tours
To asssure you a quality tour program, OCDF directs all tour programs and selects all staff that work with our groups, expatriate and Chinese staff as well as national and local tour guides. OCDF China Tours is the only travel service provider in China with 100% of staff certified in First Aid/CPR. Dr. Jane Liedtke, CEO and Founder of Our Chinese Daughters Foundation lives and works in China. She has organized and led tour groups to China for adoptive families, educators and professional groups with experience in China since 1987. OCDF began Chinese Culture Camps for adoptive families in 1996 and extended them to China in 1998. OCDF was the first organization to offer Chinese Culture programs to adoptive families via tour programs to China. We work extensively with adoptive families and orphanages throughout China to insure your family has the best experience possible upon your return to your adopted child’s birthcountry.
Our Chinese Daughters Foundation is a non-profit organization
in support of adoptive families. In addition to tours, OCDF offers many
other services including Chinese Culture education through OCDF Publications, Orphan
Support Projects, Volunteer China, Summer Camps, and more!
Updated 07.09.2010
