Day Ten

Last night I actually got to sleep in a bed (the night before I actually slept on the couch)! Before I started to get ready I ran up to the lounge and grabbed some breakfast for everyone. Our group got ready and then met up in the lounge to leave to hotel.

The first part of the day we went to Peking Union Medical College (PUMC). It was at PUMC that we met with the university's vice president, Liming Lee. Dr. Lee was the former head of China's Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Dr. Lee lost his job along with the entire CDC staff after the SARS outbreak. He will supposedly become China's next Minister of Health. It was really a privilege to be in his company. Dr. Lee did a combination powerpoint on public health in China and PUMC's history. After his presentation he received questions from our group. To end our meeting he hosted our lunch at a popular Seshuan restaurant called South Beauty. We were given a private room. The meal was probably the nicest meal I have had thus far.

After lunch we hired some taxis to take us to the China CDC office. It was at the CDC office that we were given two presentations on tobacco control in China. Dr. Jiang Yuan, the deputy director of the CDC tobacco department, answered our various questions after her brief presentation and gave us each a small gift.

Once we finished our day's business we came back to the hotel to rest and relax. We went back to Houhai lake for dinner. It has definitely been quite a long day. I hope I have a little more energy tomorrow so I can be more uplifting in my journals...but we're going to the GREAT WALL!!!!! We're going to do a lot of walking but I'm really excited!