Beijing Experience - Nicole Gantz

                My trip to Beijing during Fall Break 2012 was by far the best Fall Break I’ve had so far. I competed in a case competition at a Chinese University, was exposed to Chinese culture, visited a few Chinese companies and, best of all, made friends with 11 incredible Notre Dame Students.
                During our trip, we collaborated with students from Peking University to work on a case competition. Working with the students from PKU was a very interesting experience. Their work styles were somewhat different than ours in terms of preparedness and efficiency, but in the end, we were able to successfully work together to put together a great presentation about the green energy movement in the auto industry and how this affects Chinese companies.
                To immerse ourselves in the Chinese culture, we went sight-seeing and tried to local delicacies. We visited the Great Wall and the Forbidden City, and had a blast at both. We hiked to the top of the Great Wall, took stroll and about 1,000 photos at the top, and then we rode toboggans down the mountain to the bottom. We made sure bring “The Shirt” to show off our Notre Dame Spirit and we also got several photos with an Intermediate Accounting textbook.
                Rather than coping out and eating at one of the many American fast food chains in Beijing--yes, we saw plenty of Pizza Hut, KFC, and McDonalds—we decided to embrace the local cuisine. Nearly all of our dinners were served family-style on a Lazy Suzanne so that we could try everything. My favorite restaurant experience on our trip was our meal at Peking Duck; I finally understand why everyone raves about it. Also, on our last night there, we decided to try some street food, which was fantastic.
                To gain firsthand business experience,  we visited several companies. Our first company visit was to Sino-Steel, which had a great vantage point of Beijing. Sadly, it wasn’t too clear that day, but we were still able to see quite a bit. We also had the opportunity to meet a company executive and eat in their cafeteria. Second, we visited the China Ocean Shipping Company. The speaker as COSCO did a fantastic job and gave us some great insight into Chinese business practices and the global shipping industry. Our final company visit was to the-oh-so-familiar Microsoft. We had the chance to demo several different Microsoft products, which was a ton of fun, and the speaker also gave us some great perspectives on business in China as well as Microsoft’s place in the market.
                The best part of the trip was making friends with 11 incredible ND Students. Everyone on our trip brought a different perspective to the table and everyone had really interesting insights and experiences. I’m convinced that everyone that went on this trip is going to change the world for the better and I’m excited to hear about their future endeavors. Thank you Frank Potenziani, Monica Laidig, and SIBC for this opportunity, it certainly wouldn’t have been possible without any of you.