China Tour: Men's Basketball Lands in Beijing, China
8/24/2014 8:16:00 PM | Men's Basketball
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Beijing, China – Once we landed in Beijing in the world's largest and cleanest airport, we did not have to adjust our watches. Beijing's time zone is exactly 12 hours earlier than Philadelphia. Getting to China, however, is another matter. Our travel party of 25 had to secure visas in advance and endure a 14-hour direct flight from Newark to Beijing. We were a bit disoriented at baggage claim after some of us have reportedly watched a total of six movies during the flight – I watched one. Sooren Derboghosian boarding the plane to China" src="/common/controls/image_handler.aspx?thumb_id=13&image_path=/images/2014/8/24/Sooren.png" />6-foot-10 Sooren Derboghosian boarding the plane to China
China has a population of 1.3 billion and most things here are on a very large scale, including the airport. We knew we were far away from home when we passed through temperature-detection devices that measure whether you are entering China sick, that is, with a fever. Or, an instantaneous feedback device at customs allowing one to evaluate the border control officer with a simple and immediate press of one of five buttons – I evaluated him above average after he let me into China without much hassle.
Our friend and trusted colleague Nels Hawkinson, who manages Basketball Travellers Inc., picked us up from the airport and delivered us to our hotel in Beijing, the St. Regis, a very comfortable home away from home. Nels chose this location wisely because there is a Starbucks, Sizzlers (did they not go out of business stateside?), TGIF and other "Western" eateries around the hotel, which is located in the Embassy District of Beijing. Nels coordinated our 2010 men's basketball trip to Istanbul, Turkey and is also the tournament chairman of the Paradise Jam in St. Johns, USVI, which Drexel participated in a while back. Nels is a great organizer, a consummate gentleman and just a fun guy to hang out with. Our tour guides "George," driver "G" and China guide Tiantian round out the Drexel/China team. I want everyone to know back home that we are in very good hands here. St. Regis Hotel in BeijingDrexel men's basketball team is travelling to China to play four "friendly" games on our 10-day foreign tour. The visit will include stops in Beijing and Shanghai. Taking men's basketball teams on foreign tour has become a common practice among NCAA Division I programs, Drexel University included. Teams may participate in a summer tour, or an in-season tour, once every four years. China has become an important country for Drexel University's global ambitions. Therefore it makes perfect sense to align our institutional goals with those of our athletics department and use our Division I basketball team as global ambassadors for Drexel on-and-off the basketball court.
In addition, China is a red-hot nexus for basketball. It has become one of the most popular sports in China and there is much interest in basketball as a globally evolving sport, recreationally, in universities and on the pro level. Regarding the latter, the sports highlight of our tour will be our final athletic contest with a professional team: the Shanghai Sharks. The 2014 China tour will allow our men's basketball team to get an early start on our competitive game experience and increase team unity. It is a great recruiting tool, and international travel presents great cultural and educational opportunities to our team.
Today we will do some sightseeing within the city of Beijing, the capital of China, including the Forbidden City, the Temple of Heaven and Tiananmen Square, which is the largest city square in the world. This afternoon, Drexel's head coach Bruiser Flint will hold a basketball clinic for over 200 basketball coaches at the North China Electric Power University. Bruiser and a translator are meeting this morning over breakfast to minimize some of the language barriers. But the game of basketball is a universal language and thus it promises to be a lot of fun. I was asked to wear a suit because many sports and political VIPs will be in attendance. After the clinic Bruiser and I are invited to join the VIPs for a foot massage! Zillmer's Chinese Translation of Military Psychology. In addition, to basketball and the cultural experiences we will also host two Drexel University alumni receptions in Beijing and in Shanghai. We will meet with Drexel alumni, including prospective students and parents. I have already seen some of the interesting and impressive portfolios of our Drexel grads that are working or living in China and it will be fun to catch up with them.
On a personal level, it is a very meaningful trip for me to return to the Far East. Because of my fathers' international military career (USMA, '44) I was born and lived in Tokyo, Japan, as well as in Hong Kong. One of my books, Military Psychology, has actually being translated into Chinese (i.e., simplified Mandarin). I am very grateful for all of the experiences that have been extended to be me through my association with Drexel University, both as a professor and as an administrator.
For right now, however, I am trying to figure out how to accept President Fry's Ice Bucket Challenge for ALS awareness while in China without creating an international political incident!
