2 . Global Works provides international travel programs that help teens learn about the world.

This service program brings you into a wildlife reserve, where you will do some voluntary work

to help protect local animals. After an overnight white-water rafting (漂流) trip, you get to work on sea turtle protection projects on Costa Rican beaches!

GRADES: 9 — 12 DAYS: 21 DESTINATION: Costa Rica

FOCUS: Wildlife Protection

AVG. GROUP SIZE:18 Students/3 Staff

Looking for an unforgettable travel program? Join our Fijian family! Experience Fijian life firsthand and contribute to service projects that bring us to the heart of the local community. In this teen volunteer program, you will have a chance to play with the local kids and teach them English!

GRADES: 9 — 12 DAYS: 17 DESTINATION: Fiji Islands

FOCUS: Working with Children

AVG. GROUP SIZE:16 Students/2 Staff

This is a hands-on service trip focused on hurricane (飓风) relief and disaster prevention efforts. Home repair work is the heart of this program. The projects we work on will help families and communities to deal with a future hurricane.

GRADES: 9 — 12 DAYS: 8 DESTINATION: Puerto Rico, United States

FOCUS: Building Services

AVG. GROUP SIZE:18 Students/3 Staff

Want more than just a standard France teen travel program? This French adventure has it all! From the Palais de Versailles to the French Alps, your journey introduces you to some of France’s most attractive sites and stories.

GRADES: 9 — 12 DAYS: 21 DESTINATION: France

FOCUS: French Immersion

AVG. GROUP SIZE: 18 Students/3 Staff

3 . The Chinatown in San Francisco is the biggest in America, and also the oldest. It is a very popular tourist draw that receives more visitors each year than even the Golden Gate Bridge. The climate is mild all year round, meaning it is always a good time to visit.

Historically, Chinese immigrants settled in the area during the railroad construction and gold rush period. What started as a residential area for Chinese immigrants then turned into a centre for Chinese culture. The majority of residents in Chinatown are still ethnic Chinese, many of whom do not speak English fluently. This allows visitors to experience a real taste of China.

Traditionally, visitors enter Chinatown through the legendary Dragon Gate, which was built using materials donated from China. Other famous sites include the Tin How Temple and Bank of Canton. Portsmouth Square is also a key site, being the centre of Chinatown. It has a long and famous history, with the author Robert Louis Stevenson having spent much time writing there. These days, the square is a great place to see traditional Chinese culture in real life, such as games of Chinese chess, and people practising tai chi.

The stores in the Chinatown offer a unique range of souvenirs, goods, and clothing.A ll kinds of traditional Chinese herbal medicine can be found, too, and there are Chinese tea stores, where visitors can taste and buy varieties of Chinese tea. But perhaps what many tourists and San Franciscans treasure most about Chinatown is its food. There is Chinese food to suit everyone’s taste, with traditional dishes from all over China.

China towns are an important part of the diverse culture of the USA. They allow visitors who have never been to China to experience traditional Chinese culture first hand.

Yours sincerely,

Li Hua

Yours,

Li Hua

9 . In Birmingham, one school is offering its students an education that will change their lives. The unique program is called Build UP, which enables students to earn a high school certificate while working as paid apprentices (学徒) in construction work. As part of their training, they remodel (改造) old and abandoned houses in their neighborhood!

At any school, the burden on students can be heavy, and for those in poor areas, it is much heavier. “The kids that I’ve worked with during my entire career are all from disadvantaged groups with all the challenges that come with poverty,” said educator Mark Martin. So he founded Build UP in 2018 to offer students a different kind of education: real-world training.

As far as real-world issues are concerned, for low-income communities, one of the biggest needs is housing. That’s why Build UP made construction their main focus, offering a combination of regular and specialized classes. That way, instead of hearing the age-old question “When am I ever going to use this?” in a geometry class, their teachers are able to redirect students to a shop class (工艺课). There, students can connect the math theory to the building of a house.

The program hopes to draw in students who are likely to quit school by offering wages for their apprenticeships. Students receive $125 every two weeks when they start out as apprentices and can eventually work up to getting $200 every two weeks. Upon graduation, they have the opportunity to get an interest-free loan to purchase the remodeled homes.

So far, they have been doing a pretty amazing job. And now with the help of a loan company, the program has the opportunity to bring their model to communities everywhere! They plan to first add similar programs in nearby neighborhoods. After that, they hope to train others to start similar schools and expand their network of partners — particularly construction companies that can offer jobs to their students.

10 . Suspension bridges, with their high towers and elegant spans (跨度), are achievements of engineering. This list covers the longest main spans of suspension bridges around the world, not longest total lengths, as those main central spans are where the real engineering magic happens.

The Osman Gazi Bridge is a splendid suspension bridge. The bridge was finished on July 1, 2016, and at the time, it was the longest suspension bridge in Türkiye and the fourth longest in the world by the length of its main central span, which measures 1,550 meters. It reduced travel time between Istanbul and Izmir from six hours to around five.

The Great Belt Bridge connects the Danish islands Zealandand Funen. The suspension bridge has a total length of 6,790 meters and a main central span of 1,624meters, making it the world’s sixth longest main span — for now. It enabled a direct driving route from mainland Europe to Sweden through Denmark.

The bridge’s construction, which began in March 2017 and concluded in March 2022, was ambitious from the get-go. Spanning the historic Dardanelles Strait in northwestern Türkiye, the 1915 Çanakkale Bridge is a symbol of national pride. Officially the world’s longest suspension bridge, it stretches a remarkable 2,023 meters in its main central span.

Opened to traffic in October 2019, the Yangsigang Yangtze River Bridge in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China, is the longest suspension bridge in China and the third longest suspension in the world. It spans 1,700 meters across the famous Yangtze River. The bridge notably has the world’s longest double-level bridge span, accommodating various forms of transportation on its two levels.