CONCLUSION

           Prior to the departure to Shanghai and Hangzhou, all of us never expected the cities will be so incredibly crowded by the locals and tourists. Even though some of the participants are Chinese, but the cultural and social difference still strongly exist.

           Our preparation was started few months before the trip, and our team did face a lot of rejection and challenges. For instance, most of the corporates that listed in the approved proposal are not opened for locals, or need an extra sum of entrance fees. Besides, as a financial centre of China, Shanghai happens to be surrounded by office towers, banks and high end shopping malls. We can observe that the world is becoming a village due to the emergence of e-commence and globalization. Most of the items that are being sold in malls or markets can be found in Malaysia.

            What makes the difference between China and Malaysia? Other than those qualitative and quantitative measures such as GDP or HDI, we strongly feel that the most obvious difference is the PEOPLE. Our team started to miss Malaysia from day one, as the China locals are not as friendly as we think, and it is not tourist friendly enough – compared to other countries. Additionally, the slogans related to “be more civilized” are everyway in China, especially in public transport and tourist attractions. This could rarely be found in Malaysia though. Due to the summer break and new Disneyland opened in Shanghai, this beautiful city was flooded by millions of people, which made us really experience the power of high population.

            Besides, the organizing of G20 Summit in Hangzhou this year September imposed a few limitations to our trip. Like for example, our hotel (Genting Star Hotel) does not have WiFi service due to government’s interference. Our Muslims participants were initially required to fill in a form to admit that they are free from terrorism as well. However, all this restrictions and obstacles did not stop us from carrying on the plan, and made it a successful 3E Trip.

            Experiential, Exploratory and Educational are the three pillars of 2016 3E Trip. Apparently, each of the participants did gain a lot of unforgettable memories and experiences for each of the pillars. From language barrier, cultural shock, getting lost in the streets, fall sick and got hurt, to visiting different offices, hotels, museums and markets, each of these locations taught us something new with the additional global insights.

            We would like to extend our sincere gratitude to Dr.Ruzita and Dr.Suria, the figurehead of our 3E Trip who conducted the recruitment interview, guided us on trip planning and accompanied us throughout the trip, lovely and patiently. Besides, we would like to thank Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (CIMA), UM International Student Centre (ISC), UM Student Council (MPPUM) and UM Entrepreneurship Centre (UMEC) for their kind sponsorship in lessen the participants’ financial burden during the trip.

            Much appreciation to the Faculty of Business and Accountancy and Genting Malaysia Berhad for providing us such a wonderful opportunity to explore the land of China. It did trigger our mind to think more on what we could do and learn from there for further improvement. We have gained so much and we hope such a meaningful programme could be continued to benefit the other members of the faculty.