Over 50 CCIP Session A students took part in the annual Museum Mile Festival yesterday.

With over 31 years of history, 9 museums including the Museum of Modern Art, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum, and more along Fifth Avenue collectively open their doors from 6PM to 9PM for New Yorkers and visitors for a mile block party and visual arts celebration. The Museum Mile, a traffic-free, music and art-filled celebration, packed the streets and sidewalks of Fifth Avenue from 82nd to 105th Street.

After interning, students gathered at the 103rd Street and Lexington Avenue subway station. Because there were many museums to visit but little time, after a group photo, students broke off into smaller groups and sampled the varied cultural flavors of the festival on their own terms.

Monica (Qiushi Wang), a student of Lingnan University said, "I read about it; I talked about it. Now I am actually walking along the real Fifth Avenue. Doing this and being able to see all the museums for free was a blast. I am glad that I came."

Joe (U Hang Leung), a student of the Chinese University of Hong Kong commented, "With the pressure and responsibilities of the internship slowly arising, I'm just happy for this chance to… relax."

Ryan (June Kit Fan), a student of the University of Hong Kong who arrived just in time to catch the end of the festival had this to say, "No way was I going to miss this. I am glad that I made it. It was worth it."

Most students stayed up until the end of the festival and then headed back to the housing facility, echoing Ryan's sentiment.

On Friday, June 4, a group of Session A students gathered a FUSIA to go over their process. The roundtable is a CCIP tradition for CCIP and students still fresh in their internships and new to New York City, gathered to share their observations and experiences.

The roundtable consisted of two parts. In the first, students took center stage, speaking about what they gained and observed after their first two weeks of training. Students were asked to share their views on the difference between the place that they imagined and the real New York City, evaluate themselves and their peers, and discuss gains from each assignment. "I'd never expected to have my lunch breaks in front of the Manhattan skyline. The experience was totally unexpected and exhilarating ", a student of Lingnan University commented.

In the second part, students were asked to partake in a discussion that encouraged them to think outside of the student perspective. When asked why the program requires all students, including those who have relatives and friends in New York, to stay together at the Flushing YMCA, Rachel Hoi Ling Yeung, a student of the Hong Kong Polytechnic University answered with applause following, "What's the difference between staying at the YMCA and staying at a dorm in Hong Kong? This is absolutely an opportunity to stay close by our peers so we can share our experiences and get through this together. And that will make our internship in New York significant."

Allen Qi Liu, another Lingnan University student added, "I am impressed by my supervisor. The positive attitude he showed us is going to be ingrained in our minds for good. Working with such a down-to-earth person has been an inspiration to us all."

About the program: The 2010 Cross-Cultural Internship Program (www.exploreinternship.com) brings together university students from Asia and host companies all around New York City, and prepares them for the new challenges posed by the global marketplace. Founded by FUSIA Communications (www.fusia.net), with the support of 34 host companies and 7 universities, the 2010 program has 130 university student participants. For more information, visit www.exploreinternship.com.