Pre-trip reflection

As with many trips, this one is and would be unique.
The location may not be new to me, but the places that we'll go to, the people we're going with, going to meet, down to the last specific detail (even the uncontrollable ones -- ie weather, casualties) is set in such a manner that is hard, if not impossible to replicate.
As such, below are what i hope to gain/learn from this trip.
i) Perspective
ii) Person

Perspective
I would wish to acquire another layer of perspective of this city Shanghai and China as a whole -- indeed it may not be the big picture, but it will be interesting to have my paradigm shifted on such a matter.

If it is possible, I would wish to discover Shanghai more than just what it is on the surface, more than the typical deferential wide-eyed tourists, to capture details that I would have missed on previous family trips there. An anticipated paradigm shift would be one of empathy, that those students in Shanghai are in more than one ways human, and that in reality, despite socio-economic or geographical location,we really aren't that much different from them, and its those differences, molded by a variety of cultural, environmental, or even political differences are what makes us unique as individuals.

Culture, environment and even the government (and bureaucrats and politicians) shape us, and in turn, we the common people (in a democratic nation) shape these factors.

Perhaps, extending beyond strong economic or historical ties, our fundamental humanity (or human condition or human nature) is what binds us together.

Rather hopefully, this will shatter the stereotypical view that typical Singaporeans hold towards mainland Chinese --- snobbish, corrupt, hardworking, loud, impolite and the like.
Indeed, are we not the same as they are? And these 'bad apple' tourists are but a few in a nation that's culturally, resource-wise rich and whose population are at least 233 and a third fold of Singapore's population...
A few bad apples are too small sample sizes for accurate comparison, and going by how diverse China is, the stereotypes are definitely not doing the Chinese justice. Not to forget that China is an economic powerhouse to be reckoned with. There's simply no logical way why we'd give a pass for economic ties with China based on narrow-minded views of Singaporeans.
Also, keeping in mind Singapore's economic ties with China, maybe some of us will have to interact with mainland Chinese sooner or later in the future, and going by how globalized the world is, this encounter will be inevitable.

Keeping in mind that these are just pre-trip reflections, I am certain that there will be certain outliers that strike an impression on me. Perhaps it would be the socio-economic class divide, or something else that would somehow capture my attention and leave some form of impression linked with an abstract idea.
Indeed, there are many places on the itinerary that I have not visited before, despite my extended family staying in Shanghai.

Person
As non-egocentric it'd idealistically could be, there's no way all my learning gained would be from external experiences.
After all, without internal understanding, linking to a more abstract idea or without feeling that the event has any relation at all to one's personal life, we would just move through these experiences as mere passers-by.
Through this trip, I'd really like to take the first 3 days to evaluate several aspects of myself --- my self control in the absence of my parents, my usage of 'downtime' and my spatial awareness.
Instead of just 'living in the moment' and/or acting based on short-term good, it'd be interesting if I could attempt at self-regulation -- to be more aware of myself in public spaces, to constantly watch and evaluate my actions. After all, this time I come not as a child, but as an ambassador bearing the name of the school and the country.
It'd be an interesting evaluation of myself-- whether my impulse control and careful planning trumps my own selfish short-term desires, whether my leadership qualities and mellow-ness show up or my childishness bleaches into my behavior.