National Geographic Experts
A National Geographic expert will accompany each departure to share insights and a rare behind-the-scenes perspective. Listed below are some of the experts and the departure date(s) they will be joining.
Ken Hammond
Historian Ken Hammond first traveled to China in 1982 to study the language and stayed for five years. A professor at New Mexico State University, he directs a Chinese-American university exchange program. He has produced a documentary on the revival of Confucian ritual and recorded a lecture series covering 5,000 years of Chinese history. Ken served as president of the Society for Ming Studies and as a visiting scholar at the History Institute of the Chinese Academy for Social Sciences.
Diane Perushek
Diane Perushek began studying Chinese at the East-West Center, University of Hawaii, before pursuing graduate work in modern Chinese literature at Columbia University and classical Chinese fiction at Princeton University. She studied language and conducted dissertation research in Taiwan and Japan for a total of four years. Diane also holds degrees in Library Science and Far Eastern Librarianship from the University of Michigan and University of Chicago. She has traveled widely in China and has taught classes in Chinese and Japanese literature and Chinese history. At present, she is the International Liaison in the Chancellor's Office at the University of Hawaii. Diane is also an avid student of Chinese culinary arts and on occasion teaches Chinese cooking.
