China Experiences

People say that we experience new things every day. Being in China has supplied me with quite a few new experiences. I've experienced how people change by the new culture or in some cases how they remain the same. I have experienced many breathtaking scenes: the sea, the mountains, the cities; but also many sights that destroyed the picture I would like to have: the pushing crowds, the spitting women, the polluted sky. I have also experienced a whole new range of foods and smells. Some sweet ones that take you to heaven and some others that are best not to mention.

Being here has given me a lot perspective on life, on myself and on people around me (far or close, and sometimes the latter being much worse.)

Being far away from home caused many tears to drop and made my dear ones spent hours on-line consoling me. Right now I can't really say if it was worth it, but in perspective I think I have achieved a great lot. I still have little more than a month of what should be hard-work and interaction with the Chinese, to use my time in the very best way. I'm not sure how well I will accomplish that... I certainly want to wish good luck to myself.

Sometimes it's easier to do what you're supposed to, and in other circumstances it's impossible. I'd say that the environment that Nanjing University provided for us foreign students requites a lot of effort to fulfill oneself. I think the worst thing is that we're all put in a foreign student's building, where the only Chinese we meet are the 'fuwuyuan' (receptionists, guards, food sellers, servants etc.) There are extremely few Chinese students that we can meet on a regular basis. We are definitely not provided with many opportunities to befriend them. This is a harsh reality, where only the daring devils get a chance to understand this culture. Others are deprived of it. And to be totally honest, I think it's can be difficult to feel confident in a place that doesn't resemble home in any way.

Some of us are lucky. They get Chinese boyfriends/girlfriends; they go traveling, they find a hobby... and that way they get out of the foreign bubble. Others think that the ones dating a Chinese merely want language advantages; they travel in groups of foreigners or have foreign hobbies, such as drinking and smoking. I don't think I can be placed in any of those groups. I have tried to avoid contacts with foreigners but I haven't been very lucky in melting into the Chinese world. Maybe in the time that remains for me here, I'll adjust that slightly. Maybe I'll change my eye color to black and use the whitening cream for my tanned skin? ;)