I've been home for over a week now, having had a bit of time to adjust back into UK life. Three months isn't a long time, but I got very settled in Shanghai and made some friends who I'll miss very much.
I left very early on a Sunday morning (again!), and in accordance with Chinese hospitality rules, my Professor offered to drive me to the airport, which meant that this was the second time he had to wake up ridiculously early for me! Furthermore, a few people in the lab had grown accustomed to my presence, so three additional lab members woke up at 5:30 am, just to join our ride to the airport and say goodbye. I was really touched and it was a very emotional goodbye.
While settling in to the first, 12 hour leg of my journey home, I discovered that the chap sitting next to me was a Spanish business man from Barcelona, who was importing Spanish wines like Rioja into the big cities in China (Western wines have become very fashionable in China, and they are big business at the moment). However, his English wasn't that good, and my Spanish is pretty terrible (Italian words just kept flooding my brain), which meant that we had a great half an hour communicating via the Google Translate app for the 30 minutes while we waited for a space on the runway (just when I thought I would finally stop living from that translate app!) It dawned on me during that conversation that my Chinese was now better than my Spanish, and I would have been better able to communicate with him through that language if he had known some Chinese. I didn't really expect to ever get to this stage, but it was a pleasant surprise at the end of my journey that I'd managed to absorb some of a language that was completely different to the other European languages which I know. I guess I owe more to Michael, my language exchange partner than I previously gave him credit for!
Despite only being able to communicate via pointing and simple words for the rest of the flight, I didn't really sleep much, on account of being a bit emotional about leaving behind this part of my life. But upon landing, I was glad to see my mother and husband, who came to greet me at Heathrow airport.
Being back in the UK, obviously I was greeted with drizzly weather, but it was that familiar British rain. However, the joy of being able to go indoors where it's warm was just bliss. Not having to run down and back a freezing corridor just to go to the bathroom was great. I got so used to layering up that during the first few days I just automatically kept my coat on instead of giving the heating a boost, which lead some people on Skype to ask me "Where are you going? Or have you just got back?". Having a thick goose down duvet was also a welcome relief, since I wasn't staying in Shanghai for long enough to merit investing in one, I'd been using a summer duvet and a blanket only.
Of course, now I'm no longer stared at in the street, since I'm now not a wàiguó rén (外国人), and it was a little weird doing some Christmas shopping and being completely ignored, but to some extents, it was a relief - at least people don't watch me for several minutes to see what I do like a zoo animal! The biggest relief is being able to understand everything I see and hear around me, although my ear still picks up whenever I hear Mandarin from the Chinese exchange students around Leicester, and I try and figure out what they might be talking about. I will certainly never look at exchange students the same way again!
Food-wise, there was a brief moment of weirdness getting used to a knife and fork again after three months (why are their no sticks? Using both hands at the same time for utensils?!). I am also surprised as a Hungarian, that I actually got used to the absence of dairy in the diet. At home, I would think nothing of having full fat milk porridge every morning for breakfast, but I got used to the steamed bread rolls (bāozi, 包子) so now it just seems far too rich. Also, I looked forward to cheese, but I'm having trouble dousing my food in it as much as I used to! And bizzarely, I'm getting cravings for white rice/sauce combos, which I never thought I would, and I'm actually missing some of the flavours, like the red bean paste (Dòushā 豆沙), which I may just have to fork out for at the local Chinese supermarket soon.
I realise I've been writing a lot online, and I appreciate everyone who has looked at my blog, but I don't expect many to have read a lot of my posts thoroughly, as they are far too long! I have treated this blog more as an open diary, to write down all of my thoughts and experiences. And in addition, I thought that letting everything all out here would help prevent me from talking about China too much when I get back. I watched one of the Halloween episodes of the Big Bang Theory on the plane home, where Howard just got back from space and he finds a way of incorporating his trip into every conversation, regardless of the topic. I think I'm pretty much the same, and I can link anything to China, so please don't hesitate to tell me off if I'm talking too much about my trip, and I'll try not to go too crazy like Howard and just start shouting "China! China! China!" when I don't get to talk about it!
But seriously, it's been a great journey, and I've definitely fallen in love with what I've seen of the country. It's a weird collection of contradictions that somehow charms its way into people's hearts.
1) It's technically still developing, yet their technology, gadgets and infrastructure are way ahead of ours.
2) It has a reputation for rudeness, and people don't hesitate to push you out of the way in the street or metro if you're a stranger, but if you are a friend or a guest, then people will treat you like the most special person in the world, far above what people would do in the UK.
3) People are very concerned with relationships and guānxì (关系) and about saving face, yet they think nothing of getting up in front of their friends to sing a song, approaching strangers for photos or dancing in the park uninhibited.
4) Poverty is still quite a problem, which means that status is everything. This means that people are happy to pay through the nose for esteem goods (hence the popularity of the iPhone). I've never seen so many large, expensive cars driving around broken, potholed roads.
5) The government has a ridiculous level of control over people, and hires so many to keep its large population in check, yet it can't regulate the hygiene standards of any of its restaurants. There is no guarantee that anywhere you go you will not get ill. In general, there is this same theme running through everything, where some rules are adhered to far too rigidly, whereas others are just disregarded so easily.
6) Tied into the last comment, the governments thinks its controlling everyone, but the excessive control has turned everyone into criminals: as far as I could tell, nearly everyone I met was downloading TV shows online, watching Breaking Bad, House of Cards or other American TV shows with Chinese subtitles. Also, nearly everyone can access Facebook if they really want, but since none of their friends are on there, they don't see much point.
7) It's supposed to be a communist country, but it's a country where you have to pay to have extra children (as opposed to getting money from the government, like in the UK) and where healthcare is very expensive, and not provided automatically, and where competition for jobs has never been more rife.
Despite being full of surprises and strange things to the Western eye, it's a safe and friendly place, with such a wide variety of things to offer, that it's hard not to fall in love with this country and the people's determination and enthusiasm. I hope that my blog has given it justice, and inspired people to go there, or reminded them of good memories from their time in China.
Thanks for reading, and hopefully there'll be another blog in future about another country!
Happy New Year!
I left very early on a Sunday morning (again!), and in accordance with Chinese hospitality rules, my Professor offered to drive me to the airport, which meant that this was the second time he had to wake up ridiculously early for me! Furthermore, a few people in the lab had grown accustomed to my presence, so three additional lab members woke up at 5:30 am, just to join our ride to the airport and say goodbye. I was really touched and it was a very emotional goodbye.
 |
| With Lu, who was a great friend to me during my time in China that I'll miss very much. She was one of the people who kindly woke up at 5:30 am to come and accompany me to the airport |
Despite only being able to communicate via pointing and simple words for the rest of the flight, I didn't really sleep much, on account of being a bit emotional about leaving behind this part of my life. But upon landing, I was glad to see my mother and husband, who came to greet me at Heathrow airport.
Being back in the UK, obviously I was greeted with drizzly weather, but it was that familiar British rain. However, the joy of being able to go indoors where it's warm was just bliss. Not having to run down and back a freezing corridor just to go to the bathroom was great. I got so used to layering up that during the first few days I just automatically kept my coat on instead of giving the heating a boost, which lead some people on Skype to ask me "Where are you going? Or have you just got back?". Having a thick goose down duvet was also a welcome relief, since I wasn't staying in Shanghai for long enough to merit investing in one, I'd been using a summer duvet and a blanket only.
Of course, now I'm no longer stared at in the street, since I'm now not a wàiguó rén (外国人), and it was a little weird doing some Christmas shopping and being completely ignored, but to some extents, it was a relief - at least people don't watch me for several minutes to see what I do like a zoo animal! The biggest relief is being able to understand everything I see and hear around me, although my ear still picks up whenever I hear Mandarin from the Chinese exchange students around Leicester, and I try and figure out what they might be talking about. I will certainly never look at exchange students the same way again!
Food-wise, there was a brief moment of weirdness getting used to a knife and fork again after three months (why are their no sticks? Using both hands at the same time for utensils?!). I am also surprised as a Hungarian, that I actually got used to the absence of dairy in the diet. At home, I would think nothing of having full fat milk porridge every morning for breakfast, but I got used to the steamed bread rolls (bāozi, 包子) so now it just seems far too rich. Also, I looked forward to cheese, but I'm having trouble dousing my food in it as much as I used to! And bizzarely, I'm getting cravings for white rice/sauce combos, which I never thought I would, and I'm actually missing some of the flavours, like the red bean paste (Dòushā 豆沙), which I may just have to fork out for at the local Chinese supermarket soon.
I realise I've been writing a lot online, and I appreciate everyone who has looked at my blog, but I don't expect many to have read a lot of my posts thoroughly, as they are far too long! I have treated this blog more as an open diary, to write down all of my thoughts and experiences. And in addition, I thought that letting everything all out here would help prevent me from talking about China too much when I get back. I watched one of the Halloween episodes of the Big Bang Theory on the plane home, where Howard just got back from space and he finds a way of incorporating his trip into every conversation, regardless of the topic. I think I'm pretty much the same, and I can link anything to China, so please don't hesitate to tell me off if I'm talking too much about my trip, and I'll try not to go too crazy like Howard and just start shouting "China! China! China!" when I don't get to talk about it!
But seriously, it's been a great journey, and I've definitely fallen in love with what I've seen of the country. It's a weird collection of contradictions that somehow charms its way into people's hearts.
1) It's technically still developing, yet their technology, gadgets and infrastructure are way ahead of ours.
2) It has a reputation for rudeness, and people don't hesitate to push you out of the way in the street or metro if you're a stranger, but if you are a friend or a guest, then people will treat you like the most special person in the world, far above what people would do in the UK.
3) People are very concerned with relationships and guānxì (关系) and about saving face, yet they think nothing of getting up in front of their friends to sing a song, approaching strangers for photos or dancing in the park uninhibited.
4) Poverty is still quite a problem, which means that status is everything. This means that people are happy to pay through the nose for esteem goods (hence the popularity of the iPhone). I've never seen so many large, expensive cars driving around broken, potholed roads.
5) The government has a ridiculous level of control over people, and hires so many to keep its large population in check, yet it can't regulate the hygiene standards of any of its restaurants. There is no guarantee that anywhere you go you will not get ill. In general, there is this same theme running through everything, where some rules are adhered to far too rigidly, whereas others are just disregarded so easily.
6) Tied into the last comment, the governments thinks its controlling everyone, but the excessive control has turned everyone into criminals: as far as I could tell, nearly everyone I met was downloading TV shows online, watching Breaking Bad, House of Cards or other American TV shows with Chinese subtitles. Also, nearly everyone can access Facebook if they really want, but since none of their friends are on there, they don't see much point.
7) It's supposed to be a communist country, but it's a country where you have to pay to have extra children (as opposed to getting money from the government, like in the UK) and where healthcare is very expensive, and not provided automatically, and where competition for jobs has never been more rife.
Despite being full of surprises and strange things to the Western eye, it's a safe and friendly place, with such a wide variety of things to offer, that it's hard not to fall in love with this country and the people's determination and enthusiasm. I hope that my blog has given it justice, and inspired people to go there, or reminded them of good memories from their time in China.
Thanks for reading, and hopefully there'll be another blog in future about another country!
Happy New Year!
Really enjoyed reading your blog, as someone who lived for a few months in SH until Christmas too! The high-tech development of so much of the city with rag-and-bone men cycling around to this day... Just don't live right beside a square or a park :)
ReplyDeleteMatthew.
Thanks Matthew, shame we didn't meet! Glad you enjoyed the blog, I think SH leaves a big impression on all its visitors, and I'm happy to share my story and hear from others. Let me know if you have a blog too
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