Week #1 in Beijing!

Nihao, Beijing!

Montreal, April 1st, 2015, 6h40am. This moment marks the last time I saw my family before venturing into the airport for a flight that would last fourteen hours and a half and some sort of time traveling, since I would find myself on the other side of the planet with twelve hours ahead of my relatives for the next two months. Feeling feverish from excitement, when I finally landed in Beijing on April 2nd, I knew immediately that it was worth it. I couldn’t wait to dive into the exciting unknown!

The first thing that strikes you upon arrival is how you definitely need more than “Nihao” and “Xie Xie” in Mandarin to get around in Beijing. In Western countries, we can easily find people with a minimal comprehension of the language of Shakespeare, and, if not, it is quite possible to jabber some Italian or Portuguese thanks to our basic knowledge of Latin idioms. However, in Beijing, understanding each other is a massive challenge! Fortunately, with CRCC Asia, some Mandarin classes are included. It definitely helps to gain confidence and ease into the local culture. In only a week, I’ve improved my Mandarin so much (although I could only get better!)!

The second element that subjugates you is how time seems to be suspended when you are abroad. I have gone through so much in a few days that it doesn’t feel like it has only been a week! For instance, I will be sharing my experience for the next two months with five other students or young graduates from around the world. In just a few hours, we became friends! We bond very easily with like-minded people who share a similar experience to ours. The six of us share the same accommodation, experience the same cultural clash for the first time, and will go through the same struggles during this journey. For sure, it forges relationships! From all of the already accumulated anecdotes of the past few days, I can tell that this close group will be a major part of my experience here in Beijing.

Thirdly, throughout the last few days, I have learnt the difference between being immerged on another continent… and being thrown right into the experience! Even though it is refreshing to be destabilized from one’s usual environment, it is still a good feeling to be able to lean on someone who knows the place for any enquiries regarding the attractions, public transportation, fake money or fake alcohol, and cultural differences to pay attention to. With an amusing quiz testing our knowledge on China’s demographic and economic portraits, Sheree and Gogo, our two Program Managers, introduced us to this big city’s survival tips. How do we use our transportation cards? How do we read directions on bus stops since they are only in Chinese characters? How do we give business cards (yes, it matters a lot!)? All of this new information was made accessible thanks to these two friendly women who made us feel comfortable when we asked questions – even the most ridiculous ones – from day one.

And finally, the city. Ohhh this city! We live in District 798, where we can find several art pieces from Chinese artists. This area has such a modern energy! It is not hard to understand why there are so many youth wandering around to meet their friends or to grab pizza at the Laker’s Café, where there is always some melodic South American music playing. And on our second day here, we visited the Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City, a colossal untouched monument at the heart of Beijing that makes you go centuries back in time! Catch a cab and, hop, you are in Sanlitun, the district that could be in any other international city with its infinite futurist towers, its trendy bars full of expatriates and its numerous Starbucks’ (let’s admit it, we were craving it!). Another taxi ride will take you to some hutongs and you will be able to witness a glimpse of life in the capital city as it has been for generations! In a few days, we were in a hurry to make the most out of our first weekend here. Well, Beijing has not disappointed us so far!

Three millennia, twenty million people, and fifteen subway lines coexist everyday in the great Beijing. I am now part of that vibrant dynamism. And this is just the beginning.

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