Coming back to Houston, I was sad to see the end of an incredible trip. For the short time we spent in China, I felt we had packed in as much as we could. I saw and learned so much.
Anya and I were the only two survivors of the Virus That Hit Urban Lab Shanghai. Literally everyone had slowly gotten sick, one-by-one, as if we were characters in LOST. I hate getting sick and would have hated to have that put a damper on my experience of China so I was keen to avoid getting ill. Luckily, my immune system didn’t let me down and I was able to enjoy China fully (sorry to the rest of the participants! — seriously, I felt bad for how badly everyone seemed to feel).
What I would like to learn more about: I want to delve more into Shanghai’s history to understand further the influence of Western imperialism; I also want to further understand the experiences of migrants in both Shanghai and Beijing. My time in Shanghai only opened up even more questions about what the lives of migrants are truly like. In Beijing, we primarily spent time being tourists and we hadn’t done much research on Beijing going in. Having visited Beijing, I’m incredibly curious as to how the experiences of migrants there compare with those of Shanghai.
If I were to go back and do this trip over again, I would have made more of an effort to visit migrant neighborhoods or schools. I also would have spent more time visiting non-tourist-heavy destinations – among my friend’s suggestions for Shanghai were Moganshan Road (a graffiti and art filled area), Tianzifang (touristy but quaint market). Visiting Xiaonanmen was valuable, and as much as I loved the tourist destinations we visited and needed the structure of the trip, I wish I had taken advantage of my free time more to explore solo. I was shy to talk to the locals in Beijing (partly because I was afraid the thick Beijing accent would hinder me from understanding), but in retrospect I wish I had engaged with them more. My only interaction with a local in Beijing was in a cab ride, in which the driver said Beijing was getting too crowded so he didn’t like it anymore. Though my interactions with the locals were always simple, they always somehow deepened my understanding of what I was seeing.
I’ve gained a deepened appreciation of my heritage and ancestry from conversations with locals and views of the Forbidden City, Great Wall and other such amazing structures. The country my father and mother’s parents are from is heavy with a rich history and culture; and right now, it’s navigating how to maintain that history and culture in a changing, globalized world. I’ve learned that aspects of other cultures that may seem at first bizarre may actually be endearing (e.g. the marriage market, shuttlecock hacky sack). And I’ve seen the ways in which powerful transnational and globalized forces impact the real lived experiences of individuals around the world (e.g. migrant merchants being pushed out to the city’s fringes, McD’s and KFC’s).
The week was amazing and I’ll treasure the memories from it for life. I’ve only scratched the surface and there is so much more to learn about China, a country that reflects on my history as a Chinese-American and the globalized future I am entering as a young professional.