I LOVE CHINA!  I cannot express to you in words how welcome I have felt over the past two days. The flight was extremely long but it was worth it to be in such a place. There was no initial shock as Beijing just looked like any normal city at night BUT in the morning when I opened my curtains it was buzzing with Chinese-ness. The beeping horns, shuffling movements of people, the floating umbrellas, the jam-packed bicycle stands, little chinese people playing in the street, street stalls and cyclists. I love it!

The flight was very loooong. I met a very nice Chinese man, Tian Da Sheng, who was sitting next to me on the plane and we talked a lot about anything and everything. He was practicing his English and me, mandarin. This was my first challenge as it was pretty hard to communicate. I really enjoyed talking to him though because as difficult as it was there was always a sense of satisfaction when Tian Da understood me and I’m sure it was the same for him. This was my first real confrontation with a Chinese person which definitely exceeded my expectations as he was so incredibly friendly and worked just as hard and was just as interested in learning about my way of life. Exchanging views and opinions with people from another “world” is an achievement in itself and so enriching. He was a 35 year old Chinese man yet we still had lots to talk about. It was so fulfilling.

When we reached the hotel the only place open and the only place closest was Macdonalds (surprise, surprise). It really isn't very different to what you would expect in England. I was a little disappointed as I really want to eat some traditional Chinese food. Luckily in the morning we got to try some of the local stuff from a stall near by, it was an egg fried pancake with chicken, an interesting Chinese sauce and lettuce. It was gorgeous!!!! Bring on more of that!!!!!!

We received our welcome to Beijing Normal University, one of the best universities in China and found that the open minded world views that we hold are very similar to those of the people leading the group. It was so fascinating to see that even in a different culture people can share views on widening horizons, creating opportunity, working hard and respecting differences in culture and lifestyle. It’s inspiring to know that there is unity in the world alongside conflict and that even when we do feel alone, we shouldn’t because there will always be a community of people who feel the same way.

I spoke with my tour guide, Huang Xue, for a very long time about Chinese politics, relationships, learning languages, Chinese culture etc. I had so many questions and she was more than happy to answer them. It was shocking to see how many similarities there were between “us” and “them.” My stereotypes were instantly shattered and I felt like I was talking to a friend back in England. It was just so strange how close we became in such a short amount of time. She was absolutely lovely and I know that I will definitely keep in touch with her.

All the fellows are also becoming so much closer and are really enjoying their time here. The jetlag should pass soon (hopefully). The real work starts tomorrow where we begin on the schedule which includes meeting some very important people from the British Embassy. (Nervous? Erm...yes. :s)

Thanks again for reading my blog,

Pooja x