On the eve of China’s national day we speak to two recent arrivals to the Middle Kingdom and ask them about their experiences living in Beijing.
Bernice Chan is a journalist and producer from Vancouver, Canada. She has worked for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation and also a number of publications in Hong Kong.
Jonathan Stewart comes from Minnesota in the United States and graduated with a Masters in International Relations and Comparative Politics from Appalachian State University in June. Jon’s not a stranger to Asia having lived in Singapore and Hong Kong in his youth.
Both Jon and Bernice work as Foreign Experts on the China Daily website.
MARC: What were your perceptions of China before you came here?
JON: I had some knowledge of China beforehand and knew what I was getting myself into. Much of my impressions came from researching my Masters where I focused on China. In particular I focused on politics and the media so my understanding came from that angle.
BERNICE: I’ve been to China many times before, my parents took us to the Great Wall. At the time my brother and I thought, ‘we’re Canadian, we’re not Chinese’. But when we came here I was really impressed and really thrilled this is part of my culture. That spurred me on to study Asian studies at university and afterwards propelled me to work in Hong Kong and now I’m back in Beijing again to see and feel what it’s like to live here and witness the changes that are happening. I felt I must be here to see it for myself.
MARC: Jon, you’ve been here two months is China what you thought it to be?
JON: Yes and no. I understood it was changing and developing pretty quickly. More or less China is what I expected it to be but the reaction of Chinese people to China is different from what I expected. I think there’s a great difference in the understanding of what’s going on here in China amongst Chinese people from the understandings of the people in the West. I see a lot of pride and I see a lot of enthusiasm where other countries are responding to China with apprehension in addition to the excitement regarding the economic growth and other changes that are happening.
MARC: Do you think you living in Asia previously, both in Hong Kong and Singapore has helped or hindered your new adventures in China?
JON: It propelled it, it created it. Having grown up in a foreign country that I wouldn’t end up eventually living in a foreign country again. I’m kind of a product of that experience.
MARC: Bernice, you come from Chinese parentage, did coming to China on your occasions and now living here, settled here for the time being, does it seem like returning home for you?
BERNICE: In some ways it is and in some ways it isn’t. I look Chinese and I speak some Chinese but at the same time I have a western upbringing and western ideas. I also look at China from foreign eyes as well. I have that duel perspective you could say.
MARC: Do you feel this is a part of your life that you’ve always wished to explore? Having been born and raised in Canada.
BERNICE: I think it was all my life experiences put together that came to this point that I felt compelled to actually come here and live here.
MARC: Jon you’re learning Mandarin or Putong Hua. Has this given you a different insight to Chinese culture through learning the language?
JON: Absolutely. I was lucky, I started taking Chinese class when I was six years old when I first moved to Hong Kong. Strangely though the primary language in Hong Kong is Cantonese I was learning Mandarin when I was in school. It doesn’t mean I’m fluent by any means because I forgot a lot of it but it does add another layer of excitement when you can finally understand the language. It is such a difficult language and can be a huge barrier to communication. I get really excited when I make breakthroughs in my Chinese because it feels I’m beginning to bridge a gap and creating links to that culture that a lot people don’t get to experience.
MARC: You speak Cantonese but Mandarin is a very different dialect. Has it been a challenge getting your tongue around the language in the capital?
BERNICE: It is! I do understand a bit more than I speak and because there are some words in Cantonese that are completely different from Putong Hua. So I do want to say something but I can’t get the right word out or I get the word out and people don’t really understand what I’m saying so it is a challenge and also a learning process as well.
MARC: Both of you, comparing your lift back home, what are the differences? Are your weekends the same as they were back home or completely different here?
BERNICE: Completely different. I go out and explore the city or go out and meet friends and have lunch and we again go out explore the city. I wouldn’t be doing that at home because I basically know where everything is already. At home I did take lessons on the weekends but here I don’t seem to have the time. I’m so busy looking around and experiencing new things.
