Shea Murray - Experience China, Huangshi, China

Experience China 2024

"A life changing time in one of the most interesting cultures with the most kind people on the planet."

Memorable moments

The biggest highlight of the trip was getting together in a class with the Chinese students in HBNU, discussing our cultures, languages and studying endeavours. The experience of integrating with students who were brought up in such a different place from your home country was massively inspiring, seeing the hardworking and genuinely kind attitudes of those students has inspired me to bring that effort home with me, giving my all in my studies here at Ulster University.

There were many activities we did at HBNU such as traditional Chinese paper-cutting, calligraphy, martial arts and Mandarin language classes! It was an entirely unforgettable and life changing experience that the whole group from Ulster loved.

Learning about a different culture

There is so much to say about the culture differences between China and Northern Ireland. The student life there is much different, the HBNU campus was massive, feeling like a small town, and all the students who attend live on dorms on campus, they also don’t get as many breaks as we do and their days contain much more studying and working. They don't fret though as the facilities there and the friendship they have with other students and support from their teachers make student life a lovely experience for them.

Another culture difference is the food there, it's all so amazing, delicious and fresh. When I was there the group had dinner almost every night in an authentic buffet style where each dish is laid out on a Lazy Susan table, you can just spin the dish you want to try right in front of you! It was such a pleasant way to enjoy a meal, it led to a lot of socialising and discussions both within our group from Ulster and the volunteer Chinese students from HBNU who ate with us.

That style of eating was very different but greatly enjoyable. For anyone going to China in the future, try as much food as you can! Some of us tried pig brain and frog while we were here, not every day you can say you had that.

Challenges and how to deal with them

Personally, there were next to zero challenges on the trip! I loved every minute of it and can't wait to return to China.

There are however some big differences that are common to struggle with. For example, the weather is very hot and humid over there, the average in Huangshi and Wuhan was comparable to a very warm summer day here in Northern Ireland, and in Beijing there were temperatures that I was very much not used to, reaching 40 degrees C.

This is no reason to worry though, as there are so many ways to deal with the heat, China's infrastructure is well equipped for warm temperatures, if you're inside, it will have air conditioning, and outside, you can definitely adapt! As long as you have light, comfy clothing, shoes suitable for walking a decent amount and sunscreen, water and a parasol or hat, you'll be fine.

Another challenge was the public toilets which were squat style, which I'm sure you can imagine took some getting used to. With some practise you'll get the hang of it.

Making friends while abroad

I can't say enough about how friendly, genuine and overall amazing the people in China are. From the teachers to the students, there will always be someone who will want to talk with you, even if someone is shy they still show how friendly they are.

I met so many students there who I wish I could see again over the summer because we just had an amazing time together, we would talk so much about our different languages, cultures, games and shows that we mutually like, and what we want to do in the future! I lost count of how many people wished to see me return to China someday.

If I could only give one piece of advice to the students from Ulster going to China it would be to talk with the students over there, you will make lifelong friends and get valuable insight into the culture. Get your WeChat account ready and don't be shy!

Travelling and sightseeing

The main areas of the trip was Hubei Normal University and Huangshi, where we stayed for 1 week. We then went to Wuhan, moving away from the study portion of the trip to the cultural and historical sights of China.

We saw the Hubei Province museum in Wuhan before getting the bullet train to Beijing, where we saw the Great Wall, Tiananmen Square, the Forbidden City, the Temple of Heaven, the Summer Palace, the Confucius temple, and that's only naming a few of the sights we saw in Beijing. The itinerary is very busy but so worth it as you truly get a piece of each different aspect of Chinese culture.

Advice

Do it. It is a legitimately life changing experience to study abroad or attend one of the global mobility programmes. It's invaluable to live somewhere outside of your hometown in your life, it will teach you so much. Immersing yourself in a culture that is different from your own gives such a human experience, teaching you empathy, patience, cultural understanding and so much more.

Grasp the opportunity and don't turn down the chance to try something new, meet someone new or do something you never thought you would do in your life. Having that experience on your University journey will shape you to be an amazing individual.

Any students thinking of going abroad, taking a global mobility opportunity or learning a language, I can't advise you harder to absolutely do it.