I Went to China to See It for Myself

I'm from Northern Europe. For the past three years I've been travelling the world. Sixteen countries so far. Some for a few days, some for months at a time. I want to see how life is lived elsewhere. I want to talk to locals and live their everyday life with them for a while.

That's why I do this. I want to open perspectives, my own too. I want to give people inspiration to make better choices. One dish at a time, one place to stay, one festival or ceremony that comes from what people grew up with.

This time I went to China for the first time.

Mainstream media has painted a certain picture of China. As an adult I didn't want to keep listening to it. I wanted to go and see for myself what it's all about.

I can't deny that as a kid some things I heard about China sounded scary and very different. The traditions felt completely different from what I was used to. Very few people around me had ever been there.

I had prejudices and assumptions that weren't based on anything.

China wasn't completely foreign to me though. I've worked with Chinese people, organised programmes in different countries and shared restaurant tips on social media. In Northern Finland, where I'm from, tourism is multicultural. Chinese groups are a familiar sight there. We've connected even without a shared language.

I speak a few languages. None of them is Chinese. At least not yet.

I left curious with my eyes and doors open. I had a long wish list of things to see, taste and experience. From some of the biggest cities in the world to the countryside and back.

I flew to Beijing via Copenhagen. The plan was to eat Peking duck there. For a foodie that's a must.

My flight was delayed and I never made it into the city. The duck will have to wait for next time. There will definitely be a next time.

From Beijing I continued to Shanghai, where I spent a week with friends.

The start was frustrating at times. I couldn't read the signs. Every conversation went through a translation app. Many places on the map didn't even exist.

China opened up to me during that week. Really only in the last few days.

Looking back a few weeks later, the biggest surprise was how much cleaner and more affordable everything was than I had imagined. People were more interactive and smiled more.

When I asked something in English, some people just looked at me curiously and walked on. When someone stopped, they really wanted to help. They focused, checked and asked their friends if needed.

I didn't expect that.

We didn't have a common language. Still I never got the feeling that anyone was annoyed or looked at me badly. Good energy takes you a long way. A few odd looks here and there. Nobody got frustrated.

I can't point to a single moment when I understood this place. It just took time. Bit by bit it started to make sense.

When I got on the bullet train to Changsha I felt good. I wanted to see more of China. Shanghai left a good feeling even though everything frustrated me at first.

This is the first part of my China series. Next I'll write about the food, the nightlife and the practical side of Shanghai. And why I'll probably go back there for business.

Next stop on my trip: Changsha.

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Samuli Makkonen, Pleasure Advisor
Live with more pleasure.

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