Maximilian HARPER

Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Australia
Exchange to Foshan University, China

In the lead up to my exchange, there were lots of pressures and strains on the relationship between China and Australia. At one point it seemed the exchange would be cancelled due in part to the H1N1 virus scare and the strict quarantine enforced upon Australians in China, especially those from Melbourne.

It seemed every time I watched the news on Australian television, China was mentioned and it worried me that the chance of going overseas seemed to be diminishing by the minute.

Also I wasn’t sure what to expect from China. The officials at the Chinese embassy in Melbourne were, frankly speaking, less than cooperative. They even tried to deny us visas because of some incorrect wordings on our letters of invitation from Foshan University.

However, all the effort and help from teachers and the education abroad office at RMIT eventually paid off and we did make it to China.

On the first day Tate, Mohammed and I heard passing hellos from almost everyone around us. It was surprising that they were so curious about us. We found that in the first week alone we were invited to a lot of gatherings like dinners, sports activities and KTV. It was great. It really showed me how different but amazing Chinese hospitality was compared to Australia. I was overwhelmed by how quickly the three of us became a part of the university community.

Because the three of us were fairly behind on our Chinese language skills when we first arrived in China, I was sure we were considered a little silly by other students. Now I look back and realize how embarrassing it was to have Chinese people tell me in perfect English that their English was poor – this when they hadn’t been to an English-speaking country. I quickly learnt 我的中文很差 (Wo de zhongwen hen cha), which means my Chinese is very bad.

I tried to learn a new word everyday to help me get around, but Putonghua (Mandarin) is a language in which it’s not just the word you learn but also how you pronounce it. If you can’t pronounce a word properly, it can be confusing not only for you but also for the people you talk to. I was very lucky I had patient friends who were always just a phone call away. By persevering, by the end of my trip my Mandarin had improved a lot which gave me more confidence to do a lot more things. While I was on a tour, I even summoned up enough courage to introduce myself in front of a busload of Chinese people.

My language skill was the first thing I considered when I got back to Australia. I have now taken a Chinese language elective because I definitely want to improve my Chinese for my future trips to China.

I managed to travel around China a fair bit. I fell in love with the crowded cities of Shanghai, Beijing and Guangzhou, and was enchanted by the smaller cities of Hangzhou, Nanjing and Sanya as well as many others. I also had the opportunity to travel to the countryside of Yunnan Province.

I visited a lot of industries in China which was relevant to me as an industrial designer. In my travels I went to Fuzhou for the 361 shoe factory, Dongguan for the Jewelry city, Shunde for the Furniture city and Foshan for the Ceramic city. I guess the things that fascinate me most about the various industries in China are the sheer scale of them all. Nothing is done on a small scale in China. It is very cool in some sense but a little scary in another. In some polluted parts you can look out your window at 2pm and not see the sunshine through the smog.

One of my favorite pastimes in China was watching passing traffic from the inside of a car – it’s magical seeing China on the move.

It’s an experience that’s hard to describe because it happens all around you. Imagine all sorts of vehicles - from huge semi-trailers to small motorized scooters - trying to clamber ahead of one another without slowing down or keeping a safe distance from each other. It’s chaotic.

I would NEVER want to drive in China, but it’s really fun to watch!

Being in a car in some parts of China is more intense than others. I spent Chinese National Day in Hainan and being in a taxi there is like being in a Formula One race. I also found it funny that many taxi drivers in Hainan repeatedly told me that seatbelts were unnecessary.

I’m very grateful for my Cheung Kong scholarship which gave me the opportunity to see more of the world. I have been introduced to a country and a culture which I love and long to know more of. The exchange study has expanded my horizons and widened my professional prospects. Very few people get to experience living in another culture for as long as I did and it was made possible through scholarships like this. Thank you.

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