Selina LAI

Curtin University of Technology, Australia
Exchange to Beijing Language and Culture University, China

I had always wanted to go on student exchange, to get out of Perth and enrich my life by living in another country before I settled down and got a job.

China had always been my number one destination because I wanted to improve my Mandarin. However, Curtin didn’t have any exchange programmes with China at that time so I had to look for other options.

Thankfully I didn’t have to look too hard. One day, my lecturer pulled me aside and told me she was working on an exchange program between Curtin and China! The next thing I knew I was applying for a visa, arranging paperwork and booking my flight to Beijing!

My first sight of Beijing was at 6 am on a September morning as my plane descended into the thick smog overhanging the capital. I had been warned by people about the pollution level in Beijing so I was prepared for it. I was also prepared for things like squatting toilets with no doors, beggars on the streets, the massive crowds, people spitting and the crazy traffic.

What I did not expect were the beautiful blue sky after a heavy autumn rain, the haunting howl of the wind on the Great Wall of China, or meeting the most amazing bunch of people many of whom have now become my best friends.

Beijing is like a massive maze with modern structures as well as cultural sites scattered everywhere. You’ll never run out of things to see. I used a lot of my spare time going around Beijing, sometimes visiting popular tourist spots, other times going off the beaten track to places where few tourists would go. Even so, there was so much to see, so much to experience, that I’m sure I had only scratched the surface of this amazing city. Not satisfied with seeing only Beijing, I also found time to visit other cities and explore what they had to offer. Looking back, I wish I could have had more time in China so I could see and experience even more.

And of course, apart from the travelling and the sightseeing, I spent lots of time studying as well. I became friends with my wonderful classmates who made my stay at BLCU the best experience ever, an experience which I would strongly recommend to anyone

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