Learning To Appreciate What You Have

Today was a weekend of firsts. It was my first time traveling outside of Beijing. It was my first time missing class this semester. It was my first time sleeping on an overnight train. It was my first time staying in the hostel. IT WAS MY FIRST TIME IN SHANGHAI.

Studying abroad in Beijing is great, I’m speaking lots of Chinese, I love my friends, and living in a city of 15 million people means there is always something to do. Every now and then I am frustrated by the lack of food variety in Beijing, the crazy traffic problems, and the occasional ominous pollution above the city skyline. Beijing is no Shanghai, something I had heard, but wanted to see for myself.

Planning our trip to Shanghai was easy enough, we bought train tickets from the Peking University travel office, booked our $8 a-night hostel, and made a rough itinerary.

Walking down lit up Nanjing Road to the Bund with the Putong Skyline across the river cannot compare to anywhere else I’ve been. The colorful boats along the Hunanpu River with the neon lights of the Putong office buildings in the foreground on our warm November night was completely worth our 13-hour train ride.

Visiting a little river town an hour away from Shanghai by bus was one of my favorite parts, $8 wooden boat rides around the harbor made me forget that I was in one of the largest economic centers in China. I had a great weekend in Shanghai.

However, every time we walked into a restaurant in Shanghai I was handed an English menu. When I asked strangers for directions in Chinese, they would respond in English. I frequently heard people talking about me in Chinese, assuming I did not understand. When I tried to speak Mandarin, I was treated as if I was not from this planet.

Shanghai is a great city, it is clean, well managed and has stunning architecture. It really can also be described as a place ‘where the east meets the west’. There were certain points during the weekend that felt like I was not in China.

Until seeing Shanghai, I did not realize just how lucky I am to study abroad at Peking University. I always speak Mandarin while out in Beijing, I have conversations with taxi drivers, and also have the opportunity to spend time not only at historical sites in Beijing, but also in the residential areas of Beijing.

My favorite part about Shanghai was discovering just how wonderful Beijing is. I live in the capital city of the largest country in the world, I get up everyday learning and living a culture I have always admired.

Shanghai is no Beijing. My semester in Beijing would have been completely different if it were not for my weekend in Shanghai, Shanghai gave me the prospective that I needed.