Studying Abroad in Shanghai: Reflection

SHANGHAI STEP REFLECTION:

China is a vast country with a rich history and culture that spans across mountains, deserts, jungles and cities. Before I came to China I didn’t know how truly complex of a country China was. The US government had given me the impression that China had given up its culture years ago and was still a very communist country. Though I knew that China was not communist, I was under the impression the government ruled the people with an iron fist. Now that I have been able to live in Shanghai for just under a month I have been able to form my own opinions about Shanghai and China in general. I now know that China has a complicated history and that the Chinese have varying identities across the nation. For all of the difficulties navigating, communicating and adjusting to China I have learned more than I ever thought possible!

As a sophomore at Ohio State I was able to qualify for the STEP scholarship. I knew that this would be a great way to fund a study abroad program so I began to look around. I have been fortunate enough to have gone to Europe before and I knew that I wanted to go somewhere new where I would feel like I was in a completely different world. Therefore I decided to look at the Asian programs, I knew that eastern culture was very different than the west and it would make a very interesting experience. The Shanghai program interested me because I wanted an experience that combined guided and independent exploration. Also, I knew very little about Chinese culture and Shanghai seemed like a great city to mix the familiar with the new. As a huge Chinese city with heavy western influence, I would have a chance to see eastern culture while avoiding complete culture shock. Since this was my first trip to Asia I think that it was a great decision and I have been able to both learn a great deal about China while having the assistance of some English.

I can’t say I really had any expectations of what learning Chinese would be like because I had never really thought about it. I guess I had just thought that it would be like learning Spanish or German (two languages I have experience with) where you have to learn new vocabulary but the structure is very similar. I was therefore in for a wakeup call when I discovered that Chinese is a completely different language system all together.

Simply learning how to pronounce the initial and finals was very difficult. Sounds that I knew in English had subtle yet very important difference when said in Chinese. Putting the initials and finals together to from words was even more difficult. It was truly like learning how to speak all over again. I had never really struggled with learning a new language before and learning Chinese was like being thrown into the fire on day one. I remember thinking how could over a billion people speak this language because I was having such a hard time. Luckily there were only three of us in the beginner class and we would be able to receive lots of individual attention in the next coming weeks.

The first week was the hardest when it came to learning Chinese. My pronunciation is still very far from good but in the beginning I had major difficulty just trying to sound out the words. With practice I was able to improve my pronunciation but tones were a different story. The fact that Mandarin has up to four different means for a word based upon the tone used was a completely new idea to me. They say it is a language of meaning and that couldn’t be more true. The fact that there are only so many initials and finals limits the language a bit in the diversity of words but adding tones opens up a whole new level of meaning. Therefore, I had to learn how to listen for the subtle differences in tones so that I didn’t accidentally say something I didn’t mean to. Luckily though, Chinese grammar is not too difficult and I was able to use my experience with English to give me a very basic idea of how to formulate Chinese sentences. Finally, the fact that Chinese doesn’t have just one commonly used word for yes and no was a challenge to learn.

Even though it was hard, I have made a lot more progress than I thought possible in just over three weeks of class. At first it was so difficult but I am now able to form simple sentences and have learned a lot of vocabulary. Before we came I wouldn’t have thought I’d be able to learn so much Chinese in such a short time. The first day of class was discouraging but I found that with hard work and dedication I could make a lot of progress. Every day it got easier to learn and I feel like my learning accelerated. I am far from good at Chinese but my new found knowledge has been so rewarding. Learning the basics of a language you thought impossible is a great feeling and I feel like I have a better understanding of language in general now.

The Shanghai experience has been a mix of the foreign with the familiar. In many ways it is like a big city you find in Europe or America. Tall skyscrapers, vast public transportation and everything you could ever want or buy. However, one of the things that makes it so unique is the traditional Chinese culture that has effected all those who live in the city. Even though throughout Shanghai’s history it has been a major site for trade and contact with the west, you cannot forget that it is a Chinese city first and foremost. For all of the big skyscrapers and malls, you can find glorious temples like Jing’an or smaller ones like the one we visited at the old city wall hidden throughout the city. Walking into these temples takes you hundreds of years back in time, sometimes even thousands. Behind the shining glass buildings and busy streets you can see that Confucian and Buddhist values are the groundwork upon which this “new” China stands. They may be trying to make Shanghai a global city but I think that no matter how much foreign influence comes to Shanghai there will always be a strong base in traditional values.

My personal experience in Shanghai has been great and I couldn’t ask for anything more from the city. From the many museums to temples there truly is something for everyone. With prices here being quite a bit lower than back home there hasn’t been anything that I wanted to do that I couldn’t because of expense. Visiting Shanghai is definitely within the college budget and if there wasn’t a language gap I could see it being much more popular with young students. Getting used to using RMB though has been an odd experience, since RMB is more inflated it makes identifying the value of the currency hard especially when you are used to a $20 bill going much further. Though this may be good for tourists visiting the country, I wonder about the Chinese and how these prices aren’t nearly as cheap for them as they are for us. The fact that the average yearly wage is much lower makes me wonder who this city is really being built for. When so much money is being poured into brand new shiny buildings where the prices can be expensive for foreigners it makes me think that the average Chinese person may get left behind. I hope that Shanghai can stay a city where many can live and that with new development the wealth gap isn’t increased in the city. I think that replacing many with a few wealthy people would make Shanghai lose its most important asset, its people.

The vast population of Shanghai is something else that has really amazed me. In America the cities I have been to have not felt as dense as Shanghai. The vast number of huge apartment buildings that have been built as Shanghai’s population has continued to explode make the city feel truly like an urban jungle. I don’t feel cramped in Shanghai but I feel as if every single space has been used to its maximum efficiency. With so many people living in one city the different areas can vary greatly and I feel that I have only seen a very small part of the city after a month of being here.

The western influence can really be seen in Shanghai when one compares it to other places we have went during our stay such as Tongli, Suzhou and Hangzhou. Tongli’s extremely old village gives a quaint and traditional feel to the environment. It feels like you are walking through history, in fact you actually are, as you navigate its streets and ride its canals. Shanghai feels as though it has quarantined its temples and traditional architecture to certain tourist spots. I am glad that they have preserved them but the feeling is completely different. Places like Suzhou and Hanghzhou are like what I thought China would be like before I arrived here. The nature of Hangzhou was beautiful and the rolling hills surrounding the lake felt very scenic. My impression was that I was just a visitor in distant land surrounded by culture and history.

While in the rural areas I feel as I am in the past, when walking on The Bund and East Nanjing road I feel as if I am in the future. The huge skyscrapers lit up in the night and the colorful streets bathed in neon lights are almost like science fiction. I think that this really points out the change that China is undergoing. While its deep culture can be seen in the countryside, the future of China is in the megacities. The most investment, in my experience, seems to be going to the cities such as Shanghai. I think that this is a very western ideal that the Chinese are adopting. The ideal I am referring to is always living in the future, always anticipating the newest technology and advancement. In America I feel that we are always looking forward and that no matter how much it changes our world technological advancement is always seen as a good thing. China’s thousands of years of history is something that I really admire about the country and I would be very disappointed if they left it behind in favor of modernity.

From the beginning of China’s opening up to the world Shanghai has been on the forefront. As a market town after the Opium Wars Shanghai was forced to allow the many western concessions to stake out their claim of the area. Although at the time they kept to their own areas, China’s time of isolation was over and the foreign influence would come to play a huge part in the development of Shanghai. It would take a lot of pain and failure as the “Century of Humiliation” consisted of China’s exploitation by the western powers. This would change though as Shanghai would begin to grow and take its first steps in becoming the metropolis it is today.
A huge part of China’s history was founded in 1921 when the Communist Party of China was founded. This would signal the beginning of the end of western influence in China as after the Cultural Revolution the People’s Republic of China was established. A complete national upheaval followed with dramatic changes occurring to the political and economic sectors of China. Mass industrialization followed and though the effectiveness of the Mao’s regime varied there were advances in literacy and life expectancy. While this was happening Shanghai was accelerating to become a megacity. After Mao died, Shanghai began its monumental steps towards becoming the city we see today. Rapid development of the Pudong area and a large subway system set up the infrastructure for a rising giant. Shanghai would change from being a center of trade to a center of everything cosmopolitan. With a population of over 20 million and big plans for the future. The future of Shanghai is very bright as it becomes the flagship of globalization for China and will continue to become one of the most coveted cities in the world.

In conclusion, my experience in Shanghai has been immensely eye opening. I will return to the United States with a completely different world view. I’ve developed a much deeper understanding of China and its people. I couldn’t have anticipated how much I would come to learn and I look forward returning to Shanghai and the rest of east Asia in the future.