There are a few major differences between living as an American in New Hampshire and living as an American in Chengdu. The first noticed are the stares on the street. I’ve been told before that it’s because Americans are respected here. It varies from person to person, but I think it stems mostly from curiosity. The second difference is that almost everything is cheaper. One US dollar is equal to 6 or 7 Yuan. You can buy a delicious meal of fried dumplings in spicy sauce on the street for a little over a dollar.
The third difference is that there’s construction everywhere in Chengdu. Our campus is on the outskirts of the city. There’s a subway line being constructed at the university to attach to the existing subway line that leads into the city center. Campus buildings are being renovated, and certain entrances are dangerous enough that we’ve been told not to use them. Students still use them, and I trust they’re safe enough.
Despite the smog, it’s a beautiful area to live in. I’ve enjoyed more views than in Durham and Dover combined. Although Chengdu’s population is twice that of New York City, there’s ponds, bridges, and forests just on our campus. The plants are much different from the ones in New Hampshire, too. There’s a huge lake about 300 meters from our apartment, named Qinglong Lake. You can rent tandem bicycles that can skirt the road on the outside of the lake and enjoy the parks dotted around it.
The food is the biggest difference for me. I came to China with minimal knowledge of the language, and just ordering dumplings successfully is no small feat. It feels very rewarding to learn the Mandarin words for items I spent days walking by, but was unable to buy them because I couldn’t say them. It helps, also, that certain cart vendors exclaim the name of their product to attract customers. Aside from complicated food orders, the simple act of saying hello, thank you and goodbye in Mandarin is enough to make me feel accomplished.
Even though the students in our group rely on each other a lot, our foreign friends step in when a challenge proves to be too much for us. The Chengdu students have been welcoming, helpful, and willing to make our friendship.