[Colombia] David Janna, Tsinghua University

My Beautiful Encounter with China—International Students’ Stories on China’s Reform and Opening-up

Department of International Cooperation and Exchanges， Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China and Chinese Service Center for Scholarly Exchange， Ministry of Education of the People’s Republic of China

People’s Daily Press

January 2019

98.00 （CNY）

In order to promote exchanges between students from different countries， enhance the friendship between Chinese people and foreign students， and record foreign students’ wonderful experiences in life， work， study， and consumption in China， the Chinese Service Center for Scholarly Exchange （CSCSE）， entrusted by the Department of International Cooperation and Exchanges of the Ministry of Education， organized 2021’s 3rd International Student Essay Contest themed “My Beautiful Encounter with China”. This is the collection of all winning works in this contest. It shows China’s achievements in economic and social development from the perspective of foreigners.

After participating in the “Insight into China， Global Competency Social Practice” organized by the Practice Department of Graduate Youth League Committee of Tsinghua University， not only were my impression and understanding about the development of contemporary China and its long cultural history deepened， but also my longtime dream came true. This is one of my most memorable experiences in China.

With careful organization and arrangement of the sponsor， we visited some very important and interesting places， such as the headquarters of LAIX， the Shanghai Stock Exchange， Fudan University， and the CPC Committee of Shanghai Pudong New District， which I really longed for. Even the leaders and members of the CPC， whom we encountered later， said they themselves had yet to visit these places; thus， I felt honored. The leaders also shared their own stories with us and exchanged their views on China’s development and the 19th National Congress of the CPC， from which I really benefited.

I learned a lot during the preparation for the “Tsinghua University， Insight into China， Global Competency Social Practice”. In order to participate in this activity， I spent a long time studying the Report of the 19th CPC National Congress， especially the relevant parts of the Belt and Road Initiative. On Sunday night， we had a symposium of the report to the 19th CPC National Congress with the graduate students of Fudan University. At the symposium， I shared about the Belt and Road Initiative. We visited many important places， for example， the CPC Committee of Shanghai Pudong New District and Shanghai Stock Exchange. I asked government leaders the same question： “What’s the role and contribution of the Shanghai Stock Exchange and Pudong New District for the Belt and Road Initiative？” Though the question was the same， their answers varied within the spectrum. As a very comprehensive plan， it will affect all industries in China.

I asked Cai Min， Deputy Director of Human Resources and Social Security Bureau of Shanghai Pudong New District： “As a student， I spent a long time learning Chinese culture， and ‘Doing as Romans do’ took me a long time. ‘Do as Romans do’ includes learning Chinese， understanding ancient culture， and so on. Learning about the Chinese government is also an important attempt for me to ‘do as the Romans do’. One of my favorite things about the Chinese government is its ‘core socialist values’. One of my favorite values is ‘patriotism’. No doubt， all values are important， but I’m curious， and I want to know which value you think is the most important one？ Why？”

Ms. Cai’s answer was interesting. First， they were surprised at the fact that I knew these values. Then they explained to me how important these values are to Chinese society. They are all special and valuable. These values coexist and together constitute the values of Chinese society.

When we arrived at the Shanghai Urban Planning Exhibition Hall and saw photos of the Wenchuan Earthquake at the exhibition， I realized for the first time what a special school Tsinghua University is. In those photos of the earthquake relief， I saw many people in Tsinghua University who left their jobs， schools， and cities immediately for Wenchuan and helped their country overcome one of the worst natural disasters in history. For the first time， I experienced the feelings of home and country of Tsinghua people. No matter how big the challenges faced by Tsinghua people are， they are willing to take on the responsibilities of the country and society， go to the most dangerous and critical front line， and make their own contributions to their homeland. Tsinghua University is the place cultivating future national pillars. Tsinghua alumni are not only intelligent， but also always remember their own social responsibility.

Finally， I want to express my thanks to the “Insight into China， Global Competency Social Practice”： first of all， I would like to thank this country and the city of Beijing for its openness and inclusiveness， providing international students the opportunity to learn， experience， become a part of China’s progress and development， and participate in China’s social development. I would also like to thank every student in the Practice Department of the Graduate Youth League Committee of Tsinghua University for providing us with opportunities and building a platform for us to have a deeper understanding of China. I also sincerely call on all international students. Let us study together in China， live in China， and explore and practice our overseas students’ own “Chinese dream”！