“Why did I choose to live in China?”
This question should be “What led me to decide to live in China?” As I cannot answer without providing a backstory and my experiences. It is a question I am asked regularly, from family, friends and complete strangers. It is not something new, or something which I am surprised by, especially seeing how China is portrayed by the Western media and governments.
Despite being drawn to China since childhood, I had never visited because of my worries, misconceptions, and false ideas. However, it was not until 2015 that I first planted my feet in China for the very first time. There were feelings of fear and excitement all mashed in to one.
The moment I hopped off of the plane and entered the Fuzhou International Airport, I had this incredible sense of paranoia and honestly felt that I would either be turned back or arrested for something. The feelings were not logical at all and for someone who has anxiety; I was so far outside of my comfort zone.
As this was only a holiday, it was not long after leaving the airport that the anxiety I felt was replaced with my keen sense of adventure. I feed on putting myself in unfamiliar situations, feeling uncomfortable, and this was a perfect example of that. After all, experiences like this provide the greatest lessons in life and open one’s mind.
After visiting China for the first time in 2015, I would frequent China yearly for Chinese New Year celebrations and it was not until 2018 that I moved there to live for a year. I lived in a small traditional city called Sanming, which is tucked away in the Fujian mountains. Besides McDonald’s, KFC, and Pizza Hut, no other western restaurants or cafes were around at that time and had none of the familiar foods. In addition, I was the only native English speaker among the five westerners in the city. This pushed me so far outside my comfort zone that some days I felt incredibly down, and I spent weeks, if not months, trying to understand what was wrong with me.
What I was experiencing was culture shock, a condition most foreigners will experience when moving to another country. Severity depends on the individual, however, and I was hit rather hard by this. It was due to not being able to speak or understand the language and depend almost 100% on my wife for help with simple everyday tasks. It was not until approximately three months in that I levelled out and felt more comfortable with my surroundings in my new home. China had become my home, and this was something which never sank in to begin with. During my year in China, I was incredibly fortunate to have travelled there, visiting different provinces and cities.
After spending the year in China, I headed back home to Australia to continue my responsibilities there. However, it was not until this time that I realised that my misconceptions of China I had prior had all but been obliterated. Suddenly, the views I once held about this amazing country were no longer the same. I had false ideas about China, such as its not advanced, very strict, a surveillance state, people living in slavery, child labour, no freedoms, genocide, tainted food, impolite people, bad hygiene, dirty air, and bad air quality. I was terribly mistaken and misled.
Being back in the West and adjusting to life outside of China, I missed the convenience I had in China. I compared, but this time, I was comparing in reverse. I do not quite know when it happened, but I soon realised I was comparing all the pros I experienced while in China to what I had in Australia, and the differences were extensive.
China was more advanced than Australia and was not as strict as I once believed it would be. Everywhere I went, slavery and child labour were absent, people were free and kept themselves clean, and the air quality was always great. There are only a handful of places in China that struggle with bad air quality and these are places which are heavily manufacturing. There are some areas in China that are not clean, meaning there is rubbish collecting in places they should not be, but I see a nation working incredibly hard to implement widespread recycling and clean-ups. At the end of the day, the country was and continues to be the factory for the world and has not done a bad job managing a population of this magnitude at the same time either.
Having said this, there are cameras everywhere, especially in the cities and populated towns. Facial recognition is also widespread. But this is not the big problem that the West screams on about, it is more of a misunderstanding of how and why China does things the way they do. When I was back in Australia, I know also that there are cameras everywhere and despite what people think, facial recognition is widespread there too. It is just not so blatantly obvious as it is in China.
This does not mean China is a dystopian police state, far from it. I have never felt restricted, neither have my Chinese family, friends or any people I have met and spoken to. They all do the same things we do in the West, but the country operates under a very different government and that leads me to say that the CPC is not the big bad wolf which it is made out to be. The government here operates differently, the voting is different and the ways for citizens to become politicians and leaders here are incredibly strict. Without getting into Chinese politics, which would be a book in its own right. I will say that it works and works well.
Where the laws are concerned, China is strict, but this is not something you see or feel. Why is that? This is due to most wishing to follow the laws and contribute to the greater good of the country. One only needs to look at the state of crime in the likes of Australia or other Western nations, to know that China is doing something right. Crime here is incredibly low and I have never felt threatened here. Woman, irrespective of race, can walk the streets late at night or early hours, with no problems. Sure, crime exists here and there is no denying that, but it is so low that one usually will never experience it. Take the current youth crime problem in Australia as an example. This is an issue which is only getting worse. Why is that exactly? Could it be that there is too much freedom or laws are not strict enough? You have kids assaulting people in the streets, breaking into homes, stealing, damaging personal property, all while showing complete disregard for the police, laws and respect for others. They get away with this because they are underage, and they are proud of their actions. It is glorified. Now, this behaviour does not happen in China and why is that? Because the youth here respect their elders, authorities and they do not waste their time on stupid behaviour. There is a reason Chinese kids are often better educated and thus have better opportunities in life. Not saying all Western kids are like this though.
Here in China, you are free to do whatever you wish to do, as long as your actions do not cause harm to others. In relation to not being able to openly criticise the CPC, the majority of Westerners who ask this question only have their own lens to view China through and fail to realise that unlike their own countries, there’s nothing to criticise. The Chinese happen to be happy with their government and they most certainly aren’t forced to smile either.
Whenever I am asked about Xi Jinping being a dictator, holding power forever and China not being a democracy. I implore those people to spend a little time researching the differences first. Just because the West operates one way does not mean other nations need to follow suit and does not mean the West is the only way, either. Australia goes through more Prime Ministers than I do underwear and most never fulfil the promises they make during their term, yet the people back home always fall for the same repetitive lies. Xi Jinping, no matter what you think or believe about the man, had to work incredibly hard to prove himself and earn the top job. Qualifications, experience, knowledge, relationship with peers, multiple exams and a very long road are all requirements to hold a position of power in China.
There is a misconception that Chinese people are impolite and rude, but this couldn’t be further from the truth. The Chinese people are some of, if not the most kind and hospitable people on the planet. I have heard some say Chinese sound rude when speaking English, but this is due to directly translating Chinese to English, they are not being rude and this is simply a misunderstanding. If you ever visit China, you will notice that the Chinese treat visitors very well. This is due to them wishing you to enjoy your stay in China and leave with a good impression.
Having said all this, China is not perfect, and no country is. China is a country which is still developing and with development, there will always be problems. There are even things here that I dislike, but I accept them as they are not things which cause me or others harm. They are cultural differences that I, as a Westerner here, do not have the right to judge or point the finger at. I have met many a Westerner who lived in China, left due to quitting or facing hardships, only to end up bad-mouthing the country. Depending on the personal circumstances around this, most simply could not adjust and originally moved to China with the wrong set of intentions to begin with.
I moved here with my wife and daughter. The opportunities we have here are vast compared to what we had in Australia. We are under less stress financially; we can put our daughter in to a very good school and we have wonderful family and friends around us. Not to say we did not have good friends and family back home, we do, and we miss them immensely. China is what Australia was in the 60s and then some. This country is advancing so fast, sometimes it is bewildering to witness.
Some people have asked why I would bring my child here. I always answer with a resounding “Why not?”. We all want the best for our children and as her parents, we see the opportunities she has here and why not allow her to have them?
So here I am living in China for the second time and this time will be here for the long haul. They are already the world leader in clean energy investments and have no doubt they will achieve their carbon neutral goal come 2060 or even sooner. There are so many exciting advancements happening here and I cannot wait to see what China does next.
With all this said, one cannot forget to mention that China has an incredibly long history, which is rich in culture, has amazing architecture and food that is simply to die for. China has vastly different culinary experiences depending on the province you are in and languages are all unique to each region.
I am incredibly fortunate to be living in this amazing country.
