From Oregon to Sichuan

In the fall of 2002 I decided the next chapter of my life would be written somewhere in Asia. At the time of this decision I was teaching Marine Biology on Catalina Island (near Southern California) and was ready for a change. I am 24, and was 23 then, so moving about and making changes of this nature are relatively easy. The hardest part, in my opinion, is making the initial decision.

I chose China because no other country in Asia, and perhaps the world, can compare to it in terms of future global economic, social, political, and environmental impact. With a land mass roughly equal to that of the United States and 1.3 billion people living therein, China is truly a giant. This, coupled with the colossal changes it is in the midst of, particularly economically, made it a country I had to see and experience first-hand.

In the minds of many American's, particularly young Americans, China is shrouded in an air of mystery. For so many years it was a country closed to the outside world during the Mao-era, yet one of great interest due to its ancient culture, its traditions, philosophies, cuisine, and kung fu, among other reasons. As China continues to change and grow, I believe it will occupy a place more at the forefront of the American consciousness. I knew it would be a great advantage for me to have first-hand knowledge of China, and would be a learning experience unlike any other.

Before I began looking for an English teaching job I had to first choose a region or province. I had made up my mind I did not want to live in a large city like Beijing or Shanghai, and instead wanted to find an area with as little Western influence as possible.

After a good deal of research I settled on Sichuan as my ideal location to live, for its rich history, diverse environment, and strategic location (close to Tibet and Southeast Asia).

The very next day, after making my decision, I stumbled on an advertisement for a teaching job at the Luzhou Medical College, which is in Eastern Sichuan. A few emails and faxes later and I had a job. I would be teaching Medical students, ages 18-32, would be given an apartment, and my salary would be 3000 yuan a month.

Very good considering I didn't have a TEFL certificate or any previous experience teaching English, which is a testament to the high demand in China for English teachers. I left my home in Oregon on February 11th and have been in Luzhou, Sichuan, ever since.

Culture Shock

My first two weeks in Luzhou were very difficult. The previous three months I'd lived in Southern Oregon, arguably the most beautiful place in the world, and was constantly in the company of not only family and friends, but also my wonderful girlfriend Sarah. Leaving it all behind for a new place was going to be trying, but I felt up to the challenge. I'd spent the greater part of the past two years away from home and Oregon, having lived in Germany for six months and on Catalina Island (20 miles SW of Los Angeles) for eight months. I am accustomed to the idea of being out on my own and am content that way.

What was more difficult than I'd imagined, and compounded the aforementioned emotional drains, was the unbelievable culture shock of Sichuan and China. When my plane first broke through the clouds on our descent, and I glimpsed for the first time the terraced rice-paddies, hundred shades of green, and rolling hills of Chongqing, I felt I was landing on a different planet.

An hour into my ride to Luzhou I remember thinking to myself "Boy Joe, you've really gone and done it this time". Its hard to describe to anyone who has never traveled abroad, but the bottom line is, when you splash down in a new country, everything seems so-foreign.

There were so many things, big and small, I'd never seen before. There were old men pulling rickshaws alongside the road, motorcycles with side-baskets overflowing with ducks or chickens, rural houses made of stone amidst endless farm crops, an apparent absence of anything resembling traffic rules, and, above all, construction on a level I'd never seen. In a lot of ways I felt like I'd slipped back in time several decades.

At times all of these new sights left me exhausted, other times homesick, other times confused, and more often than not, completely awe-struck. But as funny as it sounds, this is what I wanted, why I chose SW China over Beijing or Shanghai; to go to a place unlike anywhere I'd ever been, to jar my senses and emotions, to do something unique and challenging. No matter how lonesome or frustrated I was at times, I never doubted my decision to come to China.

Thankfully I had an incredible support network to help me through. If I ever felt really low I would call home and have a chat with my parents, who seemed to understand exactly what I was going through despite never having set foot in China. And Sarah, with her supportive emails, was my daily ray of sunshine.

Then there was Phil, the other English teacher at the Medical School, an Englishman who returned for his second semester here about a week after I arrived for my first. Through him I gained six months worth of experience and knowledge, about teaching, about Luzhou, and about living in China. Not only was he an invaluable well of knowledge, he was generous, supportive, and a true friend.

By the end of February I was teaching 21 hours each week, learning the ins and outs of Luzhou city, and beginning to feel comfortable and confident with all aspects of my new life. The turning point was the day I called home and spent an hour complaining about all the reasons I didn't like China. That day, after I hung up the phone, I suddenly felt free to appreciate China for what it was, rather than for what it wasn't.

Open Lecture

One of my teaching obligations at Luzhou Medical College is unique. Every Tuesday evening I give a 90-minute lecture open to students who want to listen. The point, from the school's perspective, is to give the students the opportunity to hear a native English speaker, so the content of the lecture is secondary to the speaking itself.

Initially I found this to be a difficult assignment as I did not have a computer to do presentations with, there would be too many people to photocopy handouts, and there was nothing resembling a set curriculum. Basically I was being asked to stand and talk for ninety minutes, every week, about anything I wanted.

At my introductory lecture (and every lecture thereafter) were around 300 exceptionally bright students, ages 19-22, curious to see and hear the new laowai (foreigner). While the difficulty in coming up with things to talk about never completely subsided, the lectures have been far more of a blessing than a curse.

Over the past months I have talked about a wide array of topics, from dating in America to the civil rights movement and Martin Luther King Jr, from how to play baseball to the war in Iraq, and from Christmas traditions to the 19th century American expansion west. It has been a challenging experience to try and explain subjects such as these in an honest, accurate, and entertaining manner.

I have tried to avoid making comparisons between China and America, instead leaving that to the students, and have focused on explaining things as truthfully as possible. While I hope my students have gained something from these talks, I know without a doubt I have personally learned a great deal.

Trying to explain the culture of my birth, to people from a wholly different one, has been illuminating to say the least. In this setting, so many ideas and behaviours I've taken for granted, or never closely examined, have been brought forth for question and clarification.

While this period has provided many a laugh for me and the students, it has also provided a forum for topics such as love and happiness. In reading the questions of the students, it has shown me, evermore clearly, that no matter where in the world one travels, people are generally far more the same than different.

The students here in China are dealing with the same questions and issues myself and other college students dealt with back in America. The context and settings may be different, but the central themes are the same. It seems young people everywhere are looking for friendship and love, are seeking answers to life's big questions, and are trying to make their way in the world as best they can. So despite our massive cultural differences, I feel I definitely have much more in common with them than otherwise.

Through this question and answer portion, one thing I've discerned is that many students believe life in America is perfect, that thanks to so much material wealth, everyone is happy, content, and years for nothing.

This is perhaps as accurate a generalization as if I believed every person in China was exceptional at playing table tennis. Yes, many Chinese people are excellent ping pong players, but certainly not all of them are. Likewise, there are many people in America who are happy and content with their lives. But this is certainly not everyone.

I personally know people in America who have vast material riches to go along with social status, yet who I would definitely not describe as happy. The opposite is true as well. I know many people in America, young and old, who live a life that is outwardly very simple, yet inwardly very rich. Perhaps the point I stress most to my students is material and monetary wealth does not ensure happiness, nor is it a substitute for it, in America or any other country in the world.

Many of my students, for various reasons, will never attain the level of affluence common to most Americans. Thus, if they accept, without questioning, the belief that material wealth and happiness are proportionally linked, they are setting themselves up for discontent. But maybe, if they realize this is not true, if they can see through the haze, than perhaps they will look elsewhere, or inwardly, in their pursuit of happiness.

Perhaps they will find truth in the saying 'the trick to being happy is not having what you want, but wanting what you have', and that maybe indeed 'the best things in life are free'. But I don't know. I'm not sure. Either way, all I can do is offer my opinion.

Friendly People

During my last week of classes before examinations many of my students asked me again to share my impressions and opinions. One thing that stood out to me, and that I mentioned first in each class, was I am yet to have a negative encounter with a Chinese person. Day in and day out, without fail, the people of Luzhou have been friendly, patient, honest, and kind.

Even after four months my Chinese vocabulary is limited to simple phrases such as "hello", "thank you", "please", and some other basic words. Had I been planning on staying longer than one semester, I'd have taken the plunge and given the Chinese language my best effort. But, this not being the case, I decided to devote my energies elsewhere and resort to carrying around my pocket phrase book.

Joe Narus

Courtesy: www.Scanews.com/sichuan