As an 18-year-old Mongolian girl, and and a first-year university student studying international law in Shanghai, let me share my short but meaningful experience with you, moreover, how I have developed a deeper connection with China and now consider it as my second home.

In the blink of an eye, I found myself stepping into university life. Living in Shanghai , often referred to as China's New York City, I gained a few basic knowledge about Chinese culture and its uniqueness. During the first few weeks, I faced some struggles since China was a complete unknown country to me. I felt homesick for a while. However, after getting accustomed to living in Shanghai, I began to explore more about China. When I started making more Chinese friends from different parts of China, I no longer felt lonely. I started appreciating the university life that was given to me.

Ujin is from Mongolia and is currently studying international law in Shanghai University of Political Science and Law, China.

Since childhood, I have had a great interest in travelling. After starting my bachelor's degree in Shanghai, I have had unlimited access to travel within China. I have become familiar with Chinese lifestyle and people’s daily habits, such as scanning QR codes for payment.

After a short but overwhelming semester, I finally had some time to travel with my friends. After searching for a while, we chose Suzhou as our destination, which is close to Shanghai. We spend 2 days and 1 night in Suzhou, enjoying the foods and admiring the scenery. It was an amazing experience for me to see China in firsthand, which led me to explore more of Chinese culture and landscape.

After that, I decided to travel to Xinjiang in my next winter break. The reason I chose Xinjiang as my next destination is because their daily life is similar to Mongolians and the region borders Mongolia. Xinjiang is the largest autonomous region and westernmost territory in China. By travelling there, I could have a chance to participate in unique Uygur traditional culture experiences, view incredible Silk Road sights, and appreciate wonderful natural scenery and traditional cuisine in Xinjiang. I seek to make more friends while getting a good look at Xinjiang’s traditional culture and scenery.

The one thing I have noticed about majority of Chinese people while travelling was that Chinese people have a strong sense of morality. The way younger people show profound respect to the elderly is the most astonishing sight for me. Furthermore, from the way Chinese people communicate with each other, everyone can sense the atmosphere of modesty and morality. It left me speechless how Chinese people have mastered these fine characteristics.

Furthermore, after experiencing life in Shanghai in firsthand, I realized the difference between the image of China in international society and how China really is. It struck me hard when I learnt how the false accusations have led to a bad image of China in the outer world, when the country itself contains nothing but gorgeous characteristics within itself. The gorgeous scenery and the enthusiastic people, touched my heart without a hesitation.

I deeply hope my essay will be a help in having people change their one-sided opinion on China; furthermore, influencing the majority of outer world to carry wisdom knowledge and familiarity of China, as well as advocating the whole world to experience the beauty and uniqueness of China.

Ujin is from Mongolia and is currently studying international law in Shanghai University of Political Science and Law, China.

Planner: Jie Wenjin

Reviewers: Hou Weili and Cheng Li