Say Goodbye to My Friend

[gday_wei]

I am Chinese and feel so proud of my hometown more and more. These years I see so many foreigners living in China. Their fluent Chinese and skillful technique to use chopsick always shock me a lot. Especially these 2 years, I find lots of parents seeing children off by a bike every morning. That's interesting scene to me cos I couldn't imagine that a few years ago.

Meanwhile, I feel sorry with my happiness.I proud of my country having its vigor,opportunity and amazing future to attract you here. As you say, no matter whether you live in China or return to your country in future, it's treasurable experience. This experience lead to career promotion for you and a different memorized stuff to you. What amazing stuff!

Also, we want to make progress too. One of my friend tell me that she will go to US for Master Degree. We calculate expenditure of studying and living- 400k RMB at least. As an average income family, she will spend most of her parents savings. For us, we will work hard for 10 years and saving 10 years' money as bank deposit for 2 year's studying abroad.Maybe there is scholarship or part time job she could apply for in US, but it's yet little to make up huge expenditure. What a huge cost for us to have a different life in foreign country. And after her graduation, could she find a good job with high salary? It's still too hard to say. Just 1 year work experience do not make any sense to competitive society . Maybe she could live better when she got ACCA degree.

Whatever, I don't mean to compare salary difference between develpped and developing country. But I am forced to say: there are too much things we worry about: to live in better house, to get better education, to get enough welfare benefit.

When could we live a totally different life like you guys? Sigh~

Hope my friend spend her life in US enjoyably ! Hope her pressure would not afflict her too much!

Of course I still have confidence that my country will keep improving our life. Maybe 10 years later, I could go abroad with chic manner and no more worry about cost.

[imron]

Their...skillful technique to use chopsick always shock me a lot

Yes, because using chopsticks is such a hard skill to master

[heifeng]

I hear violins...

[gougou]

because using chopsticks is such a hard skill to master

True. But luckily we can employ very expensive teachers to teach us.

@ gday_wei: Trust Deng Xiaoping's 先富论!

[heifeng]

but since we laowai are all '富得流油' sometimes it still hard to keep those sticks from slipping outta our big fat hands...

[Crivens200]

Say Goodbye to My Friend

Goobye

[gougou]

but since we laowai are all '富得流油' sometimes it still hard to keep those sticks from slipping outta our big fat hands...

I hear you! I really hope that in 10 years, our countries can become just as agile with chopsticks as China is now already! Coming from an averagely skilled family, I had to spend several months learning to use chopsticks! And when I finally learned it, I didn't even find a well-paying job!

[imron]

If only you'd gone to 北京筷子大学. I hear that graduates from there with a double-degree in Chinese and chopstick usage have no trouble finding good jobs. Especially ones leading to career promotion when they return home.

[heifeng]

I've for one considered going there but I heard some crazy stories about how local students carry around forks and knives hoping to find an opportunity to practice using them, and it kinda freaked me out...I mean being ambushed with peeps wielding forks and knives, and sometimes even teaspoons and dessert spoons and those lil' spoons with the ridges on the side that are good for eating grapefruit.

I'm personlly now considering 一次性筷子培训班 at 北京林业大学

[imron]

I'm personlly now considering 一次性筷子培训班 at 北京林业大学

*tsk* *tsk* Haven't you been following the thread here. Not to mention the repution of 林业（临业）大学。

[Lu]

Ok the reactions are damn funny (heifeng in particular :-D), but give the guy (/girl) a break. Some true & warm feelings expressed in the right forum in decent English, and yet here we are making fun of him (/her).

[heifeng]

Well now I guess the pressure is on to advance to those slippery plastic, and dare I say it, even stainless steel chopsticks.

Ok, I just saw Lu's post....so, just consider this a friendly lesson in sarcasm then to our new friend! and chinese forums welcomes you....in a tough luv sorta way

[Xiao Kui]

What a huge cost for us to have a different life in foreign country. And after her graduation, could she find a good job with high salary? It's still too hard to say. Just 1 year work experience do not make any sense to competitive society .

The price I will pay for my indeed "treasurable experience" in happy China is possibly a 10 year blank or question mark on my resume. Well, there's always grad school, or with my Chinese skills finding some corporate job or entrepreneurial opportunity that will send me right back to China!!!

[adrianlondon]

there are too much things we worry about: to live in better house, to get better education, to get enough welfare benefit

I think you'll find many foreigners also have these worries. Those you meet in China, an exceedingly small percentage of the number of foreigners world wide, are those rich enough, brave enough, and free enough to travel.

There are now many mainland Chinese in central London near where I live, studying there. China's population is so large, and the rich-poor divide so great, that for those who are studying in London, things are cheap. They probably have more disposable income (parent's guanxi bribe fund) than me. They probably know less about non-rich Chinese in China than I do.

[bottledpoetry]

good luck to you gday_wei!

I grew up in an area (san jose, california) where there were a lot of foreign students like you and your friend trying to put themselves through university and community college education with limited funds. The US and China are incredibly different - I think you'll find it as fascinating coming here as some Americans (speaking for myself) do when they go to China. I hope your hard work pays off

[gday_wei]

I donot imagine so much response to this post. Thank you for you all ! Believing my friend would have a bright future when she comes back.

Today,I read a lot of post in this forum, some mention about people's life in other cities in China.To be honest, living in Shanghai for so many years, I donot know other cities's situation. I mean I just could imagine their poverty and difficult life by TV or websites even till now. Their wish is to live better is to work in Beijing or Shanghai,etc just like we want to go abroad. That does not mean we want to emigrate but just want to widen our vision,explore different area and richen our experience like you guys maybe.

I feel so lucky to grow up in Shanghai, at least no worry about my compulsory education while many poors cannot keep studying. Of course,the rich always exist and perhaps there's no need to envy or admire. Living in other country is not a easy thing, we all pay for our decision. Our developing is full of difficulty. Maybe I will feel more successful when I overcome these difficulities. Life is struggle for everyone, right? ^_^