In four days I will leave Shanghai to start my fall semester in Kunming, China through SIT’s China: Health, Environment, and Traditional Chinese Medicine. I was lucky enough to have already spent the past three months in Shanghai participating in two non-Rollins affiliated summer programs, so I can’t in good conscience call this a “pre-departure” blog. Regardless, I am thrilled to begin the next step in my study abroad journey here in China in a less populated, and less westernized city.
When I was in the early stages of planning my fall abroad, I knew that I wanted to go to a relatively small city (Kunming has a population of approx. 6.5 million while my home country of Croatia has a population of only 4 million, so I use the term “relatively small” lightly). I was committed to this in order to be forced to use Mandarin as much as possible and see a side of China that isn’t typically seen during study abroad. Mike was quick to recommend me SIT and I am eternally grateful he did. As much as I love convenient, crazy, crowded Shanghai, I am ready for a change of pace, namely one where the air quality is slightly better and I can walk outside and not feel like a 包子 in the heat.
So far, every time I mentioned to my local friends here that I will be leaving soon to go to Kunming, I have heard more or less the same responses: “啊，昆明很漂亮!” “昆明天气总是就像春天!” “没有太多做.”
If you’re feeling to lazy to use Google translate, here’s a recap: “Oh，Kunming is beautiful!” “The weather there always feels like Spring!” “There’s not too much to do.”
From what I have picked up, Kunming is the city of eternal spring where most places have no use for air conditioning because it is always so temperate. It is surrounded by mountains and nature, so I am assuming pollution won’t be a concern. My friends have also been quick to point out that Yunnan’s (the province Kunming is in) cuisine is amazing; spicy but tasty, and home to almost any kind of mushroom you can think of. Anyone who has ever tried ordering a pizza with me knows how much I love mushrooms. In the eyes of Shanghainese Kunming is a good vacation spot but boring after a while. I’ll see for myself soon enough but I don’t think I could ever become bored of a place with hiking, beautiful scenery, and good food.
My only concern at this point is the dialect. I am familiar with Mandarin (普通话）, and while almost every young person speaks and understands Mandarin, every region has their own dialect that I most definitely will not understand. I only just now started to pick up on Shanghai’s language (上海话）. Not much I can do to prepare myself for that, so in the meantime I’ll just worry about how I’m going to meet with my study abroad group when they’re all arriving at the airport and I’m taking a train to the opposite side of town. Wish me luck.
