[Japan] Fukase Kaichi, Beijing Foreign Studies University

“What night is this night? At last we are alone.” This is the poem in the “Book of Songs” that describes the unexpected encounter with love, and it is also the feeling of the moment when I set foot on the land of China. The tip of my nose was filled with a refreshing and fragrant and refreshing taste, and my ears were echoed with a beautiful, amiable and lovely Chinese tone, and the bright and beautiful natural scenery and historical places of interest were within reach... All of this not only made me feel stable and warm, but also full of anticipation for the new life that I will start in China.

My first encounter with China was actually a long-distance “online dating.” Looking back on 2020, I made up my mind to study in China, but due to the COVID-19 pandemic, We took online classes for three years. I can only understand the actual situation in China by looking at each other across the sea, always reading the relevant news on my mobile phone and TV and keeping in touch with my friends in China every day. Although I am far away in Japan and cannot fight side by side with them, my heart is closely connected to them.

In those long and cold days, I was often moved to tears by the perseverance and courage of the Chinese people, and I also gained incomparable strength from them, and more deeply felt what it means to be “mountains and rivers are exotic, but wind and moon are the same.” After the clouds roll by, we defeated the pandemic, embraced the dawn and welcomed a beautiful spring. I also felt the peace and warmth that I had not seen for a long time. Through the lens of their mobile phones, the teachers showed me the exquisite and lovely scenery of the campus, and my friends showed me the bustling streets of Beijing, which brought me infinite hope.

The weather is clear, and the maple trees welcome autumn in red. Three years later, in the autumn, I finally came to China as I wished, and I really met China and started the harvest season of my life. The scenes of China that I used to see in books and on the internet in the past are slowly being unfolded before my eyes. During the year, I visited the Forbidden City with red walls and yellow tiles, the undulating Great Wall, the majestic Terracotta Warriors, and many other places of interest, tasted the crispy skin and tender Peking Duck, the spicy and attractive Sichuan-Chongqing hot pot, the tender and delicate Jiangnan cuisine and other local delicacies, and experienced the rich traditional culture such as lantern riddles, Peking Opera masks and Chinese martial arts. These new and unique experiences have made me more immersed in the profound and timeless charm of Chinese culture.

In the process of getting along with China, I have gradually felt that China’s charm not only stems from its timeless historical and cultural heritage, but also from its high-tech innovation and high-quality development. After coming to China, I personally experienced a series of scientific and technological achievements created and developed by China, and realized how convenient the “high-level” terms such as high-speed rail, mobile payment and e-commerce have brought convenience to everyone’s life. You only need to have a mobile phone to connect to the internet anywhere, just sit at home and quickly shop and get goods, and it only takes a few hours to go to various cities.

During my graduation internship, I took the high-speed train to Suzhou, Hangzhou, Wuzhen and Shanghai, China’s financial center, to explore cities, research companies and chat with citizens. In my spare time, I would like to ride a shared bicycle to enjoy different scenery. In the ancient city, there are scattered traditional gardens, elegant and fresh fragrance of Biluo Tea, and the pipa and sanxian; In the new area, there are many skyscrapers, developed e-commerce, and high-precision equipment technology. The old and the new are intertwined, which is a microcosm of China’s development, allowing me to see the perfect combination of tradition and modernity, history and future, culture and technology, humanity and economy. This internship experience has strengthened my determination to continue my studies in China.

From the “online dating” across mountains and rivers to the close exploration and acquaintance, China has shown me the cohesion of the country and the people to unite and forge ahead, brought me a beautiful experience of integrating humanistic heritage and modern development, and opened the door for me to understand the world and pursue a broad life.

Thank you, China. Meeting and knowing you is the most beautiful encounter in my life.