Hi Everyone!
It’s officially been 2 months since I’ve been in Beijing. I think this is about the half way mark of my trip, but it only feels like yesterday where I was writing my first blog post..! I’m looking back at some of my blog posts of my goals for Beijing.. and I have to say, things never happen as planned. For one, I did not sign up for the November GREs because I actually don’t have not much time to focus on the GREs here. I also planned to volunteer in a physical therapy clinic, but that did not happen because I was not able to find any positions out here! (Physical therapy is not a popular field in China.) Being my usual self, I attempted to make the most out of the time in Beijing. With this mindset, I always find myself with too much on my plate. I am still struggling to find a perfect balance for myself. But anyways, the main reason why I came to Beijing was to learn more about the culture/language, and I have to say I am definitely learning a lot!
Overall, these two months of Beijing has an amazing experience. Not only do I see myself improving in my Mandarin skills, I made many friends from various countries. One thing I’ve always heard is that once you travel or study abroad you don’t come back as the same self you once were. I never really understood this, but do see how these type of experiences would change you. For one, after living in Beijing for 2 months, I actually see that I can live/work abroad in the future. I’ve lived in California my whole life, and all my schools were very close by to home. So to be out here on my own is definitely an eye opening and growing experience for me.
Well that’s it for now. I’ll see you next time! :)
Jen