A Foreigner Who Speaks Chinese…Kind of

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After traveling for almost 18 straight hours, I finally arrived in Hong Kong on Sunday. Hong Kong is a beautiful city, and definitely one I will be visiting frequently during my stay here. After arriving in Hong Kong, I spent the night at a friend’s house and the next morning met with the plant manager who escorted me across the border into mainland China. 

China is way different than I ever expected it to be. The people, food, places, anything you can think of, it’s pretty much the opposite. However strange it may appear, it is still a beautiful and kind country. One night in my hotel, a service woman knocked on the door. I answered it, not knowing what it could be as I hadn’t ordered anything. When I opened the door, she said “for you,” and handed me what looked to be a purple artichoke. After my initial astonishment, I tried to find out what this could be. I looked it up on Bing (because Google is conveniently blocked), and found out later that it was a dragon fruit. Almost as anticlimatic as going through Hong Kong customs, in which after waiting an hour you don’t even get a passport stamp.

But besides the free fruit, the hotel is better than an American Hilton. There’s beautiful floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking the guanlan skyline, and great service people whom also speak English. As for work, the factory I work at in China is different than the stereotypical sweatship people usually think of. It has air conditioning, decent hours, and even phone chargers for the workers to charge their IPHONES. Yeah they can afford Iphones. Honestly, seems like a better life than the fast food worker. 

Anyways, it’s been pouring everyday thusfar, and I haven’t seen the sun since North America. I’m still going to try and venture into downtown Shenzhen and go to a museum or a mall or anything to keep me occupied. Until next week~

-LM

Lucas Mackey

ไฝ ๅฅฝ๏ผMy name is Lucas Mackey, and I am a current Junior studying at EmbryRiddle Aeronautical University in Prescott, Arizona. Iโ€™m majoring in aviation business and pursuing a minor in mandarin Chinese. Iโ€™ve always held a fascination with the world of airlines, and I someday hope to change the industry for the better. I was born in San Diego, California, and grew up in multiple states across the country. When people ask me where I come from, I really donโ€™t know what to respond because all the places Iโ€™ve lived influenced my life in extraordinary ways. Through this domestic immersion in different cultures, Iโ€™ve come to understand the real difference between tolerance and acceptance. Throughout my life, Iโ€™ve experienced both and neither, however, I make it my goal to create a world where everyone can be accepted and treated as equal. This summer I am studying abroad in Kaohsiung, Taiwan. I hope to improve my Chinese skills as well as my knowledge of the aviation markets in East Asia. Taiwan is very progressive in nature, and accepts people of all kinds which is why I was so motivated to choose this locale. I hope to learn from their culture the importance of treating others as part of a family, and applying these principles to reaching my future goal of entrepreneuring a world class airline.