Kingsley Leung, Public Health in China, Summer 2013
I think I’ve been cheating a little bit. Even after the program ended, I was still hanging out with friends that studied with me in Beijing. I met up with them in Hong Kong. Connor had planned to stay with me in Hong Kong for the first week, so we got to be roommates for one final week before he went back to Beijing for his fall study abroad program. Also, some friends from the Wanxiang Program had been backpacking during our closing weeks in Beijing, and their final destination was Hong Kong, so I got the chance to see them again before they left for the States. With Jeff joining us in the middle of the week, it did not really feel like my program ended at all.
Who could forget Jeff? So glad he joined us for our Hong Kong adventures.
It wasn’t until after I sent Connor off in a very sad farewell that nostalgia began to hit me. On the bus ride back from the airport, my mind ran through the past two months, and I felt like it was impossible – how did this program lasts two months? It felt like two days, even though the memories were so numerous and so important to me. My time in Beijing passed by much too quickly…and it is just a testament to what an incredible time I had there.
Sending your brother off to study abroad for 3 more months is no easy feat.
The most phenomenal thing is that learning Chinese and public health was part of all that fun. While having dinner with my family, I was happily reciting the Chinese poems and sayings that we learned in Chinese class. I still remember the massage techniques that we learned from traditional medicine. While the classes could sometimes get very challenging and tedious, it was very rewarding. It also helped that my fellow classmates were so much fun to study and hang out with.
Our TCM class knew how to have fun.
That’s what it all comes down to – the people that I’ve met there. The classes may be fun and the school was amazing, but ultimately, the friendships and connections made are what I’ll remember for the rest of my life. I could have easily just hung out with the people I knew before, but I’m really glad I got to know everyone else on this program, because they are all phenomenal people. I cannot wait for our reunion at school.
Last day in Beijing spent at Beihai Park…it was pretty wonderful.
So far in my life, I have visited Beijing two times – once when I was 10, and this year at 20. I have for that these trips have acted as a summation of what I have done for the past ten years. I was I have absolutely no doubt in my mind that when I’m 30, I’ll find my way into Beijing again. I know it’ll be drastically different from this trip, as this trip was from my previous one, but I have no doubt that the fond memories will remain, and that others will be made in this wonderful capital that is Beijing. 再会北京! Until next time!
Until next time Beijing! I can’t wait to see how both of us will change in ten years.