My name is Junru Yan, I’m a rising senior at Northwestern studying Biology and Global Health and this is my first blog post ever. Currently, I’m sitting in a Kungfu Tea place in the Beijing international airport waiting for a connection flight to Lanzhou. As of now, I have been traveling for more than 12 hours, from Chicago to Vancouver to Beijing, and it’s not over yet!
And it begins! On my way to Beijing via Vancouver.
I was born in Lanzhou and came to the US at age six. To me, New Orleans is and always will be home. But I have always taken pride in my Chinese heritage, taking the time to appreciate the culture and language. I was so excited when I found a public health study abroad program in China. It was the perfect combination. Having taken a couple of global health classes at Northwestern, I was excited to learn about the healthcare system in China. My hope is that the classes in public health and traditional medicine will allow me to gain new insight on ways to the US system can improve. The medicine aspect aside, I am just excited to be a student in China, to learn Chinese and fully immerse myself in the culture.
Before the study abroad experience, I am going home to visit family in Lanzhou. Located in Gansu Province along the Yellow River, Lanzhou was a natural crossing point for the Silk Road. Hence the city has a unique mixture of Han (majority ethnic group) and Hui (minority Islamic group). One of the things Lanzhou is best known for is its 牛肉面 (beef noodles). I can say from experience, it’s truly amazing to be able to wake up, walk downstairs, and enjoy a bowl of savory soup with hand-pulled noodles.
I’ve been to China before, but I have a feeling it’s going to be very different experience this time, and I can’t wait!