It has now been five weeks since I left Peking University and China. Since then, I have traveled to South Korea and Nicaragua. When I initially left China, I was extremely excited to return to a country where I was familiar with the language and culture; however, I felt myself missing China more than I could imagine. I miss walking down the street and picking up jianbing on the way to class. I miss the weekly excursions we would take to a historical site. In fact, I find myself talking about my study abroad adventures, even well after a month upon returning.
It has already been a week since school started, and I am so thankful for all the friends I’ve made during my time abroad. I see many of them in my class, or on the street, and we always give each other hugs and catch up. That’s when I know that some of the friendships I’ve made in China will last throughout my entire time here at Northwestern. The new friendships created in Beijing were not the only long term benefit that I took away. I learned that my choice to study economics and international studies were on point with my professional goals as well.
My amazing Chinese 3 class!
The political and economic development courses I took at Peking University really changed my perspective on the Chinese economy and the way it functions. The courses I took also debunked a lot of myths about their political system, and I know that I am interested in learning more upon my return to Northwestern.
I am counting down the days until I am able to return to China and explore more of the country that I have grown to love. In addition, I am already exploring my next options to study abroad for the next fall term. I truly think that my Northwestern experience would have not been the same without all the experiences and adventures I went through this summer!
Missing the views from our last excursion at the Summer Palace