[Italy] Rapisarda Pierluca, Central University of Finance and Economics
I am from Italy and my Chinese name is Liu Yilong. I named myself “Yilong” because “Yi” represents Italy and “long (dragon)” is a symbol of the Chinese nation.
Out of my love for Chinese culture, I came to Beijing during my summer vacation when I was in high school and studied Chinese at Beijing Language and Culture University for two months. Then, I applied for the preparatory courses for international students at Beijing Jiaotong University. In 2019, I was very honored to be admitted to Central University of Finance and Economics as a major in International Economics and Trade, and I am currently a junior student.
Before coming to China, the nation in my imagination was not only vast and mysterious, but also crowded, chaotic and backward, just as the Western media have propagated. However, such thoughts were dismissed as soon as I stepped off the plane and actually set foot on the land of China. I was dumbfounded at the grandeur of Beijing Capital International Airport, which, though crowded, was in order, and I had to admire the Chinese for their management capacity. When I got on the light rail from the airport to the downtown, although the train was running fast, sometimes underground, sometimes above ground, my nervous heart calmed down, because the scenes unfolded before me made me sure that it was a correct choice to study in Beijing, and that the road of studying in Beijing would bring an entirely different experience to my life!
When I first came to Beijing, everything that happened around me was fresh to me. Take the way of spending money as an example. While Europeans are still using credit cards and paying cash to buy things in brick-and-mortar stores, Chinese people are already using their cell phones to get everything done. WeChat payment, online banking, online ticketing, online shopping, fast food delivery, online entertainment and other convenient digital means have been integrated into every aspect of Chinese people’s life.
I have visited the city of Shanghai twice. The first time was travelling with a friend, and the second time was to meet a friend who was visiting Shanghai from Italy. The interval between the two visits is less than two years, but my experiences were very different.
Since the hotel I stayed in on my first trip to Shanghai had left a great impression on me, I recommended my friend to stay at this hotel too when he came to Shanghai. When the cab driver who had picked us up from the airport dropped us in front of the hotel, I thought the cab driver had got the wrong address. After double checking, I confirmed that this was the same hotel I had stayed in two years before, and it turned out that this hotel had had an overhaul a year before. After checking in at the front desk, my friend and I followed the agile and beautiful robot down the long hallway, got into the elevator, and arrived at the room we were going to stay in. As we walked, the robot chatted with us in a friendly manner, asking how our journey was and reminding us from time to time to watch our steps. We were amazed by all this: China is so amazing and so advanced! This is the speed of China!
Ever since joining the World Trade Organization 20 years ago, China’s economy has undergone a radical change with the total economic volume ranking second in the world. In just 20 years, China has achieved the total economic volume Europe, Japan and other developed countries and regions have achieved in almost 60 years, making a huge contribution to the world’s economic growth. This is the speed of China!
During the years living and studying in Beijing, the real China as I witnessed has not only rapidly developing economy and fast changing city construction, but also simple, kind, warm-hearted and hospitable people. Though I am in a foreign country, I have never felt lonely, because I know that whenever I am in trouble, my teachers and classmates would be by my side like family. Therefore, in China, I always feel secure.
I love China! I Love Beijing! I love to contribute to the economic cooperation and cultural exchange between Italy and China!
The story is from "My Beautiful Encounter with China" Essay Competition organized by the Chinese Service Center for Scholarly Exchanges (CSCSE).
