CHENGDU — At a hospital featuring traditional Chinese medicine in Southwest China's Sichuan province, a foreign acupuncturist frequently draws curious glances from patients.
"What makes me happiest and most unforgettable in my TCM studies is seeing patients' doubts about my foreign face turn into recognition that I've truly relieved their pain," said Villavicencio Chuma Pacha Isabel, 38, from Ecuador.
Before the Chinese government awarded her a scholarship to pursue TCM studies, Isabel practiced as an internist in her home country. "I was fascinated by the mystery of TCM when I first came across some books on the subject in my father's bookcase as a young girl," she said. Her interest deepened when a patient in Ecuador recovered after acupuncture treatment, prompting her to come to China and explore what she calls a "mysterious field".
After two years of training at Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, she has become proficient in acupuncture and a range of other therapeutic skills.
After graduation, Isabel hopes to open a small clinic in Ecuador that blends TCM with Western medicine. "I've seen so many patients who could recover through TCM treatment, so I want to bring acupuncture back home and help more people learn about it," she said.
Like Isabel, many other Ecuadorian students are pursuing their dreams in China. Mancero Hidalgo Sebastian Andres, a graduate student at Chengdu University of Technology, is researching ways to improve recovery efficiency in heavy crude oil fields in his home country, with the guidance of his Chinese adviser.
After obtaining his bachelor's degree in geology back in Ecuador, Andres did not secure a job in his academic field and could only work in logistics for a while.
Unsure of what lay ahead, Andres turned to his undergraduate teacher for guidance. The teacher's words struck a chord: "China leads in oil recovery technologies. Go there to learn, and come back. Ecuador is rich in oil, and it needs people like you."
At first, a foreign land and an unfamiliar academic field left him feeling uneasy. But soon, Andres settled in and found comfort in the thoughtful details of his daily academic life, from his supervisor's patient guidance after lectures to his peers' eagerness to help him learn Chinese.
"I love spending whole days in the lab, talking with my teachers and classmates. I can get so much useful advice, and it makes me feel really fulfilled," he said.
Andres plans to return to his home country and work as a petroleum engineer after graduation. His research is expected not only to improve crude oil extraction efficiency but also to reduce carbon emissions and help protect the environment.
Another Ecuadorian student, Miller Ariel Guevara Dominguez, however, has a different plan. He is determined to secure a suitable job in China after graduating from Southwestern University of Finance and Economics, having declared China as his second home.
He noted that living in China afforded him a number of opportunities, while also allowing him to make friends from across the globe. "China has highly advanced transportation and express delivery systems," he added. "There is no need to carry a wallet when you go out — a mobile phone is all it takes to pay."
In 2025, China announced that over the next three years, it will provide 3,500 government scholarships and 10,000 training opportunities in China for member countries of the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States.
XINHUA
