China, where change is constant

I was sleeping on the cushion of clouds, sunlight scattered all over and I opened my eyes & saw that rainbow in the limitless sky expressing the gratitude & welcomed me... Then my flight landed in China. They say a journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. This was a journey of learning, finding myself, meeting strangers, exploring new ideas & so on. When I arrived in China and looked around, it was fascinating like a reality of a dream. College life is an integral part in everyone's life as it is a small world that prepares you for the real world. My college is the same, it provides the training of the mind to think which helps to grow within ourselves. The comfortable and safe environment of my college campus gave me an opportunity to get involved with the Chinese students and other international students. The essence of beauty of diversity was all over the place. I did find some amazing people who shared their knowledge and made me experience the best of the city & I found my new love for the Chinese food. One must try hotpot, my favourite!... Ohh I will miss it a lot. Everyday, learning a new Chinese word was an accomplishment. I remember when I experienced my first snowfall, it was pure, flawless & calm. I found a certain level of peace. Peace that tells you, "you belong here... so, just breathe". I have been to few cities in China and during my journey lots of strangers helped me. China did accepted me with open arms. People showed the love and warmth. As a foreigner, you want to be loved by natives that is important in our journey. All over China is mix of technology and tradition. Richness of Chinese culture is similar to my home country India which tells us, our roots and rituals are important in one's life as it keeps one grounded and helps in personal growth because when roots are deep, there is no reason to fear the wind. The heritage China holds is pious and exquisite, with great evidences from the history. Great monuments from Qing dynasty, Ming dynasty, Yuan dynasty and other dynasties. Like, Great wall, forbidden city, Xi'an city wall, hanging temple, white pagoda, etc. The list doesnt end here, there many and many such beautiful sites to visit that will capture your attention. The palatial architecture of these monuments is so defined that you can understand the patience level of the architect, this glorifies China even more. My favourite tourist sites are summer palace & great wall. The summer palace has peaceful vibes, you can imbibe the positive energy of that palace. You can sit there all day long and talk about life. Great wall is an inspiration, standing tall no matter what. It is iconic & evocative. Great wall of China is everything but a "wall". Have you seen anything that is scary yet exciting... Well! the answer is glass bridge. I have seen some beautiful streets & there were hundreds of years old buildings & they were restored exactly the same. There is this Xiamen city, I recommend the city is best enjoyed on a bicycle ride... a beauty to behold. There are so many practices in China that are similar to Indian practices like feng shui which is similar to vastushastra, both talks about positive energy and how flow of energies can affect lives. I have read books & articles of changing times & the way China changed and developed that too in very less time is simply commendable & marvelous. China is more open to the world. As a country, China is unified and capable. New generations are learning English, productive youth is using technology for the growth of the nation and fitness of elderly is beyond imagination like they jump high, do strength training, play tough games, I guess you are never too old to become better. Kids are just pure and angels of god. The thing that attracted me the most is how beautifully China celebrates the women empowerment. I was more than proud to see that. Women are financially independent, they are leading bigger sectors of the country. They are CEOs of MNCs and are driving the buses as well, which tells there is equal opportunities for both men and women in every job. Women are so pretty & always well dressed, they never miss it. On the other hand, men are chivalrous. Once I was travelling in train to Xiamen, there was a very sweet elderly couple sitting in front of me. As it was a chair car and journey was long so after some hours the husband stood up from his seat and gave it to his wife so she could stretch her legs, he even rubbed her feet also which was delightful to watch. I can assure you China has best husbands. Some men even carry their wives/girlfriends handbag which is just adorable that how much they care & you will not see this in any other country I can tell you that. By travelling to foreign country, made me realize that the most essential thing we share is HUMANITY. On regular days we forget these things and its worth but one should keep this in mind no matter where we are, humanity is always within ourselves and it is most powerful. No matter what language we speak, we may have different food, festivals, belief, however heart speaks for itself. Life is a journey with so many options. A world to discover, dreams to chase, goals to reach, people to meet & lot of unexpected events. China was that journey for me and not just a destination. It is my second home . It made me more confident with time. One must visit China to see how much humans are capable of. It will be interesting to see in coming times how China takes its legacy to new level as ONLY CHANGE IS CONSTANT HERE.

Hi, I am Anjali Roy. I am a medical student at China Medical University. I feel blessed that I get to come to China. I believe the purpose of our lives is to be happy and exploring new places & chasing our dreams make us more alive. My journey & experience in China is beyond words. I can proudly say that China is my "SECOND HOME".

The opinions expressed here are those of the writer and do not necessarily represent the views of China Daily and China Daily website.