CW Chu College The Chinese University of Hong Kong eNewsletter

Ella Liu, Cynthia Chow, College students, and Jade Cai, Project Assistant of the College, together with eight other CUHK students and fifteen students from Hong Kong Baptist University, joined a cultural experience trip supported by The Ministry of Education (MOE) Interflow Programme to southwest China (Chongqing region) from 16 to 23 June 2014. The trip was organized by Southwest University and eligible participants were also subsidized by the 'Pilot Mainland Experience Scheme for Post-secondary Students' launched by the Hong Kong Education Bureau.

The trip aimed to help the students from Hong Kong universities deepen their understanding of Chongqing, the largest of the four direct-controlled municipalities of China and the only one inland. In Southwest University, the participants from Hong Kong attended three introductory lectures on Chongqing, regarding its history, geography and cultural heritage. They also participated in a Chinese knotting class and met up with Southwest University students majoring in English. In addition to the activities in Southwest University, the participants took part in a guided tour to see some historical architecture and new urban attractions in town, a visit to the High School affiliated to Southwest University, and a trip to the Wulong Karst Scenic Area, which was one of the filming venues of the movie 'Transformers 4: Age of Extinction'.

Participants benefited greatly from the camp: they not only learnt about Chongqing, but also developed friendship with students from Southwest University and four visiting students from St. John's University, USA, who also joined the trip to the Wulong Scenic Area.

Student Reflection by Ella Liu

In the summer, the sweltering heat in Hong Kong makes me feel terrible. Chongqing, often known as the 'Big Stove', would surely test my tolerance. Before going on this visit, I was worried about the temperature. To my surprise, the weather was in fact cool and comfortable. But there were more surprises in store than the weather.

What's your impression of mainland China? Honestly, I thought that many parts of the mainland are a bit dirty with rubbish strewn all over the place. However, Chongqing changed my mind because of the cleanliness and tidiness in schools, in scenic areas and on the roadsides. Moreover, the population density of Chongqing is much lower than that of Hong Kong, so its living condition and the air quality are even better than those in Hong Kong.

Chicken pots and hotpots should be the most well-known Chongqing features for Hong Kong people. The characteristics of Chongqing's traditional dishes are numbing, spicy, umami and fragrance. If you like numbing and spicy food, you must have a taste of Chongqing hotpot. As I am a spicy food lover, I enjoyed Chongqing hotpots very much, even though its redness and spiciness are a bit too much.  

The part that I enjoyed most was not the entertainment or the dining, but the wonderful time we spent with the volunteers of Southwest University. I had taken part in some exchange programmes when I was in secondary school, but the experience was very different. We were able to hang out with local students in Chongqing this time, instead of staying in hotels, and we had much more time to communicate with Chongqing students and residents. Therefore, we gained a deeper understanding about the megacity.  Throughout the trip, we were accompanied by student ambassadors of Southwest University and they gave us meticulous care. We built sincere friendships with them and I had to tear myself away from Chongqing when the visit was over.

Through this exchange trip, I realized that Hong Kong people's impressions of mainland Chinese often deviate from what they really were. In many news reports, mainland Chinese were described as lacking in civility. When there were some pictures showing questionable behaviour, the public would assume that's mainland Chinese without any proofs and criticize them harshly. Generally speaking, Hong Kong peoples' negative impressions about their compatriots on the mainland would not be easy to eliminate. However, we should judge people after associating with them, rather than painting everyone with the same brush.