Megumi Yoshinaga is a Bachelor candidate in International Relations at Waseda University, Japan. In 2012-13 academic year, she was a sophomore exchange student at Peking University. She has a proficient grasp of different languages including Japanese, Chinese and English. During her stay in PKU, she had lots of interesting experience and personal insights about multi-cultural phenomena and hopes to share with us with her vivid description.
My name is Megumi from Waseda University. I came to Peking University to study International Relations from September last year. As an exchange student in PKU, I have experienced a lot of differences between Japan and China, and I will elaborate my personal views briefly as follows.
The milk of human kindness
In my opinion, China is a very humane country. I still remember the winter of 2012, when it was cold outside and I bought a stick of tanghulu, which is a kind of snack with sugarcoated haws on a stick and is well-known for its traditional sweet, near the west gate of the university. I took the candied fruit into a café, and subconsciously expected a waiter to bring me a glass of water with a smile on his or her face, saying: “Welcome, may I help you?”
In Japan, the service sector can be said to have achieved the highest international level, even in the café, where waiters are required to receive professional “service training” before starting their jobs. In this context, you take this question – “Welcome, may I help you?” – nearly for granted, be it in a restaurant or a hotel. But on that day, when I went into the café with the candied fruit in my hand, the first word I heard was totally different from what I had expected subconsciously. “Oh, where did you buy this candied fruit?! Looks so yummy to eat!” I was stunned. The first feeling was: How amiable greeting it is! This is the first and the most affable “service discourse” I have ever heard since I was born. Perhaps it is not easy for a Chinese student to understand the subtle nuance and the deep emotion, but at least for me, growing up in Japan and comparing Japan’s “manufactured” service processes, it was really touching, impressive, even amazing!
As time processed, I slowly found this was a country that treated the milk of human kindness so considerable, which was particularly reflected in the behavior of making friends. Once you treat them from your true heart, they surely go through everything for you. I love Peking University, love this community, and love this country, because I love the people here, and as a man of “love.”
Culture reflux
After I came to Peking University, I feel ashamed that, particularly as a Japanese girl, I don’t even know about my own culture, and even the PKU students know more than me. The most obvious example is the Cosplay culture such as anime. In Peking University there are not only animation clubs, but also many activities in this area, which are rich in content.
I still remember, when I participated in an activity wearing Cosplay costume, I was extremely shy to ask one of my classmates what character my Cosplay represented. Since the Cosplay I wore was not so well-known, all my Japanese friends surrounding me had no idea about it. Anyway this is simply a cultural reflux! And sometimes I even think the openness of the Chinese culture has been more than I could imagine.
“Taobaoism”
When you come to China, you may find that life can be so chic, even like living in a heaven. Shopping can be done without going out of the room. Online shopping has become one of the main shopping means among university students. Every time I come through the south gate of the university, it is always extremely crowded, because different express delivery companies are waiting for students there to pick up their purchases.
This kind of experience is really rare for me. From household appliances to school supplies, basic necessities of life are all covered by such online shopping websites as Taobao. A third-party payment platform called Zhifubao, the convenient home-delivery services, and the function of collecting credit online, these are all the reasons that Taobaoism prevails. In fact, young girls are perhaps main fans of the Taobao Empire. Compared to other shopping malls near PKU, Taobao clothes are less expensive, especially in spring season, when online shopping sets off a new fashion. However, what does Taobaoism bring to PKU? To be honest, I think that most non-artistic faculties’ students are not particularly fashionable. Especially with the opening of Taobao sale or discount in spring, most girls start to purchase the same items. This causes the clothing style in campus highly overlapped.
Here are some points which most impressed me at Peking University. Though I still have many things to write about, I have to pick up my pen here. Next month, I will finish my one year of studying here. I am sure I will miss my days and all friends I have met in PKU. Thank you all for the best memories you have given to me!
Written by Megumi Yoshinaga
