Wudaokou Watch: "Plans? Making the World a Better Place"
In this Wudaokou Watch column, we'll profile a different Beijing-based student from abroad each week to hear about their life in China's capital.
What is your name and where do you come from?
My name is Protogene Mbasabire. I’m from the country of a thousand hills hosting mountain gorillas, located in Central Africa, the first African country to launch Electronic World Trade Platform (eWTP) – Rwanda.
When and why did you come to Beijing?
I came to Beijing in 2017 to do my master's in Environmental Science and Engineering at China University of Geosciences, Beijing (CUGB). Before, I found that my level of education was not good enough to compete with my peers. This was the motivation to continue my studies.
How is life in Beijing different from your home country?
Life in Beijing is totally different from my home country. China has some foods we don’t have but we also have foods they don’t have here. In Chinese culture, they celebrate Chinese New Year (Spring Festival) in February, while my country and many other countries celebrate the New Year on the first day of January. In addition, while my country and many others celebrate Valentine’s Day on Feb 14, Chinese Valentine’s Day (Qixi) falls on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month (Aug 17 in 2018).
What are the biggest challenges for you here?
Well, in the beginning, I experienced three big challenges commonly met by many newcomers in Beijing: communicating in Mandarin, eating food with too many spices, and the weather. Last year when the weather was getting colder and colder, I thought the summer might be good but when summer came, I wished it was winter.
What are your three favorite hangouts here?
Normally, what I like most is meeting my friends and having fun together. In this case, my first favorite hangout is my best friend’s place. The second one is Lavita in BLCU; it’s a good place where you can find many foreigners every day in the evening. The third place is the cinema; I have some Chinese friends who bring me to watch movies.
What do you do when you are feeling homesick?
Due to the large Rwandan community here in Beijing, I seldom feel homesick because the representatives of our community organize events that bring us together and where people have so much fun that you cannot feel alone. The Rwandan Embassy also organizes some events where we share our culture and local food.
What do you love most about Beijing?
I love many things here, but what I love most in Beijing is transportation. It's also easy to have someone share a location with you and to follow it until you reach a new place you have never been before. I also love multi-purpose messaging, social media and mobile payment apps – WeChat which is very convenient in our daily life here in Beijing.
What are your most memorable Beijing experiences?
I have two most memorable Beijing experiences: our university-level competitions I won, including a Chinese language competition for international students, and this year's 18th CUGB Football Association Cup. Other memorable experiences have been the global lectures and seminars I have attended, allowing me to meet different global leaders such as the Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, the Honorable Amina J. Mohammed.
How has the life in China impacted you generally?
Beijing hosts many students and professionals coming from all over the world. I have met many people who have shared their experiences with me and have inspired me in one way or another, which has shaped me in different ways in terms of handling things and problem-solving.
What are your future plans after the completion of your course here?
My future plans are to continue my studies until I receive a PhD degree, and my long-term career goal is to become an Environmental and Social Safeguard Specialist in the hope of playing a big role in my country's sustainable development and making the world a better place.
Are you a student in Beijing? Let us profile you and your unique experiences here. Drop us a line at editor@thebeijinger.com and we’ll get back to you to schedule an interview.
Photos courtesy of Protogene Mbasabire
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