Keep your tickets and prepare for the next journey

 Editor's Note 

During the Chinese New Year holidays, it’s time to reflect on the past journey and get prepared for the new one. 

Here we invited some of our TsinghuaRen to reflect on their most impressive tickets and journey last year, to share their moments shining with bravery and dedication.

Wang Xijing

In the summer of 2022, setting off from Pu’er, I arrived in Jinan by plane, transferred by train, and then took a bus to Dongzhongdu village for a social practice. It took about a whole day on the road. Upon arrival, I met with members of our team to discuss the follow-up plan and schedule. 

In the local area, the Sishui Rural Revitalization Workstation has just been completed and put into use, which could be a place for us to provide voluntary services to help improve the living conditions of villagers. It marked a new phase in our work, while brought new challenges as well. 

The first was the little attention to the newly-built station. After discussion, we decided on an idea called “villager-connection”, by which we would visit every household and introduce the station and its functions. 

The team was then divided into different groups, responsible for various kinds of services. The cultural and creative group created designs for the local agricultural products; the publicity group wrote feature stories, and shot videos and pictures every day; the architecture group improved the functional and positioning design of the workstation; the academic group conducted the research despite the extremely high temperature; the public welfare group also spared no effort in organizing voluntary teaching activities for local children.

The smooth progress could not be possible without the support from the local government, to which we would like to express our sincerest gratitude. During the social practice, the whole team spared no pains and concentrated all efforts. It is such a fortune to work with a group of like-minded people, which makes this experience the best of 2022 summer.

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He Yuezhang 

It took 25 hours from Beijing, with two connecting flights in Guangzhou and Cairo, to arrive in Sharm El Sheikh, the venue for COP 27. This was my first time attending the UN Climate Change Conference and my first time traveling to Egypt, so I was very excited when I arrived. 

As a member of the Global Alliance of Universities on Climate COP27 Youth Delegation, I participated in a UNFCCC press conference and side events together with my peers, and joined dialogues with multi-stakeholders during this conference. 

It was also one of our core tasks to release an open letter directed to world leaders, which expressed the resolution of young people to tackle climate change, called on leaders to uphold the principles of multilateralism in order to transition net-zero carbon commitments into action. I delivered the letter to delegations including the United Kingdom, Germany, Japan and India. In addition, I had the opportunity to communicate and interact with youth representatives from all over the globe.

What impressed me the most was that I bumped into the President of Venezuela, Mr. Nicolás Maduro Moros at the venue. I presented our open letter, and the president gladly accepted it and expressed his support and encouragement for our youth. It reminded me that youth voices can really be heard, which was inspiring and uplifting.

The participation in COP has broadened my horizons, given me a deeper and more solid understanding of COP conference and climate change issues. My determination has also been strengthened during the process. As youth representatives, we have the responsibility to call on more people to participate in addressing climate change. We need to work harder to learn professional knowledge, facilitate communication, and contribute our strength to fight against climate change together.

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Bai Haohao

Last year, I received my Ph.D. degree from Tsinghua and started to work in government sector in Taiyuan, Shanxi Province. Originally, I planned to take a train from my hometown Yan’an, Shaanxi Province to report for work. While the train was delayed due to the heavy rain, so I chose to drive to Taiyuan instead. I left at 9 a.m., after numerous traffic jams, finally arrived at 7 p.m., just before sunset.

As a graduate who decided to contribute for primary-level governance, I entered a new journey and gained a lot when stepping out of the campus.

There are three “new”. First, it is a new life. There is not only a tremendous tight schedule all the time, but also a process of getting adapted to the sense of wandering. Second, there is a new understanding. I gradually realize and try to understand the relationships between individuals and societies. Third, there is a new mission, which is to contribute to the social development.

“Shanxi is blue; Taiyuan is green; Fen River is clear”, this is the first WeChat Moment I sent after arriving here. It is the ecological environment that impressed me the most. In many people’s opinion, the specialty of Shanxi province is coal and poor air quality, but these were already things of the past. There are great changes brought by the environmental management over the years.

Every day people are on “roads”, tangible or invisible, but not every journey would be a life memory. In my mind, the road from Yan’an to Taiyuan, from where I grew up to where I will serve for, will be an unforgettable memory not only in 2022, but also in my whole life.

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Hu Tianyue 

After a 15-hour flight, I arrived in the Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport on January 15th for my exchange to Sciences Po. It was my first time to be in an unfamiliar environment alone, surrounded by people speaking an unfamiliar language. 

My first week was a mess. I found my two mobile phones could not connect to the internet, which really caused trouble for my travel. I was struck with such a sense of insecurity and helplessness that I couldn't help bursting into tears when I called my parents.

Fortunately, many people there helped me outs and I was more than grateful for the countless acts of kindness I received. A Chinese staff in the airport helped me pass the Customs area. My parents, teachers and friends offered their encouragement whenever I felt lonely or upset. People there enthusiastically helped me for better adaption and integration, which supported me to successfully finish the exchange. Strangers I met in travel would also introduce the best tour route to me enthusiastically. In this process, I became more extroverted to interact with others and also jumped out of my comfort zone bravely.

In my spare time, I travelled around France, and also embarked on a journey to Italy, Austria, Czech Republic, Slovakia and Hungary with my classmates from all over the world. Those surprises on the way were unforgettable. 

I also volunteered to be the guide for my friends to travel in Paris. We went up the Eiffel Tower for the night scene, immersed in the Orangerie Museum, enjoyed the magnificent stained-glass windows of the Holy Chapel and walked along the Seine River. It was in these travel experiences that I gradually learned to slow down my pace and enjoy the here and now.

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Niu Jiahe

During the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics, I provided voluntary services in the Yanqing National Alpine Skiing Center as a Doping Control Chaperone. The main task was to chaperone and guide the athletes who finished the race to the doping control station.

On the 2-hour bus from Tsinghua to the venue, my teammates and I chatted about the following 70 days in the closed-loop. Upon arrival, there were many volunteers helping us to carry luggage. It was a very cold day, but the enthusiasm created a vibrant living environment.

The first day of alpine skiing was delayed due to the heavy snow, which meant two competitions would be held consecutively the next day. It made us totally occupied. The interval was so short that we kept working from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. without having lunch. But no one absent for any reason. We were all excited.

During the voluntary days, small things like receiving praise and special pins from foreign athletes and journalists could bring intense happiness to me. This volunteer experience provided me with more intuitive sense of our thriving country, and a deeper understanding of our slogan “Together for a Shared Future”. 

In 2022, the period of volunteering in Olympics was one of the most positive and energetic times. Even though we could not enjoy the spring festival with our family, the precious friendship closely tied us and empowered us. Everybody worked hard in the snow world with the consensus of building a fantastic Olympic event. We were all shining snowflake, commonly creating our memory of 2022.

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ENG ZHI QING MICHEILE

It was a hard decision for me to come back to the campus during the semester. Countless materials, complicated procedure and repeatedly canceled flights all made me exhausted.

I packed my luggage three weeks ahead the day of flight. When it finally came to the night before departure, a mixed feeling occupied my heart. But after landing in Shanghai, the sadness was replaced by a feeling of freshness. It was unbelievable that I stood on the land of China! 

It was my first time to leave my home and live in an unfamiliar place for such a long period. This journey would be a lifelong unforgettable memory, not only for 2022. I had to learn to tackle difficulty alone. While I also received acts of kindness from others. The moment when I got my student card, I was so cheerful since I finally became a ‘real TsinghuaRen’!

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Read more about THU

Apply now: Tsinghua University Global Recruitment

Tsinghua’s 2022, a year in review

TsinghuaRen | Keep your tickets and prepare for the next journey

Writers: Wei Xiaowen, Li Ruojia

Editors: Liu Shutian, Liu Zhaoxi

Designers: Wang Chuqian, Xia Yifei

Zhou Kaimin contributed to this post.