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如果讓我把這一整年在中國的經歷和所見所聞濃縮成一篇千字左右的文章是不現實的。

就像當我站在黃山的最高峯，鳥瞰遠處山間瞬息萬變的雲海時，不知道該用哪些優美生動的詞彙來形容自己的心情；

當我徒步旅行至超凡脫俗的張家界，那裏層林密佈，不知道用什麼樣的圖片能表達這種寧靜、和平的感覺；

當我品嚐正宗川菜，即使是視頻也無法準確描述那種被辣椒辣得舌頭麻木而又奇怪的享受。

儘管如此，我還是會盡最大的努力，爲你講述我眼中的中國。

我與中國的奇妙情緣

我叫Patrick Lee，是愛爾蘭科克大學世界語言專業的大四學生。2017年9月，我獲得孔子學院獎學金赴上海大學度過了兩個學期的美好時光。

還記得在我16歲的時候，我曾跟隨科克大學的一個項目去過一次上海。當時我和其他幾名愛爾蘭學生得到了在上海大學參加爲期兩週的中國語言和文化課程的絕佳機會。回想起來，這兩週對我產生了巨大的影響，並讓我當場決定，要再次回到上海。

對於要到中國住一年，我幾乎沒有什麼顧慮。首先，我很幸運以前去過那裏一次，雖然時間很短。此外，我與中國還有另一種更爲奇特的聯繫。

在我父親25歲的時候，剛剛取得行醫資格的他，決定去北京學習6個月的鍼灸。學成之後纔回到家鄉愛爾蘭。

在我成長的過程中，媽媽告訴我很多關於愛爾蘭的故事和經典童話，而我的父親則給我講了一些中國的傳統故事，例如：“年”的故事、嫦娥和后羿、孫悟空等。這也讓我對父親講述的故事中那個神祕而又神奇的國度產生了極大的熱情和好奇心。

到達美麗的彩雲之南

西方媒體描述的中國，聽起來一點也不像我父親講的那個地方。在這裏，我想和大家分享我在中國的親身經歷。

旅行是我一直以來最大的愛好。在中國學習的這一年裏，我利用黃金週和週末，探訪了北京、蘇州、南京、鳳凰、成都、樂山和其他幾個美麗的中國城市。

去過這些地方後，我對這個國家和人民有了不一樣的感覺。這其中令我印象最深刻的地方，則是雲南。

去年寒假，我和一個朋友從上海坐上了飛往雲南麗江的飛機，開始了爲期兩週的旅行。一到那裏，我們就意識到我們來到了與上海截然不同的城市。

這裏沒有拼音標識，也沒有人說英語，對於那裏的許多人來說，我們可能是他們在現實生活中見到的爲數不多的外國人。

我在上海遇到的中國人都很友好，但像大多數生活在大城市的人一樣，他們總讓人有一些距離感。但在雲南，我遇到了我見過最善良的人。

當我們向住在麗江飯店的一位客人詢問晚餐推薦時，他把我們帶到附近的一家餐館，點了美味佳餚並宴請了我們。

當我們出發去尋找麗江古城附近的黑龍潭時。親切的路人不僅告訴我們該怎麼去，還一路陪着我們，確保我們不會迷路。

雖然這一路我們遇到的大多數人並不是特別富有，但他們仍然願意與我們分享他們所擁有的東西，這一點也讓我難以忘懷。

遊覽完黑龍潭，我們去了藍月谷。我想我永遠都不會忘記那一刻所看到的畫面。湛藍的湖水順着山澗流下，在我面前閃閃發光。我們花了幾個小時在美麗的山谷裏徒步旅行，騎着犛牛過河，我們還遇到了一對正在拍婚紗照的新人，並被邀請一起合影。時至今日，藍月谷仍是我所去過的最令人驚歎的地方，它也向我展示了中國非凡的自然美景。

當天晚上我們坐上了開往大理的火車，繼續我們的旅行。火車車程要四小時。我們在一個隔間裏。如果是在歐洲，這個隔間僅可以容納4個人，但此時已經有8個人擠在裏面了，加上我們一共10個人。前半個小時很安靜，幾個人睡着了，我正在看書。

過了一陣，坐在我對面的那個男人開始慢慢地把頭靠向我，想看我的書，當我遞給他時，他突然大笑起來，用蹩腳的英語問我有關這本書的事。

而當我用有點蹩腳的中文回答時，整個車廂都活躍起來。人們開始爭相跟我說話，問我來自哪裏，到這裏做什麼等等。

車廂裏的人們來自各行各業，學生、農民、年輕人、老年人，他們都非常友好。我與他們用中文聊了近4個小時，到目前爲止，這都是我中文學習中最大的里程碑。我可以毫不羞愧地說，我爲此而自豪！

深深愛上這個國度

像這樣的故事還有很多，從這些故事中，我對中國和中國人有了新的認識。很多人對中國的政治、歷史和文化都有自己的看法。然而，在這其中的許多人甚至可能從未踏足過這個國家。

我知道我對中國的看法可能看起來很天真或有偏見，但這仍然不能改變我對它的熱愛。我在中國已經住了一年多了。也遊歷過很多城市，我見過很多的人。我已完全愛上了這個國家，並迫不及待地想再回到這裏。

China through my eyes

It is simply impossible to condense an entire years worth of experiences into a one thousand word essay. No matter how vividly I describe what it felt like standing atop the highest peak of Huangshan 黃山, looking down at the distant mountain caps peaking above the sea of ever-shifting clouds, there is no way I can truly convey it with words. Nor is it possible with pictures to explain the serene sense of peace I experienced while hiking through the otherworldly national park of Zhangjiajie 張家界, where trees of stone and wood alike populate. Even videos cannot do justice to the sensation of eating an authentic Sichuan dish, the simultaneously terrifying yet bizarrely enjoyable numbing of your tongue by the regional pepper. Nevertheless, I will try my best to convey some of the experiences I had of China through my eyes.

01

My Peculiar Connections with China

By way of introduction, my name is Patrick Lee and I am a final year BA World Languages student in UCC. This August I returned from my year abroad, where I studied in Shanghai University for two semesters. I had previously been to Shanghai once before when I was 16 years old in conjunction with a Transition Year programme organised by UCC. Myself and several other Irish students were given the amazing opportunity to attend Chinese language and culture classes for two weeks in Shanghai University. These two weeks had a huge impact on my life, deciding for me then and there that I was returning to Shanghai. And that is exactly what I did last year.

I had very little apprehension about moving to China for a year. Firstly, I had already been lucky enough to go there once before, albeit briefly. Moreover, I also had another, perhaps more peculiar connection to China. When my father was 25 years old and a newly qualified doctor, he decided to move to Beijing for 6 months to learn acupuncture. Afterward, he returned home to Ireland and has remained there since. Growing up, I was told stories about Ireland by my mother, classic fairy tales by Disney, and stories of 年, of 嫦娥和后羿, of 孫悟空 and many more by my father. This left me with a great passion for and curiosity about the mysterious and magical land from my father’s stories.

02

The Magical Land and its People

From the outside looking in, China is not always shown in the best light by Western media. It sounded nothing like the place from my father’s stories. In this short text, I want to share how my own experiences turned out.

Travelling has been a life-long passion of mine. As far back as I can remember I’ve never been content to sit still in one place for too long, so I’ve learnt to always go for the opportunities to travel when they arise. During the academic year in China, I had a few such opportunities, particularly during Golden Week and the weekends. I used these to visit Beijing 北京, Suzhou 蘇州, Nanjing 南京, Fenghuang 鳳凰, Chengdu 成都, Leshan 樂山 and several other gorgeous cities in China. These places really gave me a feel for the country and its people. However, during my time off between semesters in January and February, I spent two weeks in some of the most breathtaking and memorable places I’ve ever been in my life.

At the start of January, a friend and I flew from Shanghai 上海 to Lijiang 麗江 to begin our two week trip around the Yunnan Province. Almost immediately upon arrival, we realised that we had entered a very different part of China to Shanghai. Here there were no signs in Pinyin, absolutely nobody spoke English and to many people there, we were the first foreigners they had ever seen in real life. As a Westerner living in Shanghai, I had grown accustomed to the occasional few people staring at me. However, I was completely unprepared for the reaction we received in Lijiang.

The Chinese people I had met in Shanghai up to that point were friendly enough, but like most people who live in big cities, they kept a certain distance. Nothing but the opposite could be said for the Chinese people we met during our time in Yunnan 雲南. They were some of the kindest people I’ve ever met. For example, when we asked a guest in the hotel we stayed in Lijiang for dinner recommendations, he brought us to a nearby restaurant, ordered dish after dish of amazing food and then refused to let us pay for it. All the while he asked us questions about our experiences in Shanghai and China. The next morning as we set out to find the famous Black Dragon Lagoon 黑龍潭near the Lijiang Old Town. We stopped a passing stranger on the street for directions who not only told us exactly how to get there, he also accompanied us for the journey to make sure that we didn’t get lost. I could go on and on about the kindness people showed us during this trip, but that would take up the entire essay. Suffice to say the majority of people we met were not particularly wealthy, yet they still offered to share what they had with us, something I will not be quick to forget.

After visiting the Oldtown and the picturesque Black Dragon Lagoon, we made our way up the mountains to Blue Moon Valley 藍月谷. I don’t think I’ll ever forget the moment when our Didi pulled up to let us out and I looked out the window and saw the valley. The bluest water sparkled up at me as it cascaded down the mountain. We spent hours hiking up the gorgeous valley, crossing the stream on yaks, stumbling upon a wedding photo shoot and subsequently being asked to pose with the bride and groom. To this day, Blue Moon Valley is the most breathtaking place I have ever been to and really showcased the extraordinary natural beauty of China to me, which is something that the country is perhaps not particularly well known for outside of China.

From there we caught a night train to Dali 大理, a mere four hours away. When we saw our seats we had to laugh. We were in a compartment which might be expected to house 4 people if we were in Europe, so naturally, there were already 8 people squeezed into it, and with us that made 10. The first half hour was silent enough, a few people slept, I was reading a book. At one point, the man sitting across from me started to slowly inch his head towards me until his hair was almost up my nose. He wanted to see my book and when I handed it to him he burst out laughing and asked me about it in broken English. When I replied in somewhat broken Chinese, it was as if the entire compartment had risen from the dead. They all started fighting to talk to me, asking me all about what I was doing in the middle of nowhere in Southern China and who I was and so on. The people were from all walks of life, students, farmers, young, old, yet all were incredibly friendly. One old man in particular refused to let me check my phone for translations, instead insisting on explaining to me any word I didn’t understand. The conversation lasted just shy of 4 hours and to date is the biggest milestone I’ve come to with my Chinese, something I’m not ashamed to say I’m proud of!

03

Having Fallen in Love with China

There are so many stories I could mention which taught me new things about China or its people, or even stories which didn’t teach me anything at all, but merely reflect my experiences exploring the mysterious, magical land from my father’s stories. A great many people have very opinionated attitudes towards China, about its politics, its history, its culture. However, many of these people have never even set foot in the country. I know that my view of China may seem naive or biased, but that still doesn’t change it. I have lived in China for over one year. I have traveled the country. I have met its people. This text describes China as I lived it through my own eyes. It is a country I have utterly and completely fallen in love with, and I cannot wait to go back.

作者簡介

Patrick Lee，愛爾蘭科克大學World Languages 專業在讀學生，曾獲得孔子學院獎學金於2017年9月前往上海大學交換學習一年。

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