【Article-soliciting Activity “The Impression of HUST”】

Author: Martin Sullivan

Nationality: Scotland, United Kingdom

School: School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering

Major: Polymer Physics and Chemistry (Third Year PhD Student)

When I first came to HUST in the autumn of 2012, it represented to me a new beginning – a new chapter of my life. It was a completely new country – a completely new culture and a completely different language. The challenge for me was to adapt this new lifestyle while studying for my doctorate.

Following what seemed like an endless drive through a sprawling city, I arrived at HUST. I entered the campus and found the entire world suddenly filtered through green leaves, with an arbour of trees lining the road as the taxi took me to my housing. Like everything else in China, HUST seemed huge! I spent most of my first couple of weeks getting lost. However the residents of the ‘University in the Forest’ were always willing to point me in the right direction. The sheer number of people everywhere and the language were the two things hardest for me to adapt to.

Chinese as a language is unlike anything else you will ever learn. Though the sounds are beautiful and it has its own nuances it is different for one main reason. Most languages have alphabets, and the sound of a word is often defined by a standard combination of the letters. Chinese however, is a character based language with tones needing to be learnt religiously – even to keep from confusing the simple words for mother（妈） and horse（马）!

For a lot of newcomers to China, learning Chinese represents amajor obstacle. This is possibly due to the lack of self-confidence required to persevere when every single attempt results in blank expressions or mockery. However, this is not a reason to not persevere, for it is in perseverance that you unlock a language,a culture, and make a connection to the real heart of China, which is a beautiful experience. In perseverance in learning this language.You open a dialogue with a multitude of people, each with a very unique story to tell, and in turn are able to tell your own.

Living where I do in Hua Hong Foreign Student Apartments, I am exposed to people of different nationalities and cultures – speaking many languages other than Chinese. However, as a guest of this amazing country, I am deeply grateful to my lab-mates and other fantastic friends for helping me to learn Chinese. It is as invaluable experience and has opened up a whole new world for me.