From Childhood Stereotypes to Unforgettable Hospitality: My 10 Days in China
Part 1: Early Impressions and Misconceptions
When I was a kid in the early 2010s, my father used to travel to China frequently for business. At that time, China seemed like a mysterious country to me, almost as if it were "another world within the world." I used to hear rumors that Chinese people ate nothing but snakes, insects, and similar things. I had no idea what China looked like on the inside because there were no Chinese things involved in our day-to-day life, nor were there photos or videos of China's interior in local newspapers or on television.
For entertainment, people in my country watched dramas, series, and cartoons. As a kid, my favorite shows were Ben 10, Mr. Bean, and Power Rangers, and all of these were obviously Western made. Growing up, I certainly heard about Bruce Lee, but he was not as famous to me as Rowan Atkinson (aka Mr. Bean) or many other Western stars. We even used to hear that things made in China were not long lasting and got ruined easily, a stereotype that still exists among many people in my country. As I reached my mid-teens, I started hearing another rumor: "Chinese people are very racist."
Part 2: Unexpected Encounters in Malaysia
After hearing all these things, along with many others, I reached my early 20s and moved to Malaysia for my undergraduate program. As I landed here and entered the country, I saw Chinese people all around and started wondering why so many Chinese citizens lived here. After a few days, I understood they were ethnically Chinese. Once classes started at my university, I slowly began meeting many Chinese students and was a bit surprised by their behavior, as they seemed very nice. I mean, they were not arrogant or racist at all.
After a few months passed, in mid 2024, I met two Master's students who came from China. They were classmates of one of my senior brothers. The senior brother and I were just talking in the cafeteria when these students came over and started talking with him. Suddenly, one of them came up to me and asked to add me on WeChat without any prior introduction. I did not ask any questions, and added her. The other one also came and asked the same, so I added her too.
So many days passed after that, around 10 months, but I did not forget either of them. Suddenly, in mid May, one of them texted me on WeChat and asked to meet. That afternoon, I went to meet them. When I arrived, I saw them sitting with a lot of food in front of them, and they asked me to eat. Evening approached, and they invited me for dinner. Afterward, we hung out a lot, and I met many more of their friends through them, who were also Chinese. They accepted me so warmly despite an age gap of 10 to 15 years with all of them. All of them gently encouraged me many times to visit China.
A few months later, two of them graduated and went back to China, but I remained in contact with them through WeChat. Suddenly one day my father told me to take a trip to China. When I informed them I would be visiting their cities, they offered to let me stay at their places and were really insistent about it. So I decided to visit three cities: Shenzhen, Zunyi, and Zhengzhou.
Part 3: The Efficiency of Shenzhen
On the morning of April 29, I landed in Shenzhen. The road from the airport to the city was surreal, with flowers on both sides and roads surrounded by hills. After entering the city, it seemed like a place forcefully transforming into the first world. People seemed much more rushed than I had seen on the streets of Kuala Lumpur.
On my first day, I accidentally left my luggage in the taxi. The police came with an interpreter and took me to the station where they surveil the entire city with CCTV cameras. It took less than 50 minutes to track the taxi, call the driver, and recover my luggage. I was not surprised by the efficiency, as I already knew about it before arriving in China.
Huaqiangbei — the world's largest electronics wholesale market, thousands of electric scooters packed outside
Among the many places I covered was Huaqiangbei, the largest electronics wholesale market in the world. The place was packed with people, thousands of parked electric scooters, and many others carrying people around. Then I went to Shenzhen Safari Park. From there, I went to visit the "Window of the World," which was absolutely incredible, especially the late evening show in the pyramid section.
The Pyramid Fantasy show at Window of the World, Shenzhen — a surreal evening spectacle unlike anything I had seen
Besides that, I visited Shenzhen's premier expatriate hub in Shekou, famous as the historic birthplace of China's 1979 economic reforms and the country's first export-oriented industrial zone. There, I witnessed the iconic slogan board: "Time is money, efficiency is life." As an admirer of Deng Xiaoping, it was a great experience to stand in such a historic spot.
Shekou — where China's economic miracle began. The slogan: "Time is money, efficiency is life." The starting line of China's reform era
The metro in Shenzhen was one of the things that amazed me most. The platforms were almost double the size of those in Malaysia, and the trains were packed with people almost all the time. Everyone has to go through a full-fledged security check before entering the metro station. Even inside, there were security guards with batons to handle any possible chaos. A city that truly never sleeps.
Shenzhen metro at 11:59 PM — packed with commuters. A city that truly never sleeps
Shenzhen North Railway Station at night — a piece of architecture that speaks its own language about what China has become
Part 4: Zunyi — Revolutionary History and Deep Hospitality
Early the next morning, I took a high-speed train to Zunyi. The interior of the train was not very different from a flight. It reached a speed of around 350 km/h. It was around 2:41 PM when I reached Zunyi. My friend, her husband, their two kids, and another friend came to receive me. From the station, we went directly to the Zunyi Conference Site.
Inside a Chinese high-speed railway station — vast, efficient, and alive with thousands of commuters at all hours
The Zunyi Conference Site is most famous for hosting the Zunyi Conference in January 1935, a pivotal meeting of the Chinese Communist Party during the Long March. During this conference, Mao Zedong established his military leadership over the Party — widely regarded as a major turning point in the history of the People's Republic of China.
The Zunyi Conference Site — the historic building where Mao Zedong established his military leadership in January 1935
Bronze sculptures of Communist Party leaders who attended the historic 1935 Zunyi Conference — preserved inside the memorial hall
The entrance outside was packed with crowds, and there were armed guards whose attire and AK-47-like weapons made it seem as if high-level delegations were visiting. I was quite surprised to see such security at a tourist site. It seemed foreigners do not usually visit this place; since they did not have a registration method for foreigners, they just took a photo of my passport. While approaching the inside, a massive communist-style infrastructure amazed me, and inside, all the historical items were preserved. Professor Qi, my friend's husband, explained all the incidents that occurred around the historic Zunyi Conference.
That day, I realized how important it is to preserve a country's history. When you or your country face difficulty, you look at history and take inspiration: if our ancestors overcame all these difficulties, why can't I? Why can't we?
Maotai Town: A Town Named After a Drink
The next day, we set off for the famous Maotai Town on the southeast bank of the Chishui River, renowned as the exclusive birthplace of Moutai, a premium Chinese baijiu. The view on both sides of the road was astonishing: huge mountains and hills with fog surrounding the tops.
Entrance to the Moutai Hall — "Famous Liquors of the World" — a museum dedicated entirely to a single beverage
Inside the Moutai Museum — Zhou Enlai's portrait presides over a wall of rare Kweichow Moutai collections worth thousands to millions of dollars
On one wall of the Moutai Museum: Stalin, Queen Elizabeth II, Lenin, and Van Gogh in gilded frames — an only-in-China collection
Statues of Mao Zedong and Chiang Kai-shek at Maotai Town — the two men who defined China's civil war, standing side by side
Taisheng Temple, Maotai Town — its predecessor the Yuwang Palace dates back to the Ming Dynasty
The whole town of Maotai and its museum were things I could not have imagined if I had not seen them myself. A town named after a drink and a specialized museum dedicated solely to a beverage were simply unimaginable. It was a lesson to hold tight to one's culture and tradition — in a world of free market capitalism, you can showcase these traditions and generate significant economic value.
A rural restaurant along the Chishui River — colourful pennants, red lanterns. The owners were overwhelmed that a foreigner had come
Wujiang Village and the Drone Show
Wujiang Village at night — 400-year-old stilt houses glowing gold beside the lake
A folk music performance at Wujiang Village — the night alive with song, beam lights and red lanterns
After dinner, we went to the famous Wujiang Village, packed with 400-year-old traditional stilt houses. The place was heavily crowded. At the main area, a traditional stage performance was taking place. After a few moments, a water show started in the nearby lake. Surprisingly, a drone show started with the famous Pink Floyd song "High Hopes" playing around us. First, I had never expected a drone show in such a rural part of China, and the Pink Floyd song was completely unimaginable for me in that setting! Afterward, they featured some folk songs and a fire show, and the event closed with people launching red lanterns into the sky.
Shuanghe Cave: 500 Million Years Underground
The crystal-clear turquoise water at the entrance of Shuanghe Cave — kayakers disappear into the darkness of the mountain
Inside Shuanghe Cave — 500-million-year-old stalactites reflected in the underground lake, lit in blue and gold
China Unicom's 5G emergency communication truck deployed outside Shuanghe Cave — connectivity maintained even in the wilderness
The next day, we headed to Guizhou Suiyang Shuanghe Cave National Geopark. The natural beauty was surreal, surrounded by hills and mountains with a natural water flow emerging from inside the cave. The water was crystal clear. An emergency communication truck deployed by China Unicom was parked outside — a brilliant initiative to keep communication smooth in this remote area packed with tourists. The cave is known to be 500 million years old, dating back to the Cambrian period. Inside, the cave was organized with safety measures and decorated while keeping its original form intact. We walked at least 16,000 steps inside.
Part 5: Reflections in Zhengzhou
Vast farmland stretching to the horizon, seen from the train window approaching Zhengzhou — I assumed an agricultural province, and was completely wrong
Around 4:30 PM, I reached Zhengzhou, the capital of Henan province. I had thought Zhengzhou would be more rural than Zunyi, as I saw vast amounts of farmland about two hours away from the city. But the moment I stepped out at the station, that assumption shattered immediately. The station looked modern, and a metro station was attached to it.
The next morning, my friend brought me a homemade breakfast — a type of paratha wrapped with egg and vegetables. The taste was good and very similar to food from my country, Bangladesh. She had an electric three-wheeler trike, which she used to take me to her tuition area, where she teaches English to primary students. The receptionist was surprised to see a foreigner visiting, as were the kids. I stayed in the class the entire time while she was teaching and engaged a bit with the students during her lessons. Afterward, they took group photos with me.
Henan University — its gate resembles a cultural landmark more than a university entrance
Then we headed to Erqi Square in the center of Zhengzhou. The place was somewhat similar to Malaysia's Bukit Bintang or NYC's Times Square — a large area surrounded by malls and shops. After dark, we went to see Zhengzhou Greenland Plaza, known as "The Big Corn" by visitors because of its shape, constructed beside Ruyi Lake.
Erqi Memorial Tower at night — Zhengzhou's historic heart, surrounded by crowds, malls and the pulse of a modern Chinese city
Zhengzhou Greenland Plaza — "The Big Corn" — illuminated beside Ruyi Lake at night
The Henan Museum
Henan Museum — a pyramid-shaped structure unlike any museum I had ever seen, packed even on a weekday
The warrior between two elephants — the magnificent centrepiece of the Henan Museum lobby, a visual homage to Henan's deep historical connection with elephants
My final day in Zhengzhou took me to the Henan Museum, which I think was the best part of the Zhengzhou trip. The structure of the museum was marvelous. Even though it was a weekday, the museum was packed. The exhibits highlight China's story from imperial dynasties up to today's Xi Jinping era. A huge sculpture in the lobby portrays an ancient warrior standing confidently between two roaring, powerful elephants — a visual homage to Henan's deep historical connection with elephants. Historically, the region had a warm climate where wild elephants roamed, which is why the modern-day abbreviation for Henan province is "Yu," a Chinese character that visually combines a person and an elephant.
Final Thoughts
In my observation, Chinese people are highly adaptive and resilient. They have the courage to accept short-term hardship for a greater good in the long term. They are incredibly proud of their history and have put a lot of effort into preserving and representing 4,000 years of civilization throughout their country. Throughout history, this civilization has suffered many setbacks, but it never collapsed and has now emerged strong.
The infrastructure and environment around China somewhat resemble the mindset of their leadership. It is intense, bold, and impressive. As the quote from G. Michael Hopf's book Those Who Remain says: "Hard times create strong men, strong men create good times, good times create weak men, and weak men create hard times." In the case of China, it is just not going the same way.
Lee Kuan Yew meets Deng Xiaoping in 1978 — a handshake that helped change the direction of modern China forever
Starting from Mao, who was obviously the toughest and most rigid one — then came Deng Xiaoping, who saved China from an economic disaster, even though he was one of the revolutionists alongside Mao and even suffered greatly during the Mao era, but during his time Chinese people enjoyed more freedom and the economy was getting better. Then came Jiang Zemin, then Hu Jintao, and finally Xi Jinping, who is considered the toughest since Mao. As Lee Kuan Yew quoted: "They are determined as a people to build a modern, powerful, and wealthy Chinese nation!"
And I say good luck to them.