Best Experience in China!

Great Experience! I was with LTL at three different locations (Beijing 2 weeks, Chengde 11 weeks and Beihai 5 weeks) and Chengde was for sure the best experience I had! For Chinese standards it is a really small town and therefore there are really no other foreigners which makes the full inclusion really effective. In my 3 months there I did not even see 5 foreigners in Chengde. You have to get used to being an attraction for many people and getting a lot of looks by everyone on the streets or when you enter shops. However these are 99% positive and many people will ask you for photos or are trying to get in contact with you. As a foreigner it was really easy to make friends since everyone naturally wants to be in contact with you, so you don’t have to be afraid of being lonely even though you´re the only foreigner around. People here don’t speak any English though, so you can really use the chance and fully immerse in Chinese. Chengde offers a lot to see especially for those interested in Chinese history. I only got to spend two weeks of summer in Chengde (where the weather is really nice and you can go hiking and explore the town). From October on you should be prepared for cold and later on really cold weather (it is however mostly sunny and it almost never rains). The city has a little smog problem on a few days with no wind. The air will feel not really fresh (this is a problem you will encounter in a lot of Chinese cities though). My host family was amazing. They were really interested in me as a person but also Germany and Europe or anything considered “western”. They were always keen to talk even after their long days of work. We went hiking together, skiing in the winter and they took me to a lot of activities. The supervisor for the LTL-students (who was also my host-mom) is really friendly and she knows like everyone in town and so many activities you can try and experience. It makes connecting to locals even easier. Since she is responsible for your study schedule you should also not hesitate to talk to her if any problems come up. Just be honest with her and don’t be afraid of not telling her your concerns. I had difficulties with one teacher and after talking to her and some advice we switched teachers and my study method. So she really helps you to optimize your time here. Every day after school my host-grandma made a delicious traditional Chinese dish for me and my host-brother. When I came to Chengde I knew maybe 200 words of Chinese so basically HSK 1 within 3 months of (really intensive) studying and acquiring I am now at an HSK 4 level, which is enough to get around the country and talk to people. I really recommend Chengde to everyone who chooses to study at LTL! I had an amazing time here and I am so glad I took the step into the unknown and came here. Thank you for the amazing time here LTL! Thank you Zhongwen! :)