Hello! My name is Emily Cochran, a small-town native from Adel, Iowa. Since high school I have been a wandering soul and have lived in a few US cities including Hartford, CT and Richmond, VA until nine months ago.
Last year, my boyfriend and I were living a very ‘standard’ life in Richmond, both having a common 9-5 job and searching for the ‘purpose’ in life. Life was all fine and dandy until one common Wednesday night, when he was approached with a job opportunity to coach basketball abroad in China.
Both of have always had adventure bucket list, but I have to admit… China was not on it.
After a ton of pondering, pro and con lists and soul searching we decided to take the jump and move to Wuxi, China. It wasn’t even three weeks from the time of the interview until we stepped foot on Chinese soil. I must say, that was the most stressful few weeks ever trying to move, leasing my apartment, handling visa issues, saying goodbye and all the emotions mixed in!
We have now been living in China for nine months and have grown so much, personally and as a couple as well. Living in a foreign country of any sort is going to come with its challenges and experiences (both good and bad) and I have learned to embrace both.
Since arriving in China we have grown accustomed to the cultural differences and the authentic Chinese lifestyle. But there are definitely some that I love more than others.
What We Love About China
The Culture. China has a very strong history and culture that is engrained in their everyday lives. They have worked very hard to preserve this culture and it shows! In our ‘small city’ (of 6 million people – what?!) there are so many historical gardens and temples that are still beautiful and in use today.
The Chinese Lifestyle. China is very healthy! You really have to search to find obese people in our city and I strongly believe it is from their habits and lifestyle. The food is very healthy and fresh. The market we get our groceries at has about three aisles total of processed food and one of those is filled with just ramen noodles!
Everyone eats rice and veggies for pretty much every meal and if you do buy processed food, it is very expensive! With the food and how active people (of all ages) are makes for a very healthy lifestyle. (Fun fact: they only drink hot water here because they believe its better for your health.)
Living in China is cheap! It is amazing how much cheaper it is to live in China. When we go out to eat, we can get a full meal for two people for about 30 RMB (roughly $5). It’s crazy and has allowed us to save up money to travel and for me to start my own graphic design business, Amavi Studio.
Traveling!!! Due to how we have been able to save so much money, we have been able to visit Hong Kong, Vietnam, Philippines, Japan and various cities throughout China in the nine months we have been here. And before we head back to the states we have plans to take three more trips and a month of backpacking through Thailand, Cambodia and Indonesia!
What You Should Know Before Traveling to China
The ‘norms’. I know I said the culture was a plus, but it can also be a negative to tourists. Some cultural norms in China would be considered very weird or even rude in America and it took me some time to get used to this. Some norms such as spitting, the squatty-potties (what we call their toilets) and babies not wearing diapers were hard for me to get used to, but after awhile you adapt. I do think it is good to know before visiting so you can prepare yourself and understand that people are not being rude, that is the honestly just the culture.
The Internet. China blocks almost every Western website you can think of… yes, it sucks! From my understanding of this through locals, it is to further preserve the Chinese culture and not let the Western culture to take over through movies and social media. So that means Instagram, Facebook, Netflix, Google and everything is BLOCKED. Which means you either have to live with it or purchase a VPN.
Food variety. The food in China is NOT like Chinese restaurants in America… not even close! It is more rice, vegetables and a little meat or noodle soup. One of my favorite dishes has been beef noodle soup! It has this deep flavorful broth, fresh, homemade noodles and lots of veggies to keep you full. Be adventurous when traveling and try some new dishes! If you are a little nervous like I was, just make sure to ask what type of meat it is before indulging.
The air. Yes, the rumors are true. China is a very smoggy place… and it does suck. Most days we don’t see the blue sky, it is more of a haze that hovers over the top of the city. Between this and everyone smoking, the air quality is definitely something to be aware of when traveling.
A Story From Our Travels
One very interesting part about living in Wuxi has been everyone staring at us. In our city there are not very many foreigners, so Terrell and I stick out like sore thumbs. We are both pretty tall people (5’10” and 6’7”) and the fact that no one sees foreigners they look at us as if we were famous or aliens.
Everyone is constantly taking pictures and videos of us (with the flash on!), kids start crying when they see us, they hand us their babies to take pictures with them and old peoples jaws literally drop as they stand in front of us staring. It is actually really funny to see people react to a different looking person and we happily take pictures with anyone who asks.
One time while traveling to Shanghai, we were visiting The Bund (famous skyline in Shanghai) and someone asked to take a picture with us. So of course, we said yes. Before we knew it we had a line of more than 10 people waiting to take pictures with us! They must have been confused and thought we were famous but we had to end up just walking away due to the fact we would have been there all day long taking pictures with random people.
For those who also have an adventure bucket list, I definitely recommend adding China to that list. Between the deep-rooted culture, amazing temples, and cheap lifestyle, China makes for an awesome country to wander around.
The Great Wall itself is a reason to visit, but I highly recommend taking some time to experience the culture. I personally think it gives you a new appreciation and understanding for America and the lifestyle we are able to have while being home.
My biggest piece of advice is to take a risk and explore.
When we came to China, we really had no idea what to expect. All we knew is that we didn’t want to live the traditional 9-5, American lifestyle. We wanted a life of adventure and creativity and I could not be any happier that we took this risk. Having the freedom to travel, grow together as a couple and start my own dream business has truly been a blessing.
So, go for it. Take a risk, have an adventure. You will thank yourself!
Cheers to adventure,
Emily + Terrell
More About Our Guest Writer:
Emily Cochran is the founder of Amavi Studio Design Co., a traveling graphic design company that specializes in wedding stationery + small business branding. Emily has a Master’s in Sport Leadership from Virginia Commonwealth University and played Division I volleyball for Central Connecticut State University for four years. After earning her Master’s she went on to work as the event and marketing specialist for professional athletes, maintaining their community based foundations. She quickly realized that the 9-5 lifestyle was not for her and made the leap of faith to move to China and start her dream company, Amavi Studio. Since then she has been helping other bring their wedding + branding visions to life while inspiring people to not settle for anything less than their dreams. Emily has strong passions for traveling, growing + supporting communities, living a natural lifestyle and sports. Interested in learning more? Check out Amavi Studio and follow along with her adventures!