On September 20, 2018, I finally received the long-awaited letter of admission to a Chinese university. On October 3, I boarded on the plane to Beijing with full expectation and set foot on the journey of studying abroad. It was my first time to take a flight and leave Irrawaddy River in Myanmar, my hometown. I thought in the air that I would never fail to live up to the expectations of my family. I must strive for progress and success in a foreign land.

Luckily, I get to know many international students from all around the world in Beijing. New experiences and brilliant individuals are enriching my understanding. Everything is as imagined. With long history, Beijing has not only many famous places of cultural heritage, but also countless tower buildings. The flavor of modernity and ancient times naturally blends in this metropolis. Beijingers are hospitable, well-educated and of high quality. Their accents are lovely and unique. In school, teachers guide us devotedly and students support each other selflessly. Majored in Chinese language, I gained a lot after studying for several semesters in China University of Political Science and Law. I can speak Chinese with more standard pronunciation and learned some basic legal knowledge. My unstinting on Chinese language is more profound. I have been used to my life in Beijing. In particular, I am accustomed to convenient WeChat payment and on-time delivery.

I remember one day shortly after my arrival in Beijing, I put forward a suggestion to three Burmese friends in my class that we should go to the Great Wall together, "How about being a hero together?" They agreed immediately. In two hours, we got to the Great Wall that I have been longing for. When I stepped on it in reality, I am overwhelmed by a tidal surge of emotions and mixed feelings. The scene of building the Great Wall by people in ancient time appeared in my mind when I touched the old and strong walls. Without trucks and machines, how much blood and sweat the working people had spread to complete this endless great wall in a time when there was no advanced science and technology. I cannot help giving the thumbs up in my heart to the world wonder and the Chinese labors behind it. 

Organized by the school, we also paid visits to several cultural attractions of Beijing. We were treated to an authentic performance of ancient rituals and music at Guozijian, the imperial college and the highest education institution in ancient China. Amidst the lingering pale smoke of the Yonghe Lama Temple, we had discussions with our teachers about Buddhism. We saw hutong with charm of old Beijing and shops with trends of new Beijing at internet-famous spot Nanluoguxiang Street, and ate raisin-filled candy canes, a traditional snack of Beijing. We went to Sanshao Cultural Center of Miyun county to learn how to make pancakes, visited Cuandixia village and Tanzhe Temple, and made thread bound books in the National Collection Museum. These cultural activities greatly enriched my extracurricular life in Beijing. I also visited Sanlitun, Wangfujing, Xidan, the Bird's Nest and the Water Cube, where I enjoyed specialties such as roast duck and noodles served with bean sauce, and even drank old Beijing bean juice. As the saying goes, "He who travels much will learn much." I have learned a lot from all these activities and gotten a three-dimensional view of Beijing!

Most notably, on October 1, 2019, I had the privilege of being part of the expat formation in Beijing for the grand parade celebrating the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China! On the evening of September 30, we entered the prescribed place in an orderly fashion and waited. We were all ready and waiting to go! When the official parade took place on October 1, I was particularly excited and so focused on the instructions that I didn't dare let up. We followed the float themed as "a Community of Shared Future for Mankind.” After a while I saw the most amazing large aircraft, the echelon of these aircrafts pulling out a rainbow of colored smoke in the sky and then whizzing by! We waved bouquets of flowers and shouted "China, China! Happy Birthday!” It is no exaggeration to say that this is the biggest and most memorable celebration I have ever attended in my life. Through this parade, I felt the strength of China and the unity of the Chinese people. After decades of hard work, China is not what it used to be!

I have never seen snow in Myanmar. I really like the song "Seriously Snowy" sang by Xue Zhiqian and have always longed to see snow. On November 20, 2019, I finally got my wish and saw snow for the first time. It snowed several times in Beijing during that time. Every time it snowed, I would step on snow for fun and post pictures on WeChat moments.

After returning home for the winter break in January 2020, I thought I would be able to go back to school at the end of February as usual. Unfortunately, the emergence and ravages of the novel coronavirus forced schools in Beijing to delay the start of the new term. We have to study online for a semester and missed our school days very much. Almost every country is now making efforts to fight the virus. Just go away, Virus！Do you have any idea how many people’s lives you've disrupted? How many precious lives have been taken? How many happy families have been destroyed? Just stop! I sincerely hope that the heroes in white will overcome the virus as soon as possible，and that we will be back in the classroom next semester to study, discuss, progress and graduate together with my lovely classmates.