Editor,
I came to UNM last August as a visiting scholar to the Department of Linguistics, and as a Chinese national, I am very glad to learn from Friday's Daily Lobo that 12 UNM students will go to Beijing to participate in the World Model United Nations Conference. But the Daily Lobo also reported that the delegation had some worry or fear of going to China, which is quite unnecessary and unfounded.
In private and in public - especially in the media - some people in the United States think China poses a threat to America and China could win if there was a war between America and China. But in China, people never think China could be a threat to the United States or that there could be a war between those two countries.
Just like Americans, Chinese are friendly and peace-loving. There is no terrorist threat or attacks in China as no foreigners have been hijacked in the past several decades. The newspaper did use the word "communist" to modify China. But in China, people seldom talk about communism, and some people are even unaware that China is a communist country. People mainly talk about market economy and the ways to better their lives.
With a written history more than 5,000 years old, China is far from being a rogue country, but is as civilized as the United States. People do enjoy a high degree of religious and political freedom. They can talk about everything, including criticism of their government. The Chinese people's well-known hospitality will make the delegates quite at home, I think - as Confucius said, "Isn't it a pleasure that friends from far away come to visit you?"
Food and language are not problems either. You can have Western food in Beijing. And to your surprise, you will find there are more McDonald's, Kentucky Fried Chicken restaurants and Starbucks in Beijing than in Albuquerque. Moreover, you can taste true Chinese food. As a cosmopolitan city, Beijing boasts of far more and better hotels than Albuquerque. More and more people in Beijing are able to speak English, especially as it will host the 2008 Summer Olympics. I am sure the conference organizers will arrange people quite fluent in English to meet and serve you.
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It is good if you know something about Chinese traditions and customs before you travel there. If not, do not worry. They are awaiting you to notice and discover them, which is quite easy and interesting. People there are eager to introduce them to you.
The Great Wall, the Forbidden City, the Summer Palace and numerous other tourist destinations in Beijing will make your trip exciting and unforgettable.
I am sure the UNM delegation's experience in China will encourage more people to go there.
Dong Chengru
UNM visiting scholar
