I remember the first time I saw a picture of the Oriental Pearl tower in Shanghai, I thought it looked a little like the space rocket from the cover of the adventures of Tintin "Destination Moon". That purple retro rocket fascinated me immensely and I promised myself I would see it in the flesh. That, odd as it may sound is the real reason I first ventured to China. To look at a building in Shanghai, I had not even thought about what else to do while in China.

During that first trip I realised China has many many places to go, restaurant dishes to try and people to bargain with tirelessly. I think that is one reason why I decided to teach there. The country is so big and the diversity from the coastal provinces to the central western and southern provinces is huge. Just going to the neighbouring province can be like going to a different country. This is what makes China such a great place to travel, even after two trips - I still want to see more.

One of the best ways of seeing and experiencing any place is by working there. And China certainly proves this. Chinese school life is very dissimilar to the kind of school life I myself had, the hours, how they learn, the classrooms, everything I could imagine plus a few things I could not. This made for an interesting and memorable time, which I will never forget and hope to repeat at some point in the future.

Sure there are people who come to China and have a terrible time and hate every minute of it while they are here. But I am sure those same people would also say that their China experience was a positive one. Adjusting to living in a foreign country, and learning how other people live has changed my view of life and society in ways I never thought. Living and working in China was a fantastic experience - it fostered my personal growth in a positive way, which is something most of us are all looking for in work and life.