Life in Wuhan is busy and amazing! I would say that this is a city that never sleeps. From the oriental smell of different types of Chinese food while on a morning walk to school, to the strong smells of paint and chemicals from all of the car workshops in the evenings, people are always hard at work to make sure that consumer needs are happily met. What I enjoy most about the culture is how friendly and kind people are in China, and more specifically, in Wuhan. I was of the impression that people in Wuhan would be so busy being hard at work, that they would be quite stand-offish and perhaps even rude. To my surprise and excitement, I was wrong! Upon my few shopping trips so far, I have met the kindest and friendliest people who are ever-so eager to help me with my needs, especially once they realise that I cannot speak Mandarin - yet!

The food in Wuhan is exceptional! From the local food trucks to the restaurants, the taste of the food has been amazing, and leaves me wanting to try more and more. So far, my favourite dish has been beef noodles that is made in a broth and has an egg in it. What I enjoy even more about this meal is the fact that you can add your own condiments into it, such as coriander, garlic, chilli and spring onion, to name a few. If you have the flu, this meal would definitely cure it and leave a smile on your face after eating it too!

This is an example of the beef noodles with               an egg. Coriander, chilli, garlic and spring onion have been added to the dish. Photo taken by me.

The malls in Wuhan are also incredible. For someone such as myself who enjoys shopping, the malls here are perfect. They are humungous and have all the stores you can think of - I'm still yet to explore all of the shops in the malls, but one mall that I love is called Meng Shi Dai. This mall is very big and has both western and Chinese shops in them, so if ever I find myself missing home, I know that I can always go to the mall and enjoy browsing at all of the shops that are familiar to me.

Another enjoyable aspect of Wuhan is the social life. Wuhan not only has locals, but also has foreigners of different regions and continents. So far I have met South African people like myself, as well as people from Zimbabwe, the United Kingdom, Morocco, Ethiopia as well as people from Canada, and I have only been in Wuhan for a month thus far. I know that as I continue to explore and take on my journey here, that I will meet many more people from all over the world, creating a very exciting and fun social network.

But what am I doing here? I am teaching. I have always had a passion for teaching and am a qualified teacher from South Africa. As such, my current occupation in Wuhan, China, is teaching, and I love it! Aside from the adorable faces that I am privileged to see and teach every day in this school, teaching here is a great way to stay young and fit, as it requires a fair amount of energy from me. My school working days consist of singing and dancing and teaching children what certain words and objects are in English, how to pronounce these words, and most importantly how to have fun while learning! And who doesn’t enjoy singing and dancing while working?

I am loving living in Wuhan thus far. It is so safe that I walk to and from work every day, which helps me get my fitness levels up while I can enjoy the safety of a refreshing walk. I feel extremely lucky to be in this position, and I know that living in a city as progressive as Wuhan is will stimulate and bring about a lot of personal growth for me, which I am really looking forward to experiencing as it unfolds more and more.

Wuhan is a great and diverse city and I am extremely happy that my first experience of China is in this city.