Moving to China

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Hahaha this picture action only
It me standing outside the Great Hall of the People with my reporter pass

And yes, as the title suggests, I'm moving to Beijing for the next few years to work as a correspondent there.

I am absolutely stoked to snag the gig because it's been a dream to work in China long-term. For a while, I never thought it was possible, but now I'm one step closer.

There are so many things to prepare like opening a Chinese bank account, changing my mobile plan, finding a house!!!! I'm going to Beijing next week to get the last one sorted.

It can be quite daunting - the most challenging being the language. As a Chinese, I'm ashamed about not being proficient in Mandarin and can never understand why some Singaporeans are proud of that. The fact that I'm not a master of my own mother tongue has been a thorn in my side since I was in secondary school, but by then, it was too late. My foundations were already shaky. So what's the best thing to do now?

Thrust myself into the deep end and to completely immerse myself in Chinese society and culture. I bet it's going to be frustrating and downright demoralising at the start, but I know if I keep going, I will get somewhere.

I've also been itching for a new adventure... After 8 years of working, I've longed to go abroad long-term just like what I did in New Zealand for student exchange and Myanmar for internship. It'll be the longest stint this time in Beijing. NZ and Burma sojourns were only half-a-year.

I'm not as worried about being lonely compared to the last time as there's a strong Singapore community there, and I'm also going to be super super super BUSY. I'll be so occupied that I won't even have time to be lonely hahaha.

I do worry about being able to report well and widely in China. During my three weeks there in March covering the 'Two sessions' - China's most important political event - I felt like a newbie again. It's learning the ropes all over again as the reporting landscape there is vastly different from Singapore's. The issues we grapple with pale in comparison to those in China - a big player in the world, unlike us, the little red dot. Just that short-stint in Beijing expanded my world view many times over.

I wish more Singaporeans get that opportunity to work overseas to get a more macro understanding of some of the things happening in the world. Our views can be very narrow-minded after staying put in the country for a while.

I will miss all those I leave behind with my move to Beijing. My parents especially, who are getting old and I know I will be so guilty if one of them falls sick while I'm there. But they've given their blessings and even encouraged me to go. They know how rare this opportunity is and how important it is to me. It's something they themselves, especially my dad, would love to do. In a way, they also fulfil their own dreams by seeing me work overseas.

I will also miss plenty milestones, like birthday celebrations especially with my little niece who's fresh out of the oven this year. I won't get to spend as much time with her as I did with her older sister. I guess, some sacrifices are necessary and anyway she's still little and won't remember me. She might however, view me as a stranger when I see her again.

With that said, I'm still going to be in and out of the country as I'll be back for some friends' weddings this year. Also, with the general election looming, all of us overseas correspondents will fly back to pay national service hahaha.

I will officially leave Singapore in May. I'm sure I'll keep blogging while I'm there cuz there are so many new experiences and adventures + stories to tell!!!!

Till then, I leave you with some pictures of my epic roadtrip to Malaysia with my parents who wanted to spend some time with me before I go~