China Solo @ 18- nervous :S?

Question

Hey all,

I'm an 18 year old girl from Canada and in less than a week (my flight leaves next Saturday morning- the 17th) I'll be going to China on my own for 5 months. I took a year off to work (finally saved up enough, thank god :P) and do this before Uni next fall.

Now I've done all my paperwork and just need to pack and book my first nights accomodation in Hong Kong. The thing is I'm starting to get nervous about it. It's finally sinking in that I'll be on my own on the other side of the world and I've never even really travelled before 0_0

It's funny cause for months I've been the one super excited and busy reassuring my parents and friends that I'll be fine and how great a time I'll have, and now that the time's finally come to leave...I'm the one getting all freaked out and no one really gets it.

Agh, someone please reassure me!

Answer 1

How exciting! I'm headed to Greece next summer by myself under similar circumstances. Only I'll be 16 then. I've traveled solo domestically, but have only been overseas with my parents, and not since I was just bitty. I expect I'm going to experience much the same anxiety as departure draws nigh.

Use the heck out of the Internet to maintain a sense of connectedness with your friends and family. I'm sure your parents will be needing lots of reassurance while you're there too. Be sure to upload oodles of pics for them that show where and what you're eating. Parental units tend to be unduly concerned that their offspring will starve without them. Like you're going to be so excited about your adventure, you'll just forget to eat without them there to remind you. Lol!

You're going to have a great time. So, take a deep breath, get on that plane a week from now, and let the history and culture soak into your pores. You'll be seeing firsthand what most of the rest of us will only ever read about in books. You'll have the feel of the place in your bones for the rest of your life, and all the printed photos and factoids in the world won't be worth an ounce of your experience. The only thing scarier than going would be not getting the chance to.

Have a healthy, happy trip! :-)

Answer 2

I lived in China (Shanghai) for three years. No need to be nervous about safety (other than crossing the street....Chinese people don't drive very well)...there's almost no violent crime in the country and the people are great once you try and get to know them.

You'll be asking yourself "why would he/she do that" a million times. Hence, once you can get over the fact not every culture operates the same way you'll learn to appreciate the differences.

Also, make sure you have an open mind about the food. Chinese cuisine is a far cry from like the Sweet & Sour Pork and General Tsao's Chicken you find in Canada. It's so diversified due to such a long history and, until late, very little mobility between provinces. Hence in a city like Hong Kong, Shanghai or Beijing you can dine out on dozens of completely different and flavorful cuisines depending on where the proprietor is from. If you like spicy try the Hunan or Sichuan style foods...try the "fu chi fei pian" and feel the endophins rush right to your head.

Also, pop into a few of the universities there. Likely you'll want to return and could be saving money by attending one of the fine and inexpensive institutions there later on.

Get ready for a world of experiences you'll never forget...Have fun!

Answer 3

Don't worry, you will have a great time there! Try to make friends with people who knows China (or the places you are staying at) really well (such as transportation, local customs etc.). I think they will be great help to you. Know where you are going and plan well, this will reduce anxiety. If you have any trouble such as not find places you want to go to, it is best to ask a police officer. When buying stuff in China, always bargain with the seller. Especially since you are a foreigner in China, many sellers, especially those on the street, will ask super high prices (because they think you don't know anything about the local prices)

Answer 4

get maps and guide books and start marking all the places you want to visit. don't fret, there's no point to it - though i can understand where all that's coming from.
i think the only thing you might have trouble if anything at all is that at the beginning, being alone in a foreign country and not being able to share the experience may make you feel lonely. of you're comfortable with being on your own though, then there's nothing to worry about. oh, and i hope you speak or read some form of chinese? coz unless you're staying in 5 star hotels in either beijing or shanghai, most of the peeps in the rest of the country don't speak english. not even the taxi drivers or subway station officers.
goodluck

Answer 5

Last minute nerves. It's all normal and totally natural stuff.

Trust me, you're going to have a fabulouse time! China is one of my favourite countrie (lots of good shopping). And Just think five months isn't that long really?

It will go by in a breeze when you're having fun! + with technology of today you can never really feel alone with webcams and mics to communicate to home with.

Just enjoy the last weeks you have at home, don't leave on an argument + have a heap of fun in china!

:)