My first taste of working in China

The start of my yet to experience 4 and a half month internship here at ODM has been eye opening to say the least. It has so far been exciting, and I have already learnt a lot about marketing and sales, and I can’t wait to learn more as my experience and knowledge grow. Although I have already spent quite a while in China, travelling and studying over the past few years, this is my first time working here in China and in an international company. Let’s just say, it’s certainly different! For starters you need the patience of a saint with the Chinese internet.

This is also my first time coming to Zhuhai and it has not disappointed me. The only problem is the random bad weather, but regardless it’s beautiful here and it doesn't have the busyness like other big cities. With the beaches and the sea, what’s not to love, I really can’t wait for the summer again. 

                            

During my internship I am also doing a home stay through Internchina alongside working here at ODM. I thoroughly enjoy living with a Chinese family; it is without a doubt the best way to learn about China and the way everyday life is lived, its fun and it’s definitely great for my Mandarin practice, I'm made so welcome and I already feel like part of the family. 

It can be tiring though, living so far away from ODM means early and long working days and barging my way on to the busy buses in the morning; but it is something I am adapting too quickly and after a while I am certain it will be ‘normal’. 

                               

From travelling through China, Guangdong is definitely one of my favourite regions and the place I have spent most of my time. To me its closest to feeling like home, its nature is beautiful, it has the best food (肠粉and早茶）(hence the food picture), environment, and it has barely any pollution, and being accustomed to already living in China it has been a bonus for fitting straight in with Chinese life.

My exploration of Zhuhai is minimal at the moment. I'd say compared to my time studying in Hangzhou just before this, time is not of the essence, so it can be difficult to balance my time with my friends and with the family also. But so far, I did go to the Chimelong Ocean Kingdom Park during my first week and that is certainly worth checking out on a weekend with great weather. I have yet to also travel to Macau, but that is for sure on the agenda.

                                               

All in all, this experience is worth it. In my first week at ODM I was very busy and new to everything and I did feel quite overwhelmed. But now I feel comfortable as I get better and faster, and I love it here.

I have been so busy that I have barely contacted my family since arriving again in China. But it’s good, it means that I will achieve something in learning so much all of the time; I know I will learn important life skills, become more confident, and will be well on my way to achieving something bigger in the future. I know my experience here in ODM will be one of the greatest experiences to date, and thank you ODM for giving me this opportunity. 

Ocean Park

The DisneyLand of Hong Kong. Well, sort of.

This park covers the whole of the southern peninsular near Stanley on Hong Kong Island, it costs around 250 HK$, and don't be fooled into thinking it is a water park like I was.

(Apparently) the park is far superior to DisneyLand Hong Kong, by that admission I feel most children's parks must be better than Disney Land.

Seriously it is a decent place, if you have never been to a western amusement park, scared of going to 3D cinemas because things 'jump out' at you, or have little children that wouldn't be able to ride on them.

If you are not going to Ocean park for the scare factor then there is a whole host of activities you can do.

We went to see a couple of pandas in there 8 million pound cage, which to be honest with you were slightly depressing. However they did look pretty awesome:

Just plain lazy, if you ask me.

They did also have a 'gator' enclosure, however I had to leave after two minutes when I saw some fat kid constantly banging on the window near the alligator's face. I'm sure that I have seen ponds bigger than their cage.

After going on some rides that obviously were not made for a 1.9m high man, I tried to recover my bruised shoulders by watching a dolphin show. The arena resembled an american baseball stadium and the show consisted of some Brazilian music played by five Chinese men and a 'volunteer' from the crowd who just happened to be scared of walruses, fell in the pool and was saved by dolphins pushing him out of the water.

However enjoyable this show was, I could not help thinking about the amount of time these animals got after their 9-5 jobs.

People applauding dolphins suffocating themselves.

Overall, I think Ocean Park is worth a visit as long as you are prepared to queue up for a lot of your time, walk more than you have done in a long time, and find maybe one scary ride (the Abyss).

But of course, I'm not bitter.

If you have a little time and want to brush up on some extreme marketing skills, then why not give my big brother site, The ODM Group a look?

Or if you feel that websites are a thing of the past, check us out on Facebook, if you like us, we can educate you all out the world of promotional products and Marketing, give it a try, you might learn something!