Hiking and waterfall visit

After my first week of work there was a planned hiking trip up to a waterfall in the mountains outside of Zhuhai. We found the event on couchsurfing and there was quite a large group of us going - both foreigners and Chinese people. Having been out on the bar street the night before it was a bit of a struggle getting up. Me and my flat mates made our way to the bus stop where a bus was waiting to pick us up. It took around an hour and a half to get to the small village where we began our hike. On the way we got to see parts of rural China which was really fascinating, even just half an hour outside of the city there was a massive difference in people's living standards.

View of the mountain we were climbing

After a quick stop to get some food and drinks we started going up the mountain. After a rainy morning the sun finally came out, with temperatures reaching around 35 degrees. That combined with the humidity meant that it wasn't gonna be an easy task we had ahead of us.

Halfway up

An hour later we finally reached our destination. The view was amazing. We walked up a stream until we finally reached a small lake with a waterfall. Apparently barely any of the locals knew of this place and the group leader and his friends discovered it by accident. Getting into the water after an hour of walking was one of the most rewarding things I've ever done. We spent hours swimming and hiking around in the surrounding areas before finally leaving to go back home.

The waterfall

This has been one of the most amazing experiences in my life and I can't wait to see what the next 11 weeks has in store for me.

First impressions of Zhuhai

Here’s a quick introduction about myself before I tell you about my first days in China. My name is Patrik and I’m a 21 year old male from Sweden, currently studying for my undergraduate degree in Business at Glasgow Caledonian University in Scotland. Having looked at internships for the summer I came across Internchina which is a company helping to organize internships in China, the name is kinda self-explanatory. Looking for something different to do I thought this sounded like a great opportunity and I decided to apply for it. Few months later and I found out that I had been accepted to do a marketing internship at an outsourcing company called ODM Group. I was beyond excited!

Never having been to China or Asia before, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I arrived in Hong Kong on Saturday night. I had done previous research about the city of Zhuhai which I will be interning in but there were still a lot of unknowns about the whole situation. Not knowing the language or anyone else made it all a bit scary. Even though I’ve lived in different countries before this would be the biggest culture shock by far.

To get to Zhuhai I had to take the ferry from the airport in Hong Kong. Everyone was very helpful and their English was good which made it all a lot easier. I knew that I had arrived during the rainy season but I wasn’t expecting this kind of weather. Having lived and studied in Scotland for the last three years I thought I was used to rain but this was unlike anything I’ve ever seen before. The short five meter walk out in the rain between the terminal and the ferry was enough to get me soaked. It only took around an hour and a half before I arrived in Zhuhai and luckily the weather had cleared up by then. After picking up my suitcase and going through customs I was greeted by Henry and Fanny who are working with Internchina. Earlier the same day I had found out that my host family had to cancel and that I had to move in to an apartment with other interns. This didn’t really bother me as I was meant to stay at an apartment during the second half of my time here anyway. After waiting around for a while we finally managed to find a taxi which took me to my apartment. Only one out of four people had moved in at the time, a girl from New York named Nicole. The two others will move in the week after. I was surprised at how big and nice the rooms were, having lived in student apartments before I expected something much smaller. By the time I got there it was already late and I was tired from the long flight so I just went straight to bed.

View from my bedroom

The next day I was told that there’d be a pool party in the outskirts of the city. One of Paul, the manager at Internchina’s, friends had his birthday there and we were invited. Me and Nicole went to meet up with Mark and his girlfriend Sam from Canada, two other interns she had met the day before for some lunch. We found this small Chinese restaurant right across the street from our apartment, the whole street is filled with them but because the two others had lived here for a while they knew where to go. I’m still not quite sure what I actually ate but it tasted amazing. Even though I’m not usually a big fan of seafood the food here was some of the best I’ve ever had. It only cost us 70 kwai which is around $11 for all of us. After leaving the restaurant we made our way to the bus that would take us to the pool. It was a very long bus ride but we got to see most of the city on the way. Getting off the bus we met up with one of Sam’s friends and started walking towards the pool. None of us had data on our phones and didn’t know the name of the place which resulted in us getting lost and wandering around for an hour and a half. We got to see some less developed parts of the city and got an insight into what the rural areas of the country look like. The people were all friendly and helpful and we eventually made our way there with the help of their directions. When we got to the pool it felt like we were in the middle of the jungle being surrounded by mountains on all sides. After walking around for so long, in temperatures which I’m not used to, it was great to finally get into the water. After an hour or so other people started to arrive. They brought food and beer with them and we had a BBQ on the pool-side. It was nice to talk to other western people about their experience in the country, many having lived here for years. We left pretty early though since a few of us had our first day of work the morning after.

Just arrived at the pool

Even though I’ve only been here for a day and a half I already love this city, the people, the atmosphere and everything else about it. I am glad I made the decision to come here and I look forward to spending the next three months in this amazing place!

Go-Karting in China!

One noticeable aspect about Zhuhai, is that despite it being a small city; in terms on Chinese cities, you will never find yourself at a loss of exciting actives to do.

Recently my friends and I went go-karting on a track that's conveniently only a 10 minute walk from my apartment, much like everything else in Zhuhai.

Go-Karting in China!

The first thing we noticed, it was extremely cheap - around 40 RMB ($6) for 10 minutes, which is much cheaper than in the UK. Plus with this you get the options of the type of go-kart you get to drive, such as larger ones with enough seats for a family of four, or a faster single-seat kart.

As with many things in China, the safety regulations are much less strict than Western countries, so there is was no real concern about safety gear, speed or how you go about beating the other racers!

As you can see above, the raise track is situated in a forested area, which makes the competitive sport surprisingly peaceful and relaxed.

My experiences in Zhuhai so far!

Hello everyone! I’m Stella from Malaysia and today is my first day at ODM Zhuhai. The office is located in Jida, and the space is huge and so far it has always been sunny. Everyone is extremely friendly and welcoming. I decided to work in China because I’ve met many Chinese international students while studying abroad. I learnt how to speak Mandarin from my Chinese friends and learned a little bit about China. My curiosity of the changing customs and traditions within China is what prompted me to look for an internship here in Zhuhai.

I applied my visa through a travel agent in Malaysia. All I needed to do was to pay a small service fee and submit my documents to the agent. Then they will submit my documents on my behalf to the Chinese embassy in Kuala Lumpur, and my visa will be ready for collection in 7 working days.

Waiting to board

I arrived in Guangzhou during the Qing Ming (tomb sweeping) week which is a public holiday for the Chinese nationals. 

On the bus to Gongbei, Zhuhai from
Guangzhou
Baiyun Airport

 I was fortunate to book a hotel room during the peak holiday season with the help of Ricky, one of ODM’s Chinese staff.

C inn Jida

Guess what's for dinner？

Donkey meat (I heard "yu rou" fish meat,
turns out to be "lu rou" donkey)

During the weekends, I went room hunting with Ricky and managed to find a decent room nearby the office for 800 Chinese Yuan. From what I learnt, it is standard procedure in Zhuhai to pay 2 months’ rent as deposit in advance where the deposit will be returned once your contract ends. The process of renting a room is much easier compared to signing a one year lease for a single apartment.

Day 2- Prawn noodles for breakfast

Dimsum at Xiangzhou

Zhuhai is cleaner than most of the Chinese cities I’ve been to such as Guangzhou and Beijing. I really like the living environment and the convenience of getting around town. The public transportation is really convenient and cheap; a one way bus ride cost 2 Chinese Yuan which is less than a dollar. Taxis are abundant and you can easily get into one without calling or using mobile apps.

So far, I’m learning about the company and its principles. Can’t wait to learn and experience more!

Visit to a Chinese restaurant

It's likely you've eaten 'Chinese' food from the West and loved it, but Western Chinese food doesn't even compare to genuine Chinese food made from within China itself.

My roommates and I visited a Chinese restaurant yesterday that's considered 'expensive' in comparison to other restaurants in China, but it still only ended up costing us around 75 RMB ($12) each for a delicious meal and drinks.

Outside the restaurant

As you can see, it's a great looking restaurant, which is the perfect mix of both a traditional and a modern style.

Outside the restaurant

As you can see above, it's a great looking traditional restaurant.

When you get seated, expect to be welcomed by all the staff, who see it as an opportunity to test their English, while it's an equal opportunity for you to test your Chinese!

You'll immediately be given a kettle full of tea, without ordering it. Not only is this for drinking, this is also for the cleaning routine of your plate, cup, bowl and chopsticks. This is done by pouring the boiling tea onto each, and effectively washing them.

The amazing food

All the attempts at saying which food we wanted in Chinese were most definitely worth it, for the amazing meal we had!

My first few days in Zhuhai, China!

I've only been in the amazing city of Zhuhai for 4 days, and already I'm absolutely loving it! Luckily for me, I'm going to be here for another 4 months!

When I first flew in from the UK the first thing I noticed was the heat - despite the fact it's still considered the Chinese winter season, anything is warm compared to Wales in the UK!

It's not just the weather that's different, it's also a completely different lifestyle in China than anywhere else I've ever been - everyone seems to be much more traditional and culture plays a huge part in most peoples lives here - which means its a great opportunity to learn about the culture while living here, and in the short 4 days I've been here, I've already learnt so much.

One of the things I've learnt, is how amazing the food is here - each meal is so unique either the way it's prepared or the ingredients that are used, you can find some fantastic dishes, as long as you keep an open mind!

I came to China as an intern for the ODM group - today being my first day. It has been brilliant so far, as not only was everyone incredibly welcoming, they've also been great in helping me to learn more about Chinese manufacturing, which I hope I can continue to expand my knowledge of. I chose to intern in China for a number of different reasons, such as:

• Being really interested by the Chinese culture.
• The fact that trade is continually developing here, which has made it the biggest economy in the world, which means there are endless opportunities that comes with this.
• Wanting to learn a new language.
• It's an amazing experience, that will look fantastic on my CV!

and of course.. the food!

ODM Group and Mindsparkz Christmas Dinner 2014

    XMAS has already arrived at ODM and Mindsparkz. We arranged last night a Christmas dinner at The Factory in Huafa We all had amazing dinner together sharing experiences and success stories throughout the year.
 
    This dinner also was special for our Chinese staff since it was the one of many yearly Chinese festivals,   the Winter of Solstice. Usually Chinese families get together on that day and have a big dinner, eating Tang-yuan, which represents best wish for family reunion. Special occasion to bond our international team!

Our team enjoying XMAS meal

    The Factory is located in Huafa Century Center with the popular western music. It's a very causal place where foreigners and Chinese have dinner, drinks and communicate with each other. It's the one of the most popular foreign bars in Zhuhai. There is no doubt that ODM staff as well as other interns in Zhuhai, like to go there for a few drinks on weekends.

    At ODM Group, we usually organise activities for interaction between colleagues such as company lunches, BBQ and games. We also organise factory visits and short trips around Guangdong so that our staff can learn the practical processes of factories and still have a fun time together!

    ODM Group and Mindsparkz wishes everyone a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!