Country of Origin : South Africa

国籍：南非

Occupation : Former business analyst, current educator

职业：曾任商业分析师，现为教师

Years in China : 2 years

在华居住时间：2年

To me, China was always this place on my had-to-see list. Since I was little boy, I was fascinated and intrigued by this magical place with its rich culture and many different dishes that I only saw on TV. My dad and I used to watch all the kung-fu and Bruce Lee movies over and over again.

中国一直是我一定要去的地方。我从小便向往这个神奇的国度，对其丰富的文化和各色佳肴感到好奇，而这些我只能从电视上看到。我和父亲会不断回看所有功夫片和李小龙的电影。

Before moving to China, I worked as a business analyst in South Africa. I worked at the same company for 5 years. And I felt I was stuck in a trap so many people get into working in big cities. I was in traffic for 2 hours in the morning and 2 hours at night, working long and exhausting hours… Yes, I did that for 5 years! Till one day, I realized life was just passing me by and I was going around in a circle year in and year out. I was determined that there was more to life than that and took the decision of moving on to a more exciting next stage. So this is where my story begins.

搬到中国之前，我在南非做商业分析员。我在一家公司工作了 5 年。和许多在大城市工作的人一样，我陷入了瓶颈期。我早晚通勤时都要堵上两个小时，工作时间很长，很累……没错，我就这样做了 5 年！直到有一天，我意识到生命在不断流逝，而我只是年复一年地原地踏步。于是我下定决心，要赋予生命以更多的意义。然后我决定开始一段激动人心的崭新生活。那一刻起，我的故事就此开始。

I needed a change of career and change of scenery but I wasn’t convinced that China was the right place for me. It took my sister convincing me to finally take the plunge. Before coming to China I had my own ideas of what it would be like and boy was I wrong! It turned out to better than I ever expected. The thing that I fell in love with first was the transport system, for the first time in 5 years I didn’t have to be stuck in traffic for hours to get to work!

我需要换个工作，走出我熟悉的环境，但我当时觉得中国并不是我的目的地。在我姐姐的劝说下，我才最终迈出了这一步。来中国之前，我脑海中已经形成了对中国的印象，但是我错了！中国比我想象的要好。我喜欢中国的交通体系，五年来我第一次不用堵在上班路上好几个小时。

I didn’t really know what to expect arriving here but I knew I wanted to take in everything and savor every moment. I only planned to be here for a year and after 2 years I’m still here.

我真的不知道我期待这里的什么，但我知道我会接受一切，品味在这里的每一刻。我原本计划只待一年，但是两年过去了，我仍在这里。

I didn’t know this little gem existed. I did some research on the Internet and I read something about a piano island and the music in Xiamen and I was sold haha.

我之前并不知道厦门这座宝石般的城市。我在互联网上查阅了一些资料，看到了一些关于钢琴岛和厦门音乐的内容，就被吸引了，哈哈。

I’ve seen a few places in China but to me, Xiamen is by far the best. The local people are friendly, there’s beautiful scenery and I made a lot friends on my journey.

我造访过中国的几座城市，对我来说，厦门是所有城市中最好的。厦门人很友好，这里的风景也很美，我在旅途中交了很多朋友。

My unique China experience is that I learned to cook Chinese food while assisting a friend in a Chinese restaurant in 2020, not being able to speak a word of Chinese. The naming food part of my Chinese vocabulary is pretty good because of that experience. When I’m back home and make those dishes it’s a little part of China that I’ll always have with me. Like a gift that I will use for the rest of my life.

来讲讲我在中国的独特经历吧。2020 年，我在朋友的中餐馆帮忙，渐渐学会了做中国菜。虽然我当时一句中文都不会说，但是却能信手拈来地叫出各道菜的中文名。我回到家也能做出这些菜品，这虽然只是中国文化的一小部分，但我会一直珍藏。它就像一份礼物，将让我受用终生。

Fun fact: I lost 25 kg in 6 months being in here, so thank you China for that!!

有趣的是，感谢中国，因为我在中国 6 个月内减掉了 25 公斤！！

My diet here changed radically, from fast food and sugary drinks, I started eating more vegetables and I wanted to keep up with the elderly I saw doing exercise in the morning in the park. Some of them were 3 times my age and were way more fit and active than me! The pressure was on and, thanks to this, I lead a healthier lifestyle now.

我的饮食习惯发生了巨大的改变，不再吃快餐，也不再喝含糖饮料。我开始多吃青菜，我想跟在公园里晨练的老人一样健康。他们有些人的年龄是我的三倍，但却比我更健康、更积极乐观！我的压力虽然很大，但是我坚持养生，也养成了更加健康的生活习惯。

A little background on his hometown

介绍一下他的家乡

I’m originally from Pretoria, South Africa and every October the flowers bloom in a purple color, it’s amazing!

我来自南非的比勒陀利亚，那里每年十月都有紫花盛开，惊艳众人！

作者：Tav 翻译：潘泽彬

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