Name: Upul Wickramasinghe
Country: Sri Lanka
Occupation: Journalist
How did I begin my journey in China?
I can still remember watching a TV program on China and Chinese culture about 20 years ago when I was still very small. In the background, I heard melodious strains of Chinese music and I can still remember how the program featured key places of Chinese cultural interest and famous Chinese icons like The Great Wall. As I was just nine years old, this program formed such a deep impression in my mind that the longing to visit China one day was a longing that was present in my subconscious mind from that day onwards. I still remember 3 years ago; my editor called me into his room and asked me whether I would like to undertake a visit to China. He also added that the visit would last 10 months. I couldn’t believe what I heard. I was overjoyed. I could only mutter ‘yes sir’ because I was still suffering from the shock of having my childhood dream of going to China coming true.
Everything started in Beijing
It was a day in February. The weather was so cold in Beijing. I landed at Beijing airport for the first time in my life. I didn’t know more about Beijing or China. But I was gradually getting to know about the country. As a journalist, I started a new journey in China. I wanted to be crazy for a while on my first foreign visit and as such, I explored my surroundings and smiled at people. I was asked by many Chinese people “Ni shi na guo ren” 你是哪国人 I replied to them “wo shi sli lanka ren” 我是斯里兰卡人. As our first arrangement, I could attend the Two Sessions at Great Hall in Beijing. Then I got an opportunity to visit The Great Wall.
Becoming a Bridegroom in Hubei province
Then the journey had begun. It was early October when we landed at the Wuhan airport it was about 2.30 pm. We had a special tour planned for the next morning of Sanxia, a nearby village. The next day, we arrived in Sanxia and it was beautiful. The whole environment was green and there was a nice breeze which made us feel happy. The villagers who were dressing in traditional clothes had welcomed us. I trekked around and I had a feeling that a ceremony was going to be held by villagers for us. Ohh God, it was a wedding ceremony. A traditional wedding ceremony. It is called “Tu Jia Hun Jia” After few seconds the elder villagers appeared in front of us and played some traditional Chinese music instruments. Then we all were ordered to sit properly and a beautiful Chinese girl who was dressed in traditional clothes appeared before us. There was a small ball in her hand. She had to choose a boy among us as her future husband. We all were advised to have our hands up and we followed the order. Then it was her turn and she had to be thrown the ball to a boy. I could not believe my own eyes. She threw the ball to me and I got a chance to be her husband. Then I dressed in traditional wedding clothes and “married” her. It was an unforgettable memory in my life. Before getting married in my country I could get married in China.
Got a new name from a little girl
During my stay in China, I visited about 15 provinces and closely touched the events of the vast and diverse Chinese culture. When I was in Beijing, I used to go to Ritan park twice per day. Once I was studying Chinese at the park a little girl came to me and tried to talk with me in her broken English. She came to Beijing with her mother for medical treatments. She helped me to study Chinese and I helped her to study English. The most important thing was that she gave me a new name such as “Davei” (David). After I was expressing this incident to our Chinese teacher then she also called me Davei until I returned to my home country.
The Visit to Xiamen
A visit to Fujian province was also another milestone in my China life. As I heard the Fujian province had an important role in the ancient Silk Road. Also, Fujian has four UNESCO world heritage sites such as ‘Wuyi Mountain’, “Earthen houses(Tulou)”, “Kulangsu” and “Danxia”. Fortunately, I got a chance to visit Kulangsu island from Xiamen.
I would like to thank the Chinese government, Mr. Yu Lei who was the Director of the China Asia Pacific Press Center (CAPPC) and its all staff members, the Renmin University of China, and Ms. Nini who got my attention to this competition.
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