More than 80 expatriates living in Wenzhou, a coastal city in East China's Zhejiang Province, have been telling the world stories about Wenzhou, Zhejiang and China via social-media and short-video platforms. The friends' posts, vlogs and short videos have reached hundreds of millions of people around the world. Many of the expatriates have said they want more people to fall in love with China, or, at least, that they would like more people to know the real China.

The Real China

What is China like? Maybe there is 1,000 Chinas, a different China in 1,000 people's eyes. Alexander Charles Grubb, from the United Kingdom, thinks China is interesting. He has been living in Wenzhou for more than eight years, and he says he has been enjoying his life in Wenzhou. Percy David Papa Akuetteh, from Ghana, is happy to be living in China. He has travelled around the city, making vlogs and music videos. Sumayyah Hosany, from Mauritius, thinks China is amazing. She says it is fantastic when one of her videos is viewed more than 250,000 times.

Akuetteh, who moved to China in 2010, believes what he sees more than the image of China created by some Western media. He earned his Ph.D from Wenzhou Medical University. He married a Wenzhou woman. They have a daughter. 

Akuetteh considers Wenzhou his second hometown. He and his friends have established a music band, and they have posted their music recordings on overseas video websites and social-media platforms. They now have more than 10,000 followers online.

"More than 90 percent of netizens on overseas social-media websites have never been to China. Some of them have stereotypes about China, and they even deliberately attack China online. It is unfair that a well-meaning country has been misinterpreted. I hope the content I post online can help them understand the real China," Akuetteh says.

In 2016, to help nearly 700,000 overseas people whose ancestral home is Wenzhou and who have been living outside of China know and understand their hometown, local authorities invited more than 60 overseas Chinese to become "overseas communicators," to introduce the city's customs, culture and development to people around the world. Later, foreigners living in Wenzhou were invited to participate.

In 2018, Wenzhou Overseas Communication Center, a nonprofit organization, was established. The center now has more than 300 overseas communicators, including more than 80 foreigners.

"They hail from more than 20 countries and regions, including the UK, Spain and South Africa, and they come from different walks of life — students, teachers, businessmen, company employees, among others. They have a fairly good understanding of China, and they are an important bridge of communication between China and the rest of the world," Xu Penghuai, who is in charge of the center, says.

Hosany moved to Zhejiang in 2003 to pursue further studies. She is a surgeon at Wenzhou Panhealth Medical Center. At the height of the COVID-19 epidemic, in February 2020, she volunteered to take the temperatures of motorists at an expressway exit, and to also take swabs from them for nucleic acid tests.  

While witnessing China's professionalism and efficiency in the fight against the virus, Hosany began making short videos to explain China's prevention and control practices and policies. "Whatever your opinions on China, you should first see what this country is like, and listen to the Chinese people," she says.

Hosany has become an Internet celebrity in Mauritius. Thanks to her short videos, people in her home country are learning about China.

Window to Understanding China

The foreigners involved in the project never worry about a lack of short-video materials; instead, they feel their lives are windows that allow the rest of the world to look into and understand China.

Grubb enjoys rural life in Wenzhou. Earlier this year, he visited Xialiang, a village in Ouhai District, to shoot a series of short videos, titled "Rural Life Diary." While making those videos, he learned how to make local delicacies and handmade paper, and he chatted with the senior villagers as if they were old friends. He has more than 7,000 followers on YouTube, and more than 71,000 followers on Douyin (TikTok in China). His 60-plus short videos posted on Douyin have been viewed more than 3 million times combined.

"Netizens in foreign countries do not know the life in rural Wenzhou, and they think rural China is poor and backward. But through my lens, they find that it is not the case at all. Rural China has both a modern lifestyle and traditional culture. My videos change their original impression, and arouse their curiosity," Grubb says.

Ergashev Akmal, from Tajikistan, began sharing his life in Wenzhou online last year. "I am a postgraduate student in Wenzhou. I want to show the world an interesting and colorful China. At first, my family members and friends didn't understand why I chose to study in China. But now, they enjoy watching my short videos, and they also urge me to update my vlog every day. Our life is the best China story," he says.

Communicating with Respect, Inclusiveness

"China respects different languages and cultures, and China is very inclusive," Hosany says.

In December 2021, the center invited her to experience She ethnic culture in Fengyang She Township, where most of the residents are of the She ethnic group. "The Chinese Government cares about ethnic minorities, and it supports them in preserving their own cultures and traditions. That is the fact we see," she says.

Says Xu: "We don't have restrictions on what they post online, and we encourage them to talk about what they see with their own eyes. Only when we communicate with each other, in an inclusive and respectful manner, can people feel that China is open and friendly."

To help foreigners have a better understanding of China, the center has organized various cultural and economic activities for them, including visiting residents, participating in traditional festivals, and experiencing various intangible cultural heritage projects.

Jennifer, from Angola, is a student at Wenzhou University. "I and six of my friends, from South Africa and Zimbabwe, formed a music band, New Beginnings. We have released an original song, I Love Wenzhou, which has made us popular online. It is not easy to find a place that accepts you in a foreign country. But in Wenzhou, we feel the warmth of family, which is why we wrote the song," she says. 

"I think music is a good way to communicate and to express our emotions freely. Over the past two years, I have often told stories about my life in Wenzhou through music. We love Wenzhou, and we want to make our voices heard in the world."

Alexandra Dobrynina didn't know anyone when she arrived in Wenzhou, in 2017, to start a business. She joined a running club, and in short time she made many friends, with whom she shared common interests. 

"I see people's eagerness to communicate. Many people say hello to me when I pass by them. I'd like to share my stories, so the world can feel the warmth and energy of the Chinese people I meet along the way. This is what it's really like to live in China," she says.

Photos Supplied by Interviewees and Wenzhou Overseas Communication Center

(Source: Zhejiang Daily/Women of China English Monthly August 2022 issue)