Asia is a country after all

Two questions popped up when I read about budget cuts for universities and how Leiden University is planning to cut costs: How is it possible to even consider merging all these specialized language studies in bigger regional programs? Would they even consider this for any STEM programs? But first, some context about my experience studying Chinastudies in Leiden.

Although I get asked from time to time if I am a student, that time is long gone. And looking at the recent developments and policy proposals in the education sector, I am happy to be done (for now). At the same time, it is a pretty wild idea that there seem to be people working to not improve our education system. Why is that?

Being adopted and going to China at quite a young age, I already knew for a while before going to university that I wanted to study Chinese. Starting in the year after China hosted the Olympic Games, Chinastudies offered a new window onto China and many others on the region as well. Coming from a small city in Limburg, it was the start of seeing more people like me and getting talked to in English. It was the start of uncovering a history, culture and language that felt foreign but eventually became familiar. It was the start of imagining a life beyond the Netherlands and actually blending into a different environment.

During my studies, I would often get the question of what work I wanted to do afterwards. The suggestions mostly were translator or teacher. I understand that there are some studies which train you for a specific job, but the beauty of humanities is that it offers skills that can be useful in a wide range of job fields and positions. That does not mean I did not struggle with finding work, or that I think this aspect could be better incorporated in the curriculum, but it seems these are not the more practical matters that universities want to focus on.

Recently, I listened to a podcast that described Just-In-Time production, which in modern marketing terms would be called ‘lean’. It basically means that factories only produce as much as they need and keep inventory as low as possible. This means the entire output is customer- or demand-driven, which seems to be a system that Leiden University wants to follow as well. Why offer academic programs that nobody wants to study? Why not shrink the number of staff to just the bare minimum? Why focus on the quality of a program instead of the money it generates?

The ignorance that Leiden University’s management shows by even considering to merge so many different humanities programs, is outright insulting. It is a clear case of undervaluing the worth that academic language and culture programs provide and purely looking at cost-effectiveness. Why try to pretend otherwise?

When I was living in China, or travelling in the country nowadays, I realized many Chinese do not know the Netherlands exist. Admittedly, it does not help that the Chinese name for the Netherlands sounds a lot like a province (Helan vs Henan) and I do not like Dutch either. But adding Europe would often elicit some nodding and affirmative noises. “Ah I see, it is in Europe”, was the general feeling I got. “Ah I see, it is in Asia”, is the general feeling I now get from Leiden University’s management.

Travel tidbits: Shanghai

Having traveled in China and Taiwan for the first time since 2020, I have some thoughts. The past 4,5 weeks showed me many things that remain the same, have changed hugely or did not notice as much before. I will put some of these into words in my next few posts.

When I moved to Shanghai, I ended up quite liking the city but not loving it as I did Beijing. Returning to it this year, I appreciated its qualities a lot more, although I have reservations about its future as well.

As a focal point for international business, Shanghai feels more relaxed and in a sense ‘less Chinese’ than many other cities. Compared to the increased focus on security in Beijing, the difference was even clearer this time. There were foreigners on the streets quite regularly, and we even saw a group of them on a city tour of some kind.

Although I knew it, I was still surprised at how little I recognized of the city. The street names rang familiar, but the buildings and actual restaurants and shops were all replaced. It is weird to self-doubt your memory as you walk around, when some key buildings still exist but everything around it changed. Or did it never even exist?

Going around the city, I did feel the city’s fabric actually being partly redesigned. I took a look around the neighborhood where I used to guide food tours, and it was totally closed off. Surprisingly, the prison there (Hongkou District), seemed to have expanded, although I did not check if it is on the map now (it was not on a Chinese map before) and maybe it has gotten a different purpose, although the thick walls and razor wire ensured a not-so-friendly impression. The actual houses though, caleld Shikumen in Chinese, were all closed and any entrance gates fully sealed off. It made me kind of sad to remember the hustle and bustle that used to be around here, the good food and snacks that will be impossible to get here anymore.

And this was not the only neighborhood in this state. Another Shikumen around Yu Garden was in the same state. I understand wanting to renovate the areas or possibly redeveloping them to make room for highrise to create more housing. However, seeing the state of China’s real estate market I am doubtful that this large-scale development will end up profiting the general public. It seems more of it is destined for commercial use, judged by information on the tarps at Yu Garden, which I do not think is a good trade-off for the city, nor its residents.

Besides these old parts being closed for redevelopment, there was another shopping mall I used to go to that was completely derelict. It looked like it got flooded or otherwise damaged, but still accessible and on the maps as well. Seeing old photos of it gave me an especially melancholic feeling. So there were some nice surprises about Shanghai, but also some worrying developments pointing to its future. It seems to have retained a bit more of its character, but is still going through plenty of change.

Travel tidbits: Beijing

First, I will make a comparisons between the cities that I went to and the cities I remember. And of course, the most prominent one among these is Beijing.

Having lived there for almost 3 years, I have a certain soft spot for it. The convenient grid-like structure, while still being able to wander around in the hutong alleys. Its megalomaniac official buildings that exist next to ramshackle or improvised architecture. The mix of old and new, a certain liveliness and rough personality that the city exemplifies.

Thus, it was quite shocking to realize how much of it changed. Gone are the food stands on the streets, everything is in a little shop. Worker’s Stadium is completely cleaned up without any clubs or drunk people hanging out near it. At one entrance there is a Michelin-star restaurant, quite the opposite of how it used to be. Gone are many dirty and messy corners in the city centre that would contrast with the glitz and glamour of the malls. Now everything is commercialized, shiny and new. How could you want it any other way.

Part of the hutong alleys remains the same, luckily. The redevelopment seems to be more focused on actually improving living quarters, than bulldozing anything that seems old. The quiet of the hutongs, compared to the noise at the big boulevards is still immediate and remains a huge contrast. The splendor of highlights such as the Forbidden City, Summer Palace and Great Wall is not diminished, but the city itself seems to have been reeled in. The metro has guards actively patrolling and commenting on behavior. Every ticket needs to be booked on your passport or ID. There are noticeably less foreign faces on the streets.

If I seem overtly disappointed, it is probably nostalgia speaking. I am not saying Beijing is not interesting or special anymore. It is just a whole lot different from how I remember it being. There is a reason I used to come back to Beijing that often when I already lived in Shanghai. I am not sure there are as many reasons now for me to keep coming back.