Hello everyone.
From now on, I’ll start sharing my experiences in China: the places I explored, the journeys I took, and the stories that stayed with me.
I spent two years living in China, and I’ve only just left the country. Those years were intense, challenging, and incredibly formative. I studied at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, one of the top four universities in China, where I completed a Master’s degree in International Business. It was a demanding academic experience, but also one that pushed me to grow in ways I never expected.
Unfortunately, I lost all the photos I had from the university campus. I still don’t know how it happened, and it’s a real pity because the campus itself is beautiful, vast, green, modern, and full of life. Even without the photos, it remains a place tied to long study days, late evenings, friendships, pressure, and personal growth.
What I didn’t lose, though, are the memories, and many photos from the city and from my travels across China. Shanghai itself is endlessly fascinating: futuristic and traditional at the same time, chaotic yet organized, overwhelming but magnetic. I still have many pictures from different areas of the city, and I’ll be sharing them on my next posts.
Beyond Shanghai, I traveled extensively. I visited Chongqing, Xi’an, Suzhou, Hangzhou, Changsha, Guilin, and also Hong Kong and Shenzhen. Each city had its own rhythm, culture, and personality. And each one taught me something different about China and about myself.
In the coming days and weeks, I’ll start posting my journeys one by one, sharing stories, reflections, and moments from these places. This won’t just be a travel diary, but a way to unpack what living, studying, and moving through China for two years really meant.
Now...let's focus on today's topic: "How does a campus of a Chinese university look like?".
Let's start from the library, one of the main ones on campus. It’s a seven-story building, with seven different levels, and from the top floor you can see almost the entire campus. It was one of my favorite places: quiet, warm, and cosy. Some people went there to study seriously, others to use their computers, and sometimes… just to rest or even fall asleep between classes. It was one of those spaces that made university life feel balanced.
This is just one of the libraries, actually there’s another one just as big on campus, which says a lot about the academic environment at SJTU.
This is another library on campus, and it’s just as impressive. Huge, modern, and always busy, a place where thousands of students studied every day. Nearby, you can see one of the massive parking areas for electric bikes and bicycles. It’s hard to imagine the scale unless you see it in person: rows and rows of bikes, reflecting how central this kind of mobility is to daily life in China.
Next, we have the main football stadium, with “SJTU” written clearly on it. Right next to it's the basketball stadium. Our basketball team ranked top eight in the entire Chinese university league, which was a huge achievement. The level of competition was extremely high, and seeing that standard up close was inspiring.
In one of the photos, you can even see me playing American football, training on a smaller football pitch. Sports were a big part of campus life, and there was always space to move, train, and stay active.
In the background of another area, there’s the building where I attended my Chinese language classes, a place tied to a lot of effort and small victories.
The main street of the university often came alive with events and fairs. Sometimes it was a job fair, sometimes a cultural event, other times something simple like a Christmas fair. These moments brought everyone together and made the campus feel like a small city of its own.
This part of the campus is also where my Management and Economics department is located. In some of the photos, you can see students outside wearing their graduation gowns, celebrating the end of a long academic journey before the official ceremony. It was always a special atmosphere, full of pride, relief, and excitement for what comes next.
One interesting detail about my department is that Yao Ming, NBA Hall of Famer and global basketball icon, also studied here and there is a big portrait of him in the hall.
This is the food from my university cafeteria. Honestly, it was much better than many people would expect. Meals were always rich in vegetables, balanced, and full of fiber. Simple, nourishing, and surprisingly enjoyable, it made daily life on campus easier and healthier.
Above the cafeteria, there was also a small bar-style space. One time, I joined a coffee latte art lesson there, where they taught us how to pour and create basic latte art. I’ll be honest, I’m not very good at it yet, and my result definitely didn’t come out as planned, but it was fun, and I’ll keep practicing.
Finally, there’s one of the oldest buildings on campus, dating back to 1896, the year the university was founded. Surrounded by modern structures, this building stands as a reminder of how deep the history of Shanghai Jiao Tong University really is.
And this brings this chapter to an end.
Stay tuned, because in the next posts I’ll be sharing all the stories, experiences, and journeys from the many cities I explored across China. There’s a lot more to tell.
