Hello, I’m Harriet and I’ve just arrived from rainy old London to intern at the InternChina Chengdu Office for 3 months!
Although it’s not my first time in China, as I have spent some time working in Shanghai in the past and studied at Beijing Normal University, it wasn’t until I was lucky enough travel to Chengdu last year for the Generation UK 2 week program, that I realised how special a city Chengdu really is. I knew I wouldn’t be able to keep away for long…

I graduated last summer from SOAS in Chinese and Economics and began to work at a business consultancy. It was interesting and I definitely learnt a lot, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was missing out on being somewhere really exciting.

Chengdu isn’t like many other cities; in the early noughties western regions of China started to receive funding as a part of the ‘Develop the West’ initiative, and the effects can really be felt in Chengdu – as China’s Eastern coast slows, Chengdu buzzes with high levels of growth and this can be seen everywhere; new buildings seem spring up overnight and exciting start-ups flock to  the high-tech zone. But that’s not the only thing that makes Chengdu special.

Despite the booming economy, the pace of life here remains relaxed, everyone is pretty chilled out. The food – which is hot and spicy and tingles with Sichuan pepper, was almost enough alone to persuade me to come back!

So when I landed on Sunday night, and was met by Cassie from the airport who took me to my apartment in a really bustling part of Chengdu, and we tucked into a big feast of yúxiāngqiézi (fish flavour aubergine) and huíguōròu (twice cooked pork) I couldn’t help but feel very lucky! I’m really excited to start my internship at InternChina, I know I have a lot to learn from the great team here.

Do you want to experience how exciting interning in China can be first hand? Apply now!