CHINA VLOG: An American Daily Life in China — Arriving in Beijing & Shijiazhuang
About this video
Leah's Diary shares the first chapter of her life in China, arriving in Beijing before settling in Shijiazhuang, Hebei. The video is a personal vlog that captures the mix of excitement and disorientation that comes with moving to a new country. She films the bustling streets of Beijing, where ancient hutongs sit beside modern malls, then shifts to the quieter, grittier vibe of Shijiazhuang. There are honest moments of confusion, like figuring out public transport or ordering food without knowing the language, balanced with small victories like making a local friend. The camera work is intimate, making viewers feel like they are right there with her. This is not a polished travel guide but a genuine diary of adaptation, perfect for anyone considering a similar leap.
Video transcript
I'm headed out to China. I'm really looking forward to this trip. It's been a few years since I've been to China, and last time when I was there, I definitely think I struggled with communicating a lot. I strongly remember trying to get some street food by myself and I had to ask the lady how much it was like five times because I just couldn't really understand what they were saying to me and all the numbers kind of get mixed together. So, I'm really interested to see how much I've improved. And as you can see, I have most of my bags packed here. I'm
basically ready to go. Now, I just got to wait for my flight tomorrow. Our long journey starts with the Boston metro system. You can take the metro, transfer to a bus, and eventually you'll end up at the airport. Airports are so exciting, especially if you have a long international flight ahead of you. It feels like time doesn't even exist. You're allowed to sit and watch TV for hours at a time and not feel guilty about it. I also love walking around all the duty-free shops. To be honest, I don't think the prices are that much different from normal
stores, but sometimes they have products that are exclusively sold at airports, so it's still worth a look. Now, we can finally board the plane. Chinese airlines are always so thoughtful with the things they give you on the flight. Socks, earplugs. >> Wait, what? That >> toothbrush. >> Toothbrush. >> See, they care about that. >> That's so rare. >> Wake me up. Wait, what the other side say? So cute. >> What if I don't want them? >> Do not disturb. You can choose based on your mood. >> This was by far the longest flight I've ever been on. Normally flying
from the US to China takes about 12 hours, but this time our flight flew 6 hours to Brussels where they stop for 1 and 1/2 hours getting gas. Then we fly another 11 hours to China. The food on the flight was okay. Nothing to write home about, that's for sure. They had a few different options, but I stuck with chicken and rice most of the time. >> We arrived in Beijing around 3:00 a.m., so going through customs and security was a breeze. Everything was very fast and efficient. My skin was definitely suffering, but that'll get better with time. So, right
now it's like 4:00 a.m. in Beetho. It's totally empty. And we're going to go see what we can get to eat. There are a lot of places that are actually open 24/7. Maybe we can get some McDonald's, Hobot, Hide. But let's just go see what we can get. Beijing station. >> I'm so excited to get on the subway or metro. >> No. >> What is it? >> Highspeed train. >> Oh, the train. I'm so excited. There's barely anybody here. And we figured there are a lot of things to eat and to do around here, but we might as well just get on the train and go home. And there are
also a lot of things to eat inside here. So, we're going to see what we can find here instead. We still hadn't bought a ticket, but there's a train about every 30 minutes, so we'll just take the earliest one. My favorite. Oh my gosh, it's not open. Otherwise, I would totally get some ice cream. As an American, I find the public transportation in China absolutely mindblowing. The high-speed train itself is very nice. Honestly, I don't think I've ever taken it before. maybe once or twice, but our trip is about a 200 mile distance and it only takes an hour.
That's amazing. I mean, when they say high-speed train, they aren't kidding. This thing travels at speeds ranging from 124 to 217 mph. And even at such high speeds, it's still very smooth and stable. I get very bad motion sickness, but I felt totally fine on the train. So, that's pretty impressive. Finally made it to my first stop. There's also a slogan I'd like to share with you guys. So nice. So close. Hob is your weekend choice. By this point, the sun had started to rise and getting my first real glimpses of China. Suddenly, the long journey felt
worth it and my appetite started to creep up on me. For breakfast, I immediately had some culture shock. I mean, can you believe this? Only 20 R&B. And we got so much breakfast food. We got some hulaang, which is a type of breakfast food from Hunan. We also have some tofu, tofu brain. Do you think this should be sweet or salty? Leave a comment and let me know. And I'm sure there are many different names for this, but here it's called tangal. It's fried dough stuffed with brown sugar. So, there's a bit of a crisp on the outside and the inside is soft and
bouncy. Sometimes jet lag has its benefits. If I wasn't suffering from jet lag, I would have never been able to get up at 6:00 a.m. and head out to the morning market. Here, there are so many local vendors selling fresh produce, snacks, and different ingredients. You can even see things being freshly prepared like this, which is similar to peanut butter, but it's made from sesame seeds. It goes great with noodles or hot pot. Let's get some breakfast before our next stop. This is a common breakfast food in northern China. It's a type of flatbread with an
interesting crispy texture inside. Shuajang is a second tier city in China and it has its own nickname which is international drang. I'm not sure where this name came from exactly, but it does feel like a pretty international city. You can get almost anything you want here and they have one of the biggest zoos in China. This was my first time going to a zoo in China and I was really shocked by how many animals they had and how active the animals were. They even had some animals I had never seen in person before. But the most exciting part was the pandas.
They were definitely bigger than I expected, but the rumors are true. They are very lazy animals. In total, we spent around 4 hours walking around in the cold, and we didn't even see everything the zoo had to offer. It's that big. If you can stand the cold, I definitely recommend going in the winter to avoid the large crowds. I hope you guys enjoyed coming along with me on this unique journey, and I'll see you all next time.
