Santa Ana del Pilar is a very small town situated a few miles north of the city of Torreón in the state of Coahuila, northern Mexico. Spread over a semi-deserted area, Santa Ana del Pilar offers flat views of the dried landscape with some hills lining the distance. This simple, slow-paced village was the home for Isaac during his younger years. Isaac comes from a place founded by several groups of immigrants coming from different parts of the world, among these were British, Germans, French, Arabs, Chinese, and Spanish. After many years, from the time the first settlers arrived in Torreón, the town was finally raised to city status in 1907 becoming one of the youngest cities in Mexico. It is said that the reason why the city of Torreón does not have the typical colorful bright paintings on its buildings, as it’s seen in other cities in Mexico, it’s due in part to being a city of immigrants. One peculiarity of the region is that the people and the area are known as “Laguneros ” or Comarca Lagunera, meaning the Area of the Lagoon. Surprisingly there is no such lagoon anywhere in the area since it lies on arid land.
And from this interesting region to the land of many wonders, the chance for Isaac to move to China came in 2019. He came to serve as an English and Spanish instructor at a language school in the city of Dongguan, in the province of Guangdong. And as it happens at times in the life of many foreigners in China, Isaac found himself in an interesting set of circumstances when he was called to be part of Chinese film production: The Battle at lake Changjin. This film recently became a box office success in the country. Isaac enjoyed this unique experience and doesn’t close the possibility to do more work in this area in the future.
With almost three years in the country, one of the most challenging things Isaac had to experience was the early times of the pandemic in China. Having to isolate for quite some time, not being able to work regularly, not having a steady income, and the readjustment to a new way of living were some of the things Isaac had to learn to adapt. But as it has been the case for most of us, Isaac managed to make it through and things have been coming along ever since.
Coming from Latin America where the culture of greeting friends and relatives means a hug or a kiss is something Isaac has learned to leave behind while being in China, where greeting people has a more conservative approach compared to that of his culture. On the other hand, Isaac has embraced the uniqueness China has to offer and is grateful to be able to see, feel, and live a culture that has been enriching for him. Living in the city of Dongguan, capital of one of China's major provinces Guangdong, has helped Isaac to stay connected to his native culture as he can enjoy Mexican food at some restaurants in the city. He also discovered the great benefits of shopping through TaoBao (one of China’s major online shopping sites) and has been able to get products from Mexico. As far as speaking Mandarin, Isaac says that with the little Mandarin he knows, he can get by easily, but still plans to learn the language properly. Cantonese is another language commonly spoken in Guangdong, but he finds it even harder than Mandarin. For now, he is happy enough to enjoy the music of a Chinese band, which Isaac likes very much, called Beyond and whose music is mostly in Cantonese.
The joy of living in this country and the unique opportunities people can find has made a good impact on Isaac’s experience of China. Despite being far from home and family, his main focus is to take the positive things that come day by day. Isaac says his mother taught him to live and enjoy the present, which is something that has stuck with him to this day. Isaac wants those who wish to experience China to not hesitate and go for it. He says the China we all know on the other side is nowhere near The China you will get to know once you make it here. “ you will be surprised to find the true China that awaits here, in my case I was pleasantly surprised”, he concluded.
