Invitation as Scholar to China (Part 1) - Shanghai and Zhuhai

While my work and contributions were not appreciated at my last place of employment, I can say I experienced two amazing opportunities where my clinical, teaching, and research work were recognized and valued elsewhere. The first was in 2023 when I was invited as a visiting scholar to Brazil and the second was an invitation in September 2025 as visiting scholar to the Guangdong Pharmaceutical University in Guangzhou and the Macau Polytechnic University in Macau. I could not have imagined having such a privilege to cap off 35+ years of a career - it certainly was not something I ever anticipated back on the farm. And while China has been of cultural and historical interest to me, I had not added it to my bucket list - mainly due to distance and expense. So when an invitation came for me to present to graduate students and faculty on qualitative methodologies, provide a workshop on writing research manuscripts, and share my other academic expertise related to teaching and research, I was delighted to take the opportunity.

Before providing a day-by-day synopsis of my visit to the universities, it is important to put some context in place as to how this all evolved. One of my main reasons in going to the College of Nursing at the University of Manitoba was to further exercise my skills in research methodologies, particularly qualitative research, but also in systematic reviews and environmental scans. Presumably these goals were part of the reason I was hired but, ultimately, I was provided no support - in fact, I was never offered any opportunity use that knowledge and skills within the College of Nursing. And the one course related to systematic reviews I could have taught in the College of Nursing was scrapped during my 4th year there. Ironically, I was able to continue to work with associates through my connections at other universities to realize my goals resulting in a number of publications that academics from other institutions and countries have since cited. It was through these external networks that I ended up co-supervising the only PhD student during my 5 years at UM (graduate supervision was another goal I presented when applying to UM and that went unfulfilled - more about that later) and how I ended up going to Brazil. It was through another external connection at uOttawa that the opportunity for China availed itself with the work I had done and a strong reference from a collaborator there.

The invitation to present to the students and faculty in the graduate program of nursing at the Guangdong Pharmaceutical University initially came through Grace, a faculty member, who worked very hard to get the approvals and set up almost every detail of my trip - air travel, ground transfers, hotels, and schedule. Of course we did not realize at the time that a super typhoon, Ragasa, would sweep the area causing havoc with almost everything related to my schedule. Typhoon Ragasa resulted in sudden changes to presentation itineraries and transportation. In spite of this inconvenience, most things went off without a major hitch and Ragasa just added more excitement to my adventure! Not many people can say they experienced both an Atlantic hurricane and a Pacific typhoon.

The flight into China was from Vancouver to Shanghai and was over 12 hours duration but actually felt shorter than it was. I had bid on an upgrade to business class, that I got, as I still had to work on my presentations and workshop materials - mainly proofreading and tweaking, as the majority of content had been done. I was also traveling with the sun and so I did not feel an inclination to sleep; crossing the international date line also meant it was to be the shortest Thursday I have ever had.

The flight was uneventful and on time getting into Shanghai. I was hoping for a glimpse of the city, but unfortunately with our approach and my seat location my view was up the Yangtze River with all the ships and container ports as far as the eye could see. The airport was immense and, to my surprise, quite sparsely populated - I had thought as one of the busiest hubs in the East the airport it would be congested but this was not the case. And going through both immigration and customs was extremely efficient. Of course I had every document thinkable ready to go and in duplicate…proof of invitations, proof of departure, every address I was to stay at, contact information of everyone, professional license, everything. The only thing on my to-do list I did forget before leaving was to inform Canada Foreign Affairs of my departure. Oops!

The connecting flight from Shanghai to Zhuhai was a different matter - finding the process to check in proved to be a bit of “fun”. Figuring out where the local flight counters were was the first task and, although everything is signed in English, where to look was not very intuitive and the immensity of the airport did not help. Fortunately, there was an airport guide, a young man who spoke excellent English, who guided me in the right direction; I was to learn that most people I encountered in China were often eager to help, especially if I looked bewildered and lost. The next task was going through the local security process that was quite archaic in comparison to immigration and custom. There were four lengthy lines and people were waved in one at a time to, first, have all travel documents inspected, and then to do the security screening. Because of my laptop, iPad, external drives, and power bank, everything was looked at after X-ray, which I thought was odd given I was already in the country. As was explained to me later, internal security in China is a very serious thing and everything is monitored; indeed, there are cameras everywhere in addition to police and security guards. I suppose this is how a government can control its people, particularly when the population is 1.4+ billion. While inconvenient, I simply accepted it for what it was and, in the process, my external power bank was confiscated; it did not meet regulatory requirements…even though it was made in China. Even the security person smirked when he saw this - the irony of it all. 

Once through security it was easy enough to find the right gate and, initially, it looked like the flight would be on time. I was plenty early so I wandered around this part of the terminal for a bit of exercise and to explore the space that seemed very new. Again, the terminal seemed quite sparsely populated - perhaps due to the late afternoon timing on a Friday, but I would have thought that there would be much traveling ahead of the weekend. I waited patiently near the gate and then heard a murmur run through the crowd at the gate; everyone’s eyes were glued to their devices, presumably on the airlines’s app (I only had paper copies of my ticket). Eventually the flight information at the gate was updated to show a 45 minute delay. No big deal, given my experience of delays with Air Canada. So I went to a Starbuck’s located near the gate and ordered a matcha frappuccino, found a business area to charge my phone, and relaxed. When I went back to the gate, there was quite a stir in the crowd - the flight was further delayed another hour and the gate attendants, while apologetic (seriously…they have little control over these things) were taking a lot of heat from some vocal passengers. Clearly, anger and entitlement is an international thing, but I was surprised at this airing of discontent imagining that security might appear at any moment. When the next delay was announced, food and water was brought in as it was now well past supper time. We eventually left around 10:30 pm and when arriving in Zhuhai there was a very active storm front with some of the most spectacular lightning I have ever seen. Turns out that our delay was due to severe weather conditions, something that might have been communicated to quell the frustration of passengers.

Grace met me at the arrival gate, having no difficulty recognizing me - the only white person on the incoming flight made this task pretty easy, I should think. That would also be that guy coming through with plenty of luggage and who looked like he had been awake 30+ hours. We had only connected through emails at this point given we were 12 hours difference in time zones, but I already had the sense that Grace was delightful in the way she expressed herself. And, as it turned out, she was every bit as delightful and, yet, professional in person as I had imagined. Our flight being late did not seem to faze her and, after a brief welcome, we were off to meet her husband, James, who was circling the block in their car. Another thing in common with us in North America…forgo parking charges and circle until package ready for pick-up! But in China, there is not as much concern for automobile emissions as most private vehicles are electric and many of the local delivery trucks are, too.

Grace and James drove me to a lovely hotel in Zhuhai located in a very modern looking area of the city. Unlike most hotels, the main access was through the parkade rather than on the main level. In fact, the entrance to the hotel was off a small plaza lined with many small outdoor restaurants and markets. In the morning I was to appreciate the varied aromas of the plaza from very pleasing to not so much. And it was in one of these restaurants that I would have my complementary breakfast - certainly not the typical continental fare one would expect but, rather, an adventure in fortitude for this fussy eater. But, surprisingly, I did well and passed the chopstick test, much to the amusement of the proprietors. The fare was basic, including an egg crepe, traditional tea egg, and a cup of hot soya milk. As for the hotel room, it was amazing - king-sized bed, spacious resting area, built in adapters for USBs, and a lighted, automatic flush toilet with seat warmer. Who could ask for anything more?

Zhuhai is a developing city with huge skyscrapers for both business and condos, and incredibly wide boulevards for vehicle traffic with parallel lanes for cyclists, scooters, and pedestrians. Lights were synchronized to provide a very precise countdown for regular and pedestrian traffic, and traffic stopped for pedestrians. Almost everywhere I would go in the next week, traffic was fluid with no congestion; a surprise given the immediate areas around Zhuhai and Macau have a population of about 5 million people. The hotel was located close to a seawall promenade along a canal that separates Zhuhai and Macau. On my first morning I went for a power walk along the promenade to appreciate the views across the water and get a sense of the area. It was peculiar to see a walkable path along the water separated from the cycling path with a fence and razor wire, and then to also see armed border patrols. In time I would learn that Macau, a Special Administrative Region of China (similar to Hong Kong), is treated as a distinct territory…complete with customs and immigration security that goes both ways. To me this was quite fascinating, since there is a fairly free flow of pedestrian traffic at the border portals. However, whereas I needed a visa to enter China, a Canadian only needs a valid passport to enter either Macau or Hong Kong.

I was to enjoy Zhuhai for two days to allow me to adjust to the time zone, finish my presentations, and to just take in a bit of the Chinese culture. For the most part, I found Zhuhai to be very modern and progressive similar to Canada. Technology is everywhere, in many ways outpacing even our use of it in daily life. For instance, entry of vehicles to parking lots, parkades, EV charging areas, and highway tolls is mainly done through license plate readers. Personal devices are as pervasive, if not more so, for almost everything - they use WePay, WeChat, and other apps for almost every interaction. Our social media outlets are not allowed in China, but I was able to use my VISA tap most everywhere or pay cash (this was rarely used by others but I had come well-stocked with yuan). The infrastructure in Zhuhai and all the cities is incredibly advanced, including everything from the transportation systems to highways and use of EVs. Another thing that stood out for me was the vast array and individuality of some of the architecture; while some of the condo complexes drew on identical styles for its multiple buildings, many individual buildings were unique and esthetically appealing. And above all, the sheer size of almost everything was evident - everything seemed to convey strength.

And it was at this time that the forecast of Super Typhoon Ragasa was becoming a dominant theme. For whatever reason, I was not particularly alarmed - perhaps because it was still a few days away or maybe because I could see that the Chinese authorities were taking the situation very seriously. Or, perhaps, having experienced Hurricane Dorian in New Brunswick, I was naively complacent. In any case, plans were already in the works to handle transportation routes and trees were either being braced, literally with supportive structures, or trimmed to decrease the foliage and debris from wind damage. Whatever the case, I knew I would be in fairly modern and/or well-built structures to withstand the potential typhoon impact. Maybe I had misguided trust but somehow I felt at peace for what was to come.