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| Jinmei Lu with Mae and Emma Copley at the headwaters of the Mississippi River in Itasca State Park. |
Sauk Centre — Jinmei Lu's visit to rural Minnesota was filled with surprises.
Lu is a senior reporter and anchor woman for the English news channel of the Shanghai Broadcasting Network in Shanghai, China.
When she signed on for a four month fellowship through Macalester College and the World Press Institute, she didn't know what to expect from the two weeks she would be spending in rural Minnesota.
"I expected desert plains, very remote and harsh. I didn't think there would be so many lakes, that it would be so green and the people so welcoming and so knowledgeable about foreign affairs," said Lu.
She also didn't expect to meet two Chinese girls.
Last Thursday, Lu was a guest of Jim and Teresa Copley and their two Chinese daughters, Mae and Emma at Itasca State Park.
Upon first seeing Lu, three-year-old Emma shouted, "Get out, get out". Lu was the first Chinese person Emma met since coming to Minnesota.
By the end of the day, the two girls didn't want Lu to leave.
Lu agreed to become a pen pal for Mae and Emma.
Mae said she wanted to learn more of her native country and hopefully to speak Chinese some day.
Lu taped an interview with the Copley's to be broadcast in China.
"It was very moving to meet these little girls living here with all these light haired, blue-eyed Scandinavian-German people. It was moving to see how wonderful their lives are here and how wonderful their parents are," said Lu.
Lu was also surprised to visit an Amish farm and talk with Dr. Susan Rutten who treats many of the Amish.
"It is hard to believe there are people in this most advanced nation preferring to live without modern technology. We have people living in remote areas of China without electricity and things but that isn't because they choose to."
In Ely, Lu and the eight other WPI fellows participated in an Outward Bound course and put on a forum for local people to ask questions of the international panel.
"I was impressed with how much the people in Ely know about China and the other countries represented in our group. I found most of the people I met in Minnesota to be both knowledgeable about foreign affairs and very hospitable," said Lu.
Lu said, "I am often asked about government censorship. All of our media are state-owned, but there is some new investment in private enterprise. We are testing the limits of our independence and freedom.
"We have more and more stories covering corruption, so it's improving. I think journalists everywhere are fighting for freedom. Even here, you can be pressured by culture and patriotism."
Lu was also surprised to see how large our homes are and how much land we have. She spent three days with a farm family near Farwell where she rode horse and an ATV.
Shanghai is a city of 16 million people and she lives on the 28th floor of an apartment complex.
She was impressed with the way Minnesotans like to do things for themselves such as build and repair their own homes rather than hire the work done.
She noted how China is beginning to see the benefits of having a free market economy versus a planned economy.
The Chinese economy has been growing at eight percent a year. Currently they produce 80 percent of the shoes sold in the United States as well as much of our clothing and furniture.
"We believe we can achieve the goals of Communism through a free market. We are exploring our own way to a new China. We need to increase our abundance of wealth before we can end poverty and class.
"Deng Xiao Ping said it doesn't matter whether you have a black cat or a white cat as long as the cat catches mice," added Lu.
The transformation from a planned economy to a free market economy has caused some growing pains. As the government gets out of some industries many employees have been left jobless until they can find work in the growing private sector.
Lu will be in the United States another three months traveling coast to coast with eight other fellows visiting news, government and business entities.
The 30-year-old journalist was also surprised to learn the true birthplace of all America was in Alexandria with its statue of Big Ole.
