At 8 a.m., the morning mist still lingered over Tonglu as 29-year-old Moroccan girl Cookie skillfully rode her blue shared electric bike through the streets, steadily entering the kindergarten gate. She came to Hangzhou two years ago and now works here as an English early childhood educator.
With eight years of experience in English education, she has taught in the educational systems of the UK, US, and Canada. By chance, she decided to come to China to pursue a brand-new cultural experience. "I've always wanted to feel what it's like to live in a foreign country," she said. "When I saw the position in Hangzhou, I almost thought it was a dream come true." For her, this place is not just a city, but the starting point of a wonderful journey across cultures and distances...
As a foreign teacher at a kindergarten, Cookie's classroom feels like a crossroads of multicultural exchange. When children ask about her hometown, she plays videos of Moroccan street scenes, showcasing the country's modern cities and vibrant life.
"The kids are surprised that 'Africa isn't just deserts,' just as I found China to be nothing like I had imagined when I arrived here—we share similar experiences," she says. In her view, education is not just about transmitting language but also about building bridges to break down stereotypes.
To the children, she is more like a "magic teacher": in class, she integrates lively African drum beats into English nursery rhymes, uses ancient pyramid legends to explain grammar structures, and occasionally brings out oolong tea cakes she picked up from Longwu Tea Garden over the weekend, leading Chinese children to experience the warmth of language through cultural collisions.
These cross-cultural teaching attempts have also inspired Cookie to develop a new understanding of education. She finds that the close collaboration between Chinese parents and teachers far exceeds her expectations: "We communicate in real time via WeChat groups and jointly design activity plans. Education is no longer a one-way transmission but a symbiosis of emotion and wisdom."
When Cookie first arrived in Hangzhou, she documented everything like a tourist with her camera. Today, she has become a storyteller of the community.
Once, she worried that small counties like Tonglu might limit her horizons, but she found that it offers both the convenience of a city and the tranquility of nature—with a half-hour train ride to downtown Hangzhou, she can enjoy the bustle of the city while relaxing in the mountains and waters of Tonglu.
On weekends, she often takes her adopted stray dog for a walk along the Fuchun River, where people always stop to play with the puppy. "People here are so kind to animals; they even proactively teach me how to say 'so cute' in Chinese," she says.
In Hangzhou, Cookie has experienced a "simple mode" of life: shared bikes, food delivery, mobile payments, instant translation... Even when she falls ill late at night, she can quickly buy medicine with her phone, which makes her feel warm and secure.
"Globalization is not about erasing differences, but about letting different civilizations converge like the Qiantang River and the Fuchun River." When talking about the future, Cookie plans to integrate Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) content into her English classroom design. "Just as I experienced in China, I hope to introduce China in a multi-sensory way. I believe that even from different continents, we can find resonance."
Standing by the Fuchun River, watching the mountains and river bathed in the glow of the setting sun, Cookie often marvels at the unique beauty of this city—where skyscrapers coexist with greenery, and the people are warm and reassuring. From a tourist to a member of the community, Cookie has redefined "home" in Hangzhou. When a foreigner transitions from taking photos for social media to putting down roots and growing, the city's inclusiveness and warmth have become the warmest narrative of the globalization era.