Chen Long

Sarah Pattisall

January 7, 2011

Human Geography/Mr. Wojo

My Interview with Chen Long.

Chen Long is my neighbor.

Q: Where are you from?

A: I am from Beijing, China.  It is one of the biggest cities and it is kind of like your New York.

Q: Did you like it in Beijing?

A: I was young when I lived there and I remember it was too busy for me.  Maryland is a lot calmer and I like it more.

Q: When and why did you move to the United States?

A: My dad’s company was expanding and wanted to partner with major corporations in the United States so he had to relocate, I was in the third grade at the time. 

Q: Where did you go to school?

A: My mom homeschooled me for a year and taught me English. 

Q: So your mom knows English well?

A; My mom is American and she met my dad on business, and then moved with him to China so she knows English really well.

Q: Was it hard to learn English at first?

A: It wasn’t too hard because my mom had taught me a little bit of English over the years but I had to work hard to speak fluently.

Q: Do you feel like you have benefited from learning English?

A: Yes, I do.

Q: In what ways do you feel like you have benefited?

A: I’m really glad I learned English because I think one day I want to work for my dad’s company who does a lot of work with both United States and China so it’s good to have both of the languages and cultures, plus it is really cool to be bilingual.

Q: Do you speak Chinese or English with family and friends?

A: I speak Chinese at home and with my friends I speak English.

Q: Why?

A: Because my parents don’t want me to lose my heritage so we speak Chinese with each other on a regular basis.  My friend’s first language is English so I speak English with them.

Q: What about your friends from China?

A: We kind of lost touch which is sad but the people I still talk to we speak in Chinese and I try and teach them a little bit of English.

Q: Do you go back to visit China a lot?

A: When I was younger my family did a lot but we don’t as much anymore.  I think we are planning a trip this summer so I’m very excited!

Q: Are you glad you came to the United States?

A: I am but some days I imagine how much different my life would’ve been in China and I’m not sure if I would rather have grown up there.

Q: Where do you go to school now?

A: C. Milton Highschool.

Q: Do you like it there?

A: I like it a lot and I have a lot of friends there because we went to the same middle school.

Q: Is school here a lot different from school in China?

A: Well my school was definitely a lot bigger, but I don’t remember it too well.  There weren’t many differences, but as you get older the schools get bigger and the education system is really difficult.

Q: Do you have any friends at your school who are Chinese?

A: Yeah there are a few, but I don’t know them too well but we’ve talked before, just in English though.

Q: Do you have any relatives who still live in China?

A: My mom’s side of the family lives in Illinois, but my dad’s side is all from Beijing.

Q: Do they ever come to visit you?

A: They try to every now and then, but my dad isn’t very close with them.  Whenever we go to China we visit.

Q: Since you are raised culturally diverse do you ever find it hard to fit in with other people?

A: Sometimes I get the feeling people judge me because of my accent and my heritage but that’s their problem not mine.  If they’re going to feel that way and not bother getting to know me then their opinion doesn’t matter to me.

Q: What was it like when you first came to America?

A: I was so excited but pretty nervous at the same time.  I was upset about leaving my friends but the idea of moving somewhere totally new seemed like lots of fun.

Q: Next time you go to China can you bring back pictures?

A: Yeah, definitely!

Thanks for your time!