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Helen was indispensable. She stuck by me for two weeks getting everything organized with a fierce determination. In any country, there are things you need to set up to get by. This is even moreso in a heavily regulated bureaucracy like the People’s Republic of China. There often appeared to be a lack of transparency. I remember trying to locate a professor my advisor recommended contacting on campus. This was surprisingly difficult as I couldn’t find a staff directory for the university through which I could locate him. I don’t know if this was intentional, but it was strikingly different from North American universities where students could easily navigate departments.

Helen helped me quickly obtain a host of necessities. First, she got me a cellphone. An enormous number of things in China are done through smartphones. Next, she set me up with a Wechat account. Wechat is China’s version of Facebook. Everyone uses Wechat and Wechat combines elements of Facebook, Facebook Marketplace, Whatsapp and Uber. Bank accounts can be linked to Wechat and many people prefer to pay by Wechat and Alibaba, China’s answer to Amazon as counterfeit money is rife in China. Wechat and Alibaba provide incredibly quick ways to connect to people and information. Both use QR codes and one can network to people, websites, and bits of information with amazing speed. People were on the ready to whip out cellphones to scan codes like gunslingers in an old Hollywood Western. In this regard, China seemed at least a decade ahead of North America. Helen also helped me secure a bank account. In all these things, bank account, WeChat and cellphone, Helen’s relentless efforts helped me overcome bureaucratic resistance that would have otherwise sunk me. Thanks to her, I was ready for life in Chengdu.