Starting in September 1993, I have been teaching at Sir Wilfred Grenfell College, Memorial University of Newfoundland. I was initially told that my application was turned down. But the college desperately dragged me in at the last minute because the one who had been offered the position declined. I had been collecting unemployment insurance for several months. As anyone would expect, therefore, I was also desperate enough to take it.

Newfoundland, or Terreneuve in French, translates to Xin (Newly Found, neuve) Jiang (Land, terre). It contains the easternmost spot of North America, and is claimed to be closer to London, England than to London, Ontario in central Canada. The university is located on the island of Newfoundland. The first day I landed on the island, I understood why the first guy refused to take the job. It's so isolated that I had a hard time getting daily access to Canada's only national newspaper. In the end, I simply gave up getting newspapers on Sundays and Mondays. You don't need a great imagination to see the poverty of this province. Just look at the data from StatsCan: it's the province with the lowest average revenue and the highest unemployment rate. That's to a large degree related to the ecological crisis that seriously affected the fishery, the biggest employer of the province. Being remote, isolated, and poor, it's certainly the "Xinjiang" of Canada. Yet real life in such an underdeveloped place did go beyond my imagination.

Image: A bird's-eye view of St. John's and the inner harbour from the Signal Hill, where many bloody battles between the British and the French unfolded down the centuries.

It also went beyond my ability to describe the beauty of this island. The undisturbed natural environment on this island is just magnificent, striking, inspiring... What other words can I use? Probably you won't believe it until you see my photo albums. If it were not for the transportation, it certainly would draw many more vacationers, who are already providing a significant portion of the revenue of the province. I was astonished to read in the encyclopedia that Newfoundland has the lowest forest coverage (one third) in Canada. This must not be true in the west of this island, where I live.

Image: A colourful moment in Corner Brook. Peaceful road shaded with sunny warmth.

I live in Corner Brook, the cultural centre of the west island and the second largest city in "Xinjiang." The town has a population of 20,000, less than one fifth that of our "village" (ZhongGuanCun) in Beijing. Naturally people in such a small town are friendly and courteous. As one of the visible minority, however, it can sometimes be embarrassing to be "noticed" everywhere you go. The ethnic composition on this island is so pure that I've never seen any black people here. I am also told that there are eight Chinese families (about 30 people) in town, each running a restaurant. I haven't exhausted them. Not yet.

Image: The Humber Arm and Corner Brook Harbour receives several cruiser liners, and carriers from Montreal (Quebec) and Halifax (Nova Scotia). In the lower right part with wood stock and white steams is the paper mill, one of the three economic pillars in town. The other two are said to be the hospital and the university (i.e., Grenfell College). In the middle right is one of the three constitutive towns, Humber, of the City of Corner Brook. The other two being Curling and Corner Brook. After the latter the new city was named in 1956.

Probably I don't need to. Seafood here is abundant, and really fresh. Northern cod, a species that's no longer available in quantity, can still be found in the local market at a low price. I'm really interested to know how many of you have had tongues and cheeks of fish in pounds and kilograms. And cod is not nearly as big as shark, as you know. However, the supply of fresh vegetables is a real frustration. Now, how many of you have tasted turnip leaves? "Xinjiang" people call it "turnip green" or simply "green." Not the kind we Sichuan folks use to make pickles, though. I have to admit that I love this vegetable. It's a mistake that people in other areas don't eat it.

Not only are the veggies expensive, everything is. Everything I need, that is. After coming here, I began to realize why the UN pronounced Montreal to be the metropolitan city that was most suitable for living. Now my rent is 30% higher than in Montreal, and car insurance is almost 100% higher, in a town where the traffic only shows up between 8:00 AM and 8:30 AM. One thing is inexpensive though: houses. So if you are interested in a remote summer house, come here. But don't stay here in the winter.

Image: Pitcher plant, Newfoundland's provincial flower. It is best known as a carnival plant to the external world; but to me, its endurance to extreme environmental harshness best depicts the Xinjiang people - Newfoundlanders. Picture taken on Tablelands in Gros Morne National Park, a rocky mountain where few plants broom. The waxy cover over the whole body keeps water from evaporating away.