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温州人把生意做向了世界,为什么后代却选择来中国发展?

 徒步者的收藏 2017-12-13

“移民二代”特别话题

在过去几十年,有一些人为了更好的发展机会,移民去到了国外。


而如今,他们的子女,却对中国这个遥远而又亲切的国度心生向往……


最近,咱们Global Times和一些“移民二代”聊了聊。





所谓“移民二代”,就是指那些从小和父母一起移民出国(甚至直接在国外出生)、获得外国国籍并在国外成长与接受教育的年轻华人们。


中国于他们,像是一个遥远的故乡,既陌生又熟悉。


但是……近几年来,选择回到中国发展的“移民二代”却急剧增加。


和当年离开的父母不同,他们非常看好中国的发展现状,对祖国的未来也充满信心。





今天的故事主角是她,一位祖籍温州的华裔荷兰人叶乐——





上个世纪30年代左右,叶乐的曾祖父去往欧洲,随后在荷兰经商定居。虽然移民国外,一家人的“温州血统”还在,经商的天赋没有落下,在当地做起了生意,日子过得还不错。





而这回,叶乐选择回到中国,来到上海闯一闯。


在她眼里,上海是座激情四射的城市,有许多的机会。她在此一待就是五年了……





她身上还有哪些故事?为什么会选择回中国创业?



戳视频听听她的讲述吧——








Third-generation Chinese-Canadian explains why he moved to Shanghai to start a career





Editor's Note 编者按



Decades ago, many Chinese people spared no efforts and expense to immigrate to developed countries in order to pursue a better life and more job opportunities. Their foreign-born offspring, however, are now attracted by China's rapid development and surging economy in order to realize the Chinese Dream their parents never had. The Global Times recently interviewed several 'third-culture' (foreign-born) Chinese who have recently returned to China for work. Cherlene Ye is our fifth interviewee.


几十年前,为了更好生活和前途,一批中国人苦心竭力移民到发达国家。如今,他们海外出生或长大的“移二代”孩子辈逆着父母年轻时闯荡的脚步、选择“回流”中国发展,追求着他们父辈不曾想过的中国梦。我们采访了几位这样的外籍华裔,今天的故事主角是叶乐。





'It was pretty easy to get used to the life here, even though I only speak a little Putonghua,' Cherlene Ye, a 30-year-old Chinese-Dutch who moved to Shanghai in 2013, told the Global Times.


“虽然我只会说一点普通话,但适应这里的生活对于我来说很容易,”30岁的华裔荷兰女孩叶乐说。


Ye was born, raised and educated in the Netherlands. She used to come to China every couple of years to visit her grandparents. 'I saw China becoming very different from what I saw 20 years ago,' she said.


叶乐的出生、成长和受教育都在荷兰。她曾经每隔几年都会来中国探望她的祖父母。“我能看到,中国变得和20年前非常不一样了,”她说。


After graduating from a Dutch college, she found a job in Amsterdam. But Ye soon started to think more and more about Shanghai, which she felt was bursting with far more opportunities than Europe.


大学毕业后,叶乐在阿姆斯特丹找了一份工作,但很快就开始考虑来上海,因为她觉得上海的机会比欧洲多得多。


'My brother was already living in Shanghai and said it was pretty cool, so I decided to come and check it out. I found it is so much cooler than Amsterdam,' she said.


“那时,我哥哥已经在上海了。他说上海特别好,所以我就决定过来看看。来了之后就发现,这里比阿姆斯特丹棒多了,”叶乐说。


Ye is currently working in digital marketing at an Australian company based in Shanghai. 'I am pretty satisfied with my job. It helps me maintain a comfortable lifestyle here,' she said.


叶乐目前在一家澳大利亚公司的上海办公室做数字营销。“我非常知足,因为这份工作可以让在上海生活得很舒适,”她说。



Different choices

不同时代不同选择



Ye's family is from Wenzhou of East China's Zhejiang Province. At home they spoke Wenzhou dialect, which is widely considered one of the most difficult in China to understand. 'My family and I speak better Wenzhou dialect than Putonghua,' she said.


叶乐一家祖籍浙江省温州市。他们在家里互相说温州话,这是中国最难懂的方言之一。“我家人和我的温州话都讲得比普通话好,”她说。


Her great grandfather on her mother's side immigrated to Europe in the 1930s in pursuit of business opportunities. After traveling through several countries including Italy, France and Germany, he finally settled down in the Netherlands.


上世纪30年代,叶乐的曾祖父去了欧洲寻找商业机会。走过意大利、法国和德国等国家之后,最终在荷兰定居。


In the 1980s, Ye's grandparents moved there along with all seven of their children, who were born in China, including Ye's mother. Ye's father had moved to the Netherlands at the age of 24 torun a business.


到了80年代,叶乐的外公带着自己的七个孩子也移民去了荷兰,其中就包括叶乐的母亲。叶乐的父亲在24岁的时候也去了荷兰发展。


'My great grandfather started as merchant selling candies. After that, the majority of our family members started restaurants around the Netherlands, but some began working in the textile industry in France and Italy,' Ye said.


“我曾祖父最开始是卖糖果。后来我的大多数家人开始开餐厅,也有一些去了法国和意大利,在纺织行业工作,”叶乐说


Ye's decision to return to China, however, didn't win any support from her parents at the very beginning.


然而,叶乐的父母一开始并不支持她来中国。


'They thought it was really weird that my brother and I wanted to come back, because they didn't see it as an opportunity for my generation,' she explained. 'But now they can understand, because China's economy is booming. There are a lot of foreigners looking for opportunities in China.'


“他们觉得我和哥哥的决定很奇怪,因为他们没觉得这是个好机会,”叶乐解释说。“但是现在他们可以理解了,因为中国的经济正在蓬勃发展。有很多外国人都来中国寻找机会。”


Ye contends that the elder generations of Chinese used to want to move West because that is where the opportunities once were, but now many among Ye's generation are going to or returning East for the same reason.


叶乐认为,老一辈的中国人移民去西方是因为以前西方机会多,而她这一代人来东方恰恰是因为现在这里机会多起来了。


'The mentality has turned around now, like a mirror,' she said.


“人们的思维方式变了,像镜子一样,”她说。



Adapting to local culture

适应当地文化



For foreigners who expatriate to other countries in search of adventures and opportunities, it can take time and effort to adapt to the local culture and customs.


对于旅居国外的人来说,要适应当地的文化和习俗是需要一些时间的。


But as Ye's family all maintained Chinese traditions at home, such as speaking the Wenzhou dialect and preparing Chinese dishes, Ye didn't suffer much culture shock upon arriving in Shanghai.


由于叶乐的家庭一直保持着中国的传统,比如说温州话,吃中国菜,叶乐来上海之后并没有觉得有什么文化上的障碍。


'It was easy for me because I am Chinese, and I have the cultural background already. Moreover, I still have family connections here, which makes it even easier to return to my roots,' she said.


“对我来说挺容易的,因为我本来就是华裔,而且我具有这样的文化背景。另外,我在这里还有家人,回到自己的根就更容易了,”叶乐说。


One thing about Shanghai that bothers Ye, however, is the turnover of its foreign population. As many of her friends and colleagues are expats, she expects that most will probably leave Shanghai after several years or less.


外籍人口的流动一直困扰着叶乐。她的许多朋友和同事都是外籍人士,大多数人在这里住几年之后就可能会离开。


'Living as an expat here, most people don't have families. Your friends are your family and your most important connections. But the turnover is really high, so a lot of friends you make will leave at some point,' she said. 'That is the downside.'


“大多数住在这里的外籍人士,在当地都没有家人。你的朋友就是你的家人和最重要的人际关系。但是因为流动性太高了,很多朋友到了一定的时间就会离开,这一点不适应,”叶乐说。


Ye thinks that the biggest difference between the East and the West is more about mindset.


叶乐认为,东西方的区别在于思维方式。


'Westerners are more scheduled, which means you have to do things in a certain way. But in China, you can do things very fast. If you work hard, you can get a lot of stuff done quickly,' she said.


“西方人严格地按照时间表生活,你必须在某个特定的时间里做某些特定的事情。但是在中国,你可以做得非常快。如果你努力点的话,你可以很快就把事情做完,”她说。


'Everything goes so much faster here. You have to hustle more. In the West, even small things take longer,' she explained.


“这里的节奏非常快,你必须更加努力。在西方,非常琐碎的事情也会花很长时间,”她说。


Ye said she still can lead a more 'spontaneous lifestyle' in Shanghai compared with in the Netherlands.


叶乐说,与在荷兰相比,她在上海也能够过一种更自如的生活。



Work, work, work

埋头苦干



Wenzhou people are famous in China for their good business sense and hard work. Ye agrees, saying that her family never complained about the challenges and difficulties they encountered when first arriving in Europe.


温州人因为灵敏的商业嗅觉和勤奋的态度在中国很有名。叶乐也这么认为,因为她的家人从来不抱怨他们刚到欧洲时的艰辛。


'I am sure it was very hard for them to move to another country and set up a business, as they didn't speak Dutch or understand its culture,' Ye said. 'But just like other Wenzhou people, they worked, worked, worked instead of sitting around complaining. I think that is a good mindset; I don't like complaining either.'


“我相信,到了一个新的国家,在那里定居、做生意是非常辛苦的,因为他们那时候不会说当地的语言,也不了解当地的文化。但是和其他温州人一样,他们坚持埋头苦干,而不是干坐着抱怨。我觉得这种心态特别好,我也不喜欢抱怨。



▲叶乐的父母和哥哥





策划/监制:Xi Xi

视频制作/采访/文/翻译:Chen Shasha

摄像:Chen Xia


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