From silent metros and AI-powered cities to the absence of chaos on the roads, my stay in China felt like stepping into the future.

📻 Breaking It Down

QINGDAO-Shandong, China May 27 – Before travelling to China, I had heard countless stories about the Asian giant — its huge population, rapid economic growth and technological advancement.

But nothing truly prepared me for what I encountered after landing in the capital, Beijing as part of a delegation of 30 Kenyan journalists attending a media exchange programme organised by the Research and Training Institute of the National Radio and Television Administration (NRTA).

For 16 days, we travelled through Beijing and Qingdao in eastern Shandong Province, learning about China’s media industry, technology and culture.

📌 What You Need to Know

Yet beyond the official visits, seminars and presentations, it was everyday life in China that left the deepest impression on me.

The first thing that stood out was the extraordinary level of order and discipline.

In China, order appears deeply embedded in daily life. Everything moves in a calm, structured and organised manner.

Unlike Kenya, where traffic chaos is often part of everyday experience, motorists in China strictly obey traffic rules, even late at night when roads are nearly empty.

During several midnight walks in Qingdao, I watched drivers patiently stop at red lights despite the absence of police officers or traffic marshals.

Whenever we boarded the metro, passengers remained largely silent, most absorbed in their phones throughout the journey.

📰 Source: Capital FM Kenya