Famous Canadians in China

Upon moving to China I joked around that I could become somewhat of a well known Canadian in Beijing.  I figured I would learn Mandarin (at least partially) and impress not only the people in my office but other local Chinese, suddenly be asked to be in TV shows or movies as the stereotypical tall foreigner, etc.

It seems my plan was doomed from the beginning as there are already some Canadians who have made a fairly large impact on the local population.

I sometimes get a chance to talk with the slightly older generation in Beijing, nothing too complicated but usually they are curious to ask me where I'm from.  I say 我是加拿大人 'Wo Shi Jianadaren', which means I am Canadian.  This always follows with 你知道白求恩吗？ 'Ni Zhidao Bai Qiuen ma?'  'Do you know Bai Qiuen?'  Of course, not being too well-versed in Canadian history, I didn't know who he was.  I had to search online to find out.

Henry Norman Bethune - 白求恩- Bai Qiuen - was a doctor from Ontario that had previous international recognition but his rise to fame in China was when he served Chinese villagers and soldiers alike during the second China-Japan war.  He brought modern, western medicine to the people of China and earned the respect and admiration of Chairman Mao himself.

Mao Zedong held him in such high regard that it became mandatory for future generations of students to memorize Mao's eulogy to Bai Qiuen after he died.  It also helped that he was believed strongly in Communism which would have matched with the Chairman's beliefs.

Hard to compete with that but he is a historical figure so I still thought I could have an impact from a more current generation.  Then...

Mark Henry Rowswell - 大山 - Da Shan 'Big Mountain'- also from Ontario, is considered one of the most famous Western personalities in Chinese media.  He picked up a few words in Mandarin while working in Canada to impress/shock his Chinese customers.  His interest in China grew as he took Chinese studies in University in Canada and then received a full scholarship to study Chinese at Peking University in Beijing.  He has appeared in many local commercials and is now doing comedy tours around China.  I was warned by my aunt before I came to China that I should know this guy because the Chinese people will talk about him.

So, okay, most famous Canadian is out the window but I could definitely be the most famous person from Regina. In a city of 200k+ people few, if any, would have lived in Beijing so I liked my odds.

As an aside, Reginans are used to getting strange looks from others when telling them where they're from. Whether it's due to the fact that they've never heard of it or that it sounds like something else when you hear it the first time..you usually get a 'what did you say?' reaction.  I have mostly changed my response to 'I live in the middle of Canada...No, not Toronto. No, not Vancouver'.

Back to the main topic, sometimes people will still push to hear the actual name of your city.  I rarely expect North Americans to know of Regina but when I say it to foreigners in Beijing more often than not they say 'Oh ya, Regina, I know that place.  In Saskatchewan right?'  

This catches me off guard every time, how could this many people possibly know about Regina?  I asked them how they knew about Regina.  No, it wasn't due to the Saskatchewan Roughriders being the 2013 Grey Cup champs.

'Well, I know this guy from Regina, Mitch Moxley, do you know him?'   I didn't know him personally but have some mutual friends who told me about him.

Mitch Moxley - 米高 - Mi Gao 'Tall Rice' -    A Regina native who spent six years in Beijing, traveled around China and other places in South East Asia.  He is a well established writer and has submitted many works to major publications such as the New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Globe and Mail to name a few.  He also ended up publishing a couple of books and appeared in some local TV/film productions.  He now lives/works in New York.

This is my very stiff competition and I doubt I'll climb to the ranks of these guys by either my profession or my humble blog.  Instead I have focused on taking claim to the most famous Reginan in my office...that is, until another Reginan starts working there and then I'll have to find a new niche.