My Seven Years at Sichuan University — My Chengdu Story
When I first came to China, my Chinese was very basic. I could manage the essentials, but I couldn't yet hold a real conversation, let alone study in one. I spent my first year in Beijing, learning Chinese, memorizing scientific phrases in Chinese, and preparing for my bachelor’s at Sichuan University, where I eventually completed both my bachelors and masters, entirely in Chinese. Seven years later, I'm leaving as a master's graduate, an Outstanding Student, and one of the top ten international students in Sichuan University. Somewhere in those years, I went from a young girl learning Chinese out of textbooks to someone who argues, dreams, and does science in it. But honestly, what I'm proudest of isn't any of the certificates. It's that this city quietly became my second home.
For my MSc in Pathogenic Biology, I was very often the only foreigner in the room. My whole department lived in Chinese - every seminar, every lab meeting, every anxious midnight discussion about an experiment that had failed for the hundreds time. I won't pretend it was always easy; there were days when the science and the language together felt like too much. But that pressure became my greatest gift and skill. I learned to think and do research in Chinese, to hold my ground in front of professors who never went easy on me, and finally to write and defend a thesis on antibiotic resistance. Being the outsider in an all-Chinese lab taught me what no class ever could: that with enough patience and stubbornness, you can belong anywhere.
That same stubborn curiosity kept pulling me past the edges of my own field. With wonderful international teams, I had the chance to step into the world of innovation and entrepreneurship, and as a biology student with no background in engineering or business, I had so much to learn. I contributed what I could, learned constantly from my teammates, and was lucky to be part of two projects I deeply believe in: "Skull Regenesis," which went to the Kyoto competition in Japan, and "刻骨民新," which we brought to the Chengdu–Chongqing competition. Working across languages and cultures, and being even a small part of turning lab science into something that might one day reach a patient, was some of the most meaningful and exciting work of my whole degree.
Outside the lab, I found another love: telling stories. Through my work with local media, I got to share science and everyday life in Chengdu with English-speaking readers. Those stories ranged widely, from the quiet rituals of the Qingming Festival in the ancient town of Yuantong, to the flowing beauty of Hanfu, to the clean-energy engineering inside a company like Tongwei , a reminder that this place holds everything from deep tradition to the technology of the future.
And as someone forever standing between Europe and China, I treasured every chance to bring the two a little closer - being part of the European Diaspora of researcher forums in China, and even interpreting at a sister-city event between Hungary and China. Over the years I took part in so many of these gatherings - the Meetings of the Thematic Networks of European Researchers in China, EU Science Mixers built around a shared EU–China future, academic mentoring evenings in Shanghai, and even a “Belt and Road” university alliance roundtable - each one a room full of people quietly working to connect two worlds I love. And alongside them, I got to step deeper into Chinese culture itself: a food culture exhibition welcoming the world to Chengdu, a symposium on the world heritage of tea, and a university showcase where our traditions met the very frontier of medical science. In those rooms, slipping between Hungarian, Chinese and English in a single breath, I felt the most like myself.
But if I'm honest, what I'll miss most isn't any of that. It's the ordinary, everyday Chengdu. The old men and women playing mahjong on the street corners, in no hurry at all. My beloved 甜水面, which I could eat every single day and never tire of. And best of all, the little local restaurants I went back to week after week, until one day I realized I didn't need to order anymore, because the 老板 already knew exactly what I wanted to eat. That, more than any award, is when I knew Chengdu had become home. This is a city that takes you in slowly and then completely; and the friends I made here, Chinese and international alike, became a second family.
Chengdu loved me before I even knew how to love it back.
To my supervisor, the international office, and every teacher who trusted a foreign student and never let me give up; to my Chinese research team, who took in a foreigner who barely knew the techniques and patiently taught me how to do science - in our lab meetings, and through every failed experiment we troubleshot together; to Sichuan University, for giving people like me a real place to grow; and to everyone who walked these seven years beside me - thank you, from the bottom of my heart.
I'm leaving now for the next chapter of my life and career, but a part of me will always stay here, in this rainy, spicy, generous city that raised me.
四川大学，谢谢你。??
~Lilla Bánki | 李依诺
With our research team, Aba, Maoxian （阿坝州，茂县）Team-building trip， 2025.June
I had the chance to deliver the opening speech for Sichuan University Academic Year in 2023 for International Students.
A picture with the poster of my master thesis defense, after I successfully defended my thesis. 2026, May.
Attending a Chinese media conference as part of the ChengupPlus collaborators, recognized for the work with ChengduPlus and media cooperations.
Attending a provincial level conference in Immunology and Microbiology, to support the presentation of PhD Candidate, Wang Yi 师姐，of our team.
Attending the 4th Chengdu-Chongqing Innovation Competition for International Students-Finals with Sichuan University.
With my best friend, Olga, fellow master student graduate of Sichuan University, attending a cultural event together, dressing up in beautiful 汉服dresses. October, 2023.