China

武玉祥

“The Beijing Olympic Games showed China's achievements since it carried out the policy of reform and opening-up，” said Mba-Ndong， a middle-aged Gabonese （加蓬人）.

Mba-Ndong， now in his forties， who had studied medicine twice in China， the first time from 1983 to 1990 and the second time from 1997 to 2004， has witnessed the dramatic changes that have taken place in the country during his 14-year stay there.

After getting a doctor's degree， Mba-Ndong returned to his home country to work in the Gabon General Hospital.

In his office， Mba-Ndong， a big soccer fan， told Xinhua that he was astonished at the success of the Beijing Olympics， and viewed the progress in China as the direct result of this policy. Mba-Ndong joined the university soccer team upon entering Beijing Medical University. The football stadium was so bad that when they kicked the ball， the yellow earth on the football court would surely fly. “But when I went back after graduation， I saw newly paved （鋪） grass ground，” he said.

When asked about the changes in daily life during his stay in China， Mba-Ndong thought of food first. He said when he first went to China in 1983， there was usually far more vegetables than meat on the menu in the university's dinning hall; but more meat was available later as life got better.

Coupons （計劃經濟時代的糧票、布票、肉票等） were an unforgettable memory not only for the Chinese， but also for foreign students like Mba-Ndong. Mba-Ndong said that although they were given many coupons for buying cloth， food and so on， limited choices on the market was still a problem for him， who would go to Hong Kong every year to shop. “But during my second stay in China，” said him， “I could buy almost everything on the mainland market.”

Speaking of his working experience in China， Mba-Ndong said Chinese patients were used to obeying doctors in the past， with very few of them ever challenging doctors. But now， lawsuits （訴訟） over unsuccessful operations are common.

In other areas of improvement， Mba-Ndong said， the medical facilities in Chinese hospitals are far better than before and the health levels of the Chinese people have been greatly praised over the past decades.

Writing Task： Changes in Your Life

Since childhood you must have been experiencing great changes in every field of your life circle or community. Would you please write an article about it？ You may choose any aspect as you like and write the article in about 100 words.