Belgian teacher stays loyal to his students

Editor's note: In this new series, we share stories and experiences showing how expats are dealing with the novel coronavirus pneumonia outbreak.

Despite the ongoing novel coronavirus pneumonia outbreak Jerry Van Oudenhove continues to teach students through online platforms in Wuhan, Hubei province.

Van Oudenhove, a foreign language teacher at Wuhan University of Bioengineering, could have gone back to Belgium, but he chose to stay in Wuhan, the epicenter of the outbreak.

He has been working in Wuhan for about two years. He could have joined the evacuation of Belgian nationals led by the country's embassy on Feb 13. But by choosing to stay with his students, he became the only Belgian in Wuhan.

He encourages his students when they get tense or nervous about the virus.

"Maybe they were a little upset about the situation," Van Oudenhove said. "I motivate them to study English because this will not only help release their anxiety but also benefit their future."

He relies on such optimistic and positive language materials as Chime of the Dawn Bells, a piece of music composed by Belgian pianist Jean-Francois Maljean especially for Wuhan.

Van Oudenhove admitted that, since the lockdown, life in Wuhan has changed a lot. The most important consequence is that he cannot visit friends or go shopping as he once did.

"I feel at home in Wuhan and at our university, which is offering me its warmhearted support," he said. "The school is very well organized in supplying food and communicating about the epidemic situation."

"Just like the phoenix, which was reborn from ashes and came to life again, I believe that Wuhan will rise again after this difficult period and become better and stronger," said Van Oudenhove, who believes the Chinese government is doing a great job with its strict measures: "A big 'thumbs-up' for the Chinese government from my point of view."

He reflected on his choice to work in China, and Wuhan in particular.

"It was only by chance that I came to Wuhan," he said. "But now I believe it was a very good decision. I love the people in the city, and I'm a fan of local delicacies. I am an expat but not outsider. I feel I am one of the 10 million citizens living in Wuhan."

What about after the epidemic? Van Oudenhove said he will go to small shops with his friends to have hot noodles with sesame paste.

Liu Jianyu and Li Dingdian contributed to this story.