Foreigners in Shanghai meet grassroots Party members

Meanwhile, at a factory in the suburbs, an hour away from downtown Shanghai, Sharman spent time with Shen Huiqin, a quality supervisor at Joyson Safety Systems, a major supplier to electric vehicle maker Tesla's gigafactory in Shanghai.

Shen showed Sharman around her workplace and later had a discussion with her, during which the Canadian discovered that Shen's decision to join the Party was motivated by her family, as both her grandfathers are members.

Sharman found that being a Party member requires a lot of work and the ability to learn.

"They (Party members) study regularly and work on self-improvement. They also study a lot about the Party," she said.

New impressions

During the trip, the group went to the original site of the first CPC National Congress in the downtown area.

However, due to renovation work, the venue was not open to visitors, so the group headed to the full-size replica of the site at the Shanghai Film Studios Amusement Park, where the film 1921 was made.

During the visit, the foreigners learned that the first school set up by the Party was a language school. "I think this is interesting," Delcroix said, adding that it sent a positive message that the Party had started out by learning from others.

The itinerary also included a visit to Shanghai International Studies University, a language college, where the visitors talked to a number of students.

Sharman was surprised at how open the students were and their interest in sharing their thoughts on the Party.

"There was one girl who was not really interested in joining the Party, but she showed us a website she is working on. She answered questions that foreigners have about China. Even though she is not a Party member, she is still really eager to help us learn more about the country," Sharman said.

Delcroix and Houle, who had an in-depth discussion with a young Party member at the university, were impressed that he decided to join the CPC after taking some time over his decision, rather than acting hastily.

"It was more about self-conviction. It was nice to hear that he had thought about this, rather than just accepting directly without asking any questions," Delcroix said.