QINGDAO -- After four years at university in East China's Qingdao, Junusbekova Meruyert from Kazakhstan is to return to her country after graduation, although she likes living in the coastal city very much.

Meruyert, 22, is a native of Almaty, and majors in petroleum engineering at the China University of Petroleum, but she dreams of opening an support center in Kazakhstan to help those who hope to study in China.

She owes her opportunity to study in China to her father, who works in the petroleum sector in Kazakhstan and hopes she will work in the same field.

Before coming to China, Meruyert knew very little about China, and what she did know came through the TV drama "Journey to the West," based on a legend first written down in the 16th century, and describing events that may have taken place a thousand years previously.

She spent a year learning Chinese at Shandong University of Technology in Weifang before moving Qingdao, but it was still difficult at first for her to understand courses such as physics and chemistry.

She worked hard, improved her language skills and passed all her exams. She even took a Chinese name, "Zhenzhu" (Pearl) and has traveled all over China, mostly by high-speed train.

"Qingdao is modern, international and has many historical sites," she said. She likes local seafood very much, which is very cheap compared with Kazakhstan.

"Just beside my campus is the sea. Here the clams are cheap and delicious. I am almost drooling just talking about them, " she said.

Besides traveling, she practices Peking Opera and writes short stories in Russian during her spare time.

In about two months, she will leave Qingdao for Kazakhstan when she completes her thesis. "I know the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit is to be held in Qingdao in June and feel closer to realizing my own dream," said Meruyert.