Wang Xiaodong: Hard times, hope

Best story: I visited a major hospital in Beijing that provides hospice services for patients with terminal illnesses to speak with nurses and patients. Hospice care is often a better option than intensive intrusive medical treatment, and I wanted to learn what life is like for those who stay at the hospice departments in hospitals and for those who provide care. It was a fascinating day.

Most interesting person: Bernhard Schwartlander, the World Health Organization's representative in China, who is enthusiastic about promoting tobacco control in Beijing. Schwartlander's Chinese is improving rapidly, so when he spoke Mandarin at a number of events, he always got a round of applause.

Most unforgettable reporting experience: I visited a remote village in Bijie, Guizhou province, to report on the suicides of four "left-behind" siblings whose parents were working in cities far away. The assignment was not easy: the journey to the village was long and treacherous, and we drove for more than eight hours along dark winding roads. At one point, our car was involved in an accident and we had to rent another to complete the journey.