Nurses embark on journey to the West (2)

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Nurses receive training at a hospital in Handan, Hebei province. Some Chinese nurses have migrated after working overseas. HAO QUNYING / FOR CHINA DAILY

Huge population

Although the number of Asian nurses has not risen significantly in the past year, Wagner said Asia has become interesting for German employers, because of its huge population - China and India, in particular.

He said German employers have also found it difficult to find nurses in Europe who want to work in Germany, because working conditions for them there are not competitive when compared with those in Scandinavian countries, Britain or the United States.

"In these countries, nurses find better conditions, such as a lower workload, better recognition and image, less overtime and better salaries," Wagner said. "In addition, German is a difficult language to learn."

Although she has had German-language and culture training since September 2012 and has passed the language test, Song still lacks confidence in her upcoming trip.

"I watched some German TV programs, but felt they were hard to understand because they speak fast and sometimes with dialects," she said. "And also the letter 'r' is very difficult to pronounce."

Other questions about living in Germany are also on her mind. Are all shops and restaurants closed on Sundays? Can you still eat rice in a Western country? And do you have to buy boots in Germany, because of thick snow and extreme cold in winter?

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