HAIKOU, Dec. 12 -- It was 2009 when Yuval Golan received the call that would change his life.

Working for the Israeli embassy in the Netherlands, he was invited to his brother's wedding in Beijing.

"I was always fascinated with Chinese culture and Chinese people," Golan said. "I said OK, that's a good opportunity to go to China."

The 28-year-old always knew he'd settle down abroad, he just wasn't sure where.

"I met very friendly and nice people, saw beautiful scenery," he recalled. "I said to myself, maybe the embassy is not such great work, maybe I should move to China."

Avoiding the usual expat beacons of Beijing and Shanghai, Golan chose another route.

"I just wanted to go to a place where it was difficult and different, so I could do something with essence and I could learn very fast."

That place was Haikou.

Golan's next step in his Chinese adventure was tackling the language.

His baptism of fire in Mandarin included some novel ways of mastering the lingo.

"One day I saw a lot of construction workers in the street, they were playing cards and I say in Chinese, 'what's this?' They say, 'Doudizhu' , a popular card game in China. And sometimes they play Mahjong, and so I played with them."

His perseverance paid off.

Soon he was shooting the breeze with locals, like he was born here.

Swapping diplomatic life for something a bit glitzier, he took up offers to star as a guest on local Chinese TV, before later landing his own radio show.

But despite his affinity with China, he was homesick for Europe, and in 2010 he returned.

Joining the long line of travelers before him, Golan soon discovered China had made her mark.

Two years later, he returned.

Wasting no time and with what seems customary aplomb, he set up his own tourism and marketing business.

Again his hard work paid off. His company landed the account for promoting Hainan throughout Europe and Asia.

"We do consulting jobs in different fields, we do some events, festivals, and we introduce Chinese companies to foreign companies so they can cooperate in ventures," he said.

Growing up in Herzliya in Israel, Golan can spot the similarities between his hometown and his adopted one.

"Chinese and Jewish people have a lot in common," he said. "We both have an ancient history and a lot of similar stories, and values, like education, rules, family, and traditional characteristics."

Despite his homesickness, Golan plans to stay on in China as long as his company does well.

And it's clear this Israeli' s union with China is something he takes very seriously.

"Both of our countries are renewed, Israel in 1948, and China in 1949," Golan said.

"In only about 60 years, we were both able to arise from poverty to great success and prosperity."

(To watch the video of this story, please visit China View on Youtube: http://xhne.ws/KIMH2)