Edwin Montealegre, a musician from Costa Rica, never imagined his first acupuncture experience would be in a Shanghai hospital. Yet, there he was, unlocking the ancient secrets of traditional Chinese medicine.

Montealegre was previously more accustomed to the approach used in Western medicine of immediately alleviating symptoms.

"Usually when we feel bad, we just find a way to release the pain or the uncomfortable sensation that we have as soon as possible," he said. However, as he learned, TCM focuses on "rebalancing" the body, treating not just the symptoms, but also the root cause.