Happy Turkey Day!

Suzhou was very beautiful, however I didn't see as much as I had hoped. It was a rainy weekend, so we didn't want to visit as many gardens as there were to see. But we saw a couple and they were okay; because of the season there wasn't much to see other than the architecture and design of the gardens as all the flowers and trees are mostly dead. However, I had a great time hanging out with Alex. She is from the other city and it was nice to have girl talk since I am usually around only my male roommate. We stayed in a hostile that was near a couple of smaller canals. We had a great time walking up and down the canal side streets that still have that older Chinese architecture look to them.

Also, the vendors were very interesting, I mostly liked the food vendors! :) he he he! The city had great shopping to offer, as well as the numerous gardens, it was the perfect size for a weekend trip. Getting back to Nanjing was a whole other issue. We had only bought our tickets to get there because we didn't know when we would leave Sunday. So at about 10 in the morning Sunday we went to buy tickets and found that while many trains were going that direction, the next one with availability would be at 10 pm, not to mention that availability was standing room only. So, we were a little worried, because I had no choice but to get home Sunday as my classes begin bright and early Monday mornings. We found the long distance bus station and were very lucky. We arrived at 11:35 and I was able to make the 11:40 bus to Nanjing, Alex made the 11:50 bus to Wuxi. It was a very lucky day! We had had trouble with transportation during the weekend, which was why we walked to the bus station from the train station.

On the way, we saw a slightly different look at China then Nanjing affords. I live in the middle of the city and in general we don't have many beggars. Suzhou had what seemed like a million. The "worst" if you will was a little child with his mother, I assume she was his mother. She would tell him which people to go beg to. He was a little younger then the children I teach and he got in front of Alex and begged, and then he was trying to hold onto her arm while she was walking. I hate to admit it, but my first feeling was anger at the woman for using the child in such a manner, and thus I didn't want to give. Also, we've been told many of the children beggars are actually hired children, ones that have been stolen and are then used for this type of work; it was difficult to see.

Being our Thanksgiving week, it made me extremely thankful for having such a life as I lead and for all the opportunities I have been given. Also, I'm very thankful for my education and the education I am able to give to my children. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! Eat lots of turkey for me, I'm not foreseeing a turkey feast this Thursday. I'm thinking hot pot in the street (basically soup where you choose the ingredients and they cook it right there and then).

Don't forget to look at my albums on Picassa, I've updated them with pics from Qixia Mtn. and Suzhou. Guess what, I'm even in some of them!!! The picture is from inside one of the gardens we visited.

My First Chinese Haircut!

Yeah, I finally got all those dead ends cut off. We communicated pretty smoothly. I was concerned at first because he washed my hair and then dried it. Well, my hair drys straight, but he got out a straightener and started straightening my straight hair! It took awhile, but when he was done he finally began cutting my hair, guess he wanted it really straight before starting. I indicated I wanted only a little off, and he nodded. At any rate, I have decent layers now, there is like a 4 inch difference between the shortest layer and the bottom of my hair. It looks good, I was just shocked at first to see so much hair cut off, I thought it was Spain all over again! I have noticed that those girls here with longer hair do have a lot of layers in it and usually bangs (I stopped him before he gave me bangs, it was a close one). The best part about the hair cut was, it was a little shop down an alley next to a huge fruit market. I only knew about it because my friend lives in the area. It was great, because it was a smaller shop and out of the way it was extremely in-expensive and the guy put a lot of effort and thought into the layers and wanted everything to be just the perfect length. He did a great job.

Other than hair adventures, nothing much has happened here. Oh, we did have a loss. Our bunny died! :( I woke up one morning and looked at the cage and the bunny was laying on its side all sprawled out. My roommate and I have decided to forgo getting another pet. My bike chain fell off today and I couldn't figure out ho to put it back on. In the city within a 100 yards there are usually at least 3-6 bicycle repair men. They are everywhere and really good. I had the fella fix the chain, which he did in a second so I felt kind of special, then I pointed to my brakes and he tightened them all up for me. The repairs are very cheap, only 1 kuai! I wasn't sure, but his partner didn't look happy that he only charged me 1 kuai, I don't know what that was about. To show you where my priorities lie, I spent 4 kuai on lunch (which was like a big tortilla rap thing and 5 pieces of bread stuff) and the 12 kuai on a smallish bag of Hershey Kisses! There are some things I just won't live with out, dark chocolate is definitely one of them. :)

I successfully bought a train ticket today. I am headed for Suzhou this weekend with my friend Alex. She has already booked the hostel and everything, I just have to show up. Suzhou has been called the Venice of China (I think Ive mentioned that before), anyway, I'll tell you all about it when I get back. And who knows, I might even post a picture or two (but don't get your hopes up!)

Heres a picture from Qixia Mountain. I went hiking there two weeks ago to see the red leaves of autumn. The temple is the main thing we took pictures of. This is where the Thousand Buddhas are. Here is one with me in front of the temple.

Happy Halloween!

BOO!

Hope everyone's Halloween is going well, and includes lots of candy!! I went out to a party last weekend for Halloween, it was great. Most were in costumes, Shannon and I went as kitty kats! Today being a work day I brought my classes candy. I only have two on Wednesdays and one was cancelled!! Anyway, my Join In class had a blast. I played games with them involving Halloween vocab and then I taught them "Trick or treat, smell my feet, give me something good to eat." They had to recite this to me before I gave them their bags of candy. I'm sure their parents were ecstatic to receive their children all hyped up on sugar, he he he. I also told the students a scary story. I simplified it and had my TA translate after each sentence. The kids were so enthralled and really got into the spirit. If any of you have read the stories in Scary Stories, then you might remember the one about the toe, I think it was actually called The Big Toe. The little boy finds a toe in the garden and they eat it for supper. That night the boy is awoken by a voice, "wwhhhereeee isss my toooooe", finally he goes downstairs and looks up the chimney at he sees to big eyes and as the voice grabs him it says "You've got it!" He he he, I grabbed one of the kids and he screamed, I think it was more for fun, they weren't really scared. The kids did a great job and were unusually well behaved today. I told them at the beginning of the class about my cold, plus they could tell I was sick because I can't talk very loud, which means I couldn't project like normal. They were very nice and stayed relatively quite while I was talking! As for my other classes this last week. We taught them a song about veggies at the market, and it is to the beat of Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. It was so adorable. Lots of singing this past week, no wonder I have no voice! Plus, its always a good week if you can make the children cry, thats when you know your doing good! I'm just kidding, both were boys and I have no idea why they were crying. The TA was yelling at one of them, but I don't recall him misbehaving, hmm, oh well. The other was 3rd in line to receive star stickers and began crying because he thought for some reason he wasn't going to get one. When I tried giving him one he balled up his fists and started crying harder, very strange.

The cold has been keeping me indoors more than usual. While the cold isn't that bad, I don't especially like the rain. I even caved in this morning and took a taxi instead of riding my bike, I haven't quite mastered holding an umbrella and riding a bike at the same time. I've joined a gym here, a way to keep me semi productive with all my free time. I've tried studying for the LSAT and Chinese, but I just can't get the motivation to sit down and do it! So instead I ride over to the gym and take spinning classes. Its great, the room is completely dark and they have a colored disco ball going during the class. Everything is in Chinese of course, but its not hard to follow those in front. After all, how many ways are there to ride a bike?!?

As sad it is to say I have been making some plans for when I leave here. After my parents leave in February I'm staying for a bit longer, since my rent is paid through February. I've booked a cruise along the Yangtze and will go for a 5 day trip see the 3 Gorge Dam. I've extremely excited to get to do this before I leave. Other than that I plan on visiting friends in Wuzi and sightseeing some other cities around Nanjing. I want to go to Suzhou, which is called the Venice of the East (lots of canals).

Saturday I went to the English Saloon here in Nanjing. A British man holds a party at a Western Imitation restaurant every week for Chinese and foreigners to come a speak English. Nick and I were the only two westerns there aside from the host. But it was lots of fun and the people were very nice. All were older, but I met one woman who runs her own export business and is an extremely successful single woman, which is a little bit of a rarity here in China. I can't say I really liked the food though. The steak was somehow just not right and it was combined with an egg sunny side up and pasta with tomato paste, hmmm.... The host is a baker here in Nanjing and he brings cookies and treats to each get together, it makes the whole thing very worth while!!

Happy Halloween!

Finish your veggies!

No matter where in the world, children must always eat their vegetables. Even in a culture where meals are communal and everyone takes from the center, children must have greens. The family I tutor on Thursday evenings often takes me out to dinner, but last Thursday I had the pleasure of eating at home with them. The grandmother was very adamant that the grandson eat the vegetables on the table. She even picked them up and up them into his rice bowl for him. It was very cute, especially the disgruntled face he gave to his mother! I tutor Frank, and his little friend Angela at the same time. They are both second graders and very sweet. I've discovered that many people are suspicious about the quality of contacts that can be purchased here, therefore they prefer to wear glasses. Frank's glasses are these huge round things that take up half his face, it is sooo adorable!!

Internet at last!

Yeah!!! I finally have Internet! All is well here, I'm back to work this week. Last week was the national holiday here, we had an entire week off of work. I met Dad, Georgia, and Jenn in Hong Kong. It was amazing! But I have to admit, it was like taking a vacation from China and going back to the West. There is tons of English around, I ate a lot of Western cuisine, and I haven't seen so many foreigners since I've been here! We did an obscene amount of shopping. I was really surprised, the city was expensive. The food and taxis and hotels were all more expensive than Nanjing, but the bargain shopping was incredibly cheap, the prices were much lower than in Nanjing. I bought great souvenirs, shoes, and two beautiful oil paintings of the HK harbour. Unfortunately, being the special person that I am, I left the two paintings in the hotel when we left for Nanjing. I called when we reached Nanjing, but alas, the paintings were not to be found. Oh well! In Nanjing we did the main sights: Purple Mountain, Confucius temple, Zhonghua Gate, the Yangtze River bridge and few other smaller things. I had a great time and it was nice to see familiar faces again. We went to Qixia Mountain with is a little out of the way for the common Nanjing tourist. I hadn't been before, but was interested in seeing the Thousand Buddha Cliffs. On the mountain is one of the oldest temples in China. Behind the temple,carved into the mountain are exactly 512 Buddhas. Its is called Thousand Buddha cliffs because when it was translated the word "Thousand Buddhas" was used to convey the meaning of "many Buddhas". There are tons of small trails and tea pavilions scattered around the mountain and it is said to be an amazing sight to see when the leaves change color in autumn (which should be any day now).

Things are moving along back at work. Next week I have my first parents day, where they will get to attend my class and watch me perform. It also means I get to do y first student evaluations... he he he. Just kidding, they are all wonderful. I only have 12 in my main class, so I really get to know them well. Much to their dismay I know all their names and call on them now at any time without having to point at them or get their attention. My other classes are less stressful, they are called oral classes. The soul purpose of my presence is just what it sounds like, to get the kids to talk. I'm kind of like a supplement to their regular English class, which is taught by a Chinese teacher. The program that I'm in has unfortunately suffered some tragedies as of late. About a month ago a new teacher was hit while on his scooter. He was taken to the hospital because of sever internal bleeding, his stomach was badly hurt as was his liver. Then, last weekend a teacher who has been here for awhile died. He had been swimming in the hot springs near his city and had a seizure which led to a heart attack I believe. There is a memorial service for hi this Sunday. This isn't to scare anyone, I just wanted to give an update on the latest happenings. As a result of these accidents I did get to experience and hear a little more about China. I visited the one teacher in the hospital and got a first hand glimpse at the facilities. He was in the ICU, it looked pretty modern, everything was very clean. However, the communal rooms for patients were a little more disconcerting, they were packed with people and didn't appear to be clean and disinfected. While I won't be attending, the service this coming weekend is suppose to be in the traditional Chinese fashion for a funeral. I don't know exactly what that means, but I'm sure my roommate will be able to tell me when he returns. So, things have been a little melancholy here. Our company has now pushed to make sure we all have medical insurance, probably a good thing I'm thinking.

And, to add to the sad news, my bicycle was stolen last week! The family I am tutoring had given me a very cute black and orange bike, it was a fold up bike. It was locked, but like most people here, I just locked the wheel so it couldn't be ridden, but obviously someone just picked it up and walked away with it. It was pretty light weight. Also, it happened in my apartment complex; a very big bummer :( I will say that I should have been more responsible. I live on the 4th floor, and it being a fold up bike I should have been taking it upstairs with me; we had been warned of the possibility of new shiny things like bikes and scooters being stolen. So, since it wasn't too expensive Dad and Georgia were very generous and bought me a new one; its sitting in my apartment right now :) I do like ridding it though, its a great way to experience the city and get to know my way around. Plus, the stares are hilarious! I don't think they see too many blond girls riding around.

I almost forgot! We got a bunny!! Nick and I were shopping at Confucius temple and thought, why not? There is a section in the market where one can go to buy animals. It is slightly overwhelming at first, all the animals are kept in extremely small cages. Ours was in a cage where it could barely turn around. The cats are often in cages that we would most likely use for rabbits. Hamsters are piled into small aquarium tanks, as well as the turtles (but not together). Cats and dogs are sometimes put in the same cages. Otherwise the dogs are in what look like baby cradles. Most of the dogs and cats look to young to be from their mothers. I wanted a cat, but we didn't want it to scratch the landlord's furniture and a dog's paws would scratch the new hardwood floors. So, between hamsters, turtles, and rabbits, we went with the bunny. We bought her on the Mid Autumn Moon Festival, a popular holiday here where most people get together with their families to celebrate and eat moon cakes. So we named her Mei Yue, which means Beautiful Moon. I got her a turquoise bunny palace where she can not only turn around but have enough room to move about and stretch out. However, I've become concerned with her voracious appetite, I fear she has emotional issues from her treatment in the market and is now using food to compensate.

Still Alive!

Hello all! Sorry for the long pause in communication. I don't have Internet in my apartment yet, hopefully next week. I am very busy with my teaching schedule and have little time to get to an Internet cafe. I have 15 min before I have to leave for a tutoring gig, so I will give headers and next week I will give more details.

Teaching - 2nd and 4th graders, 13 classes a week so only 13 hours a week, but I have to tutor, so thats a couple more hours a week. I love the kids, I prefer the 2nd graders to the 4th graders. My Lesson Plans are getting better. I always feel bad for the kids on Monday because they get the new lesson plan, but by Thurs and Fri I've perfected it so the other kids get the smoother lesson plan. Oh well!

Apartment - I live with another teacher, he is from Canada. We get along well and work at the same school. He takes a bike and I take the bus to get there (it takes an hour from my apartment to get there by bus!) The place is big, I have the larger room and really comfy bed, not a rock hard one like most beds in China! We have an indoor clothes line so doing laundry is a breeze. We cook dinner at home and eat out the other meals.

Extracurricular activity - I have been having a lot of friend and have made many new friends, I know thats hard to believe for some of you. One friend was sent to another city, so last weekend I took the train (by myself, yes!) and went to visit. The city was a mini version of Nanjing. Here in Nanjing there is a big block where most of the bars/clubs/restaurants are located, its called 1912 (I don't know why). So in this smaller city, Wuzi, they also have this type of block and have named it the same thing. Going out is expensive if you don't convert to USD. I've stopped doing that. I was really upset when the closest fruit selling lady wanted to charge me 11 kuai (1.50 USD) for a pound of grapes. I knew she was ripping me off because I was obviously not Chinese and can't speak well. So I told her to forget it, and went off to my fruit guy. His stand is a little further away, but he doesn't rip me off, at least not nearly as much. He sold me the same amount for 7 kuai ($1) I know, crazy that I was upset about 50 cents, but it just doesn't work here to convert the money, specially when I get paid in kuai. So I now have a fruit guy, he is this old gentleman who seems to never wear a shirt, many men at night don't wear shirts, at least in the summer. But he seems to never wear one, very odd, and he has a cute white cat that I often see sitting in the back on the watermelons grooming himself.

The last bit of news... I've decided that I will only stay for 6 months instead of 1 year. I signed a 6 month contract because it works better with my future goals. This last summer I decided I would go for law school when I get back, international law of course. So, if I stay a year I can take the LSAT in Sept, but to then get everything in by January to apply would be cutting it close. Also, I'd like to have a job working at a legal office or something along those lines. I want to have diversity for applying to schools. So, if I stay 6 months I can take the LSAT in June and have more time to get everything in order. Essays will need to be worked over several times, as well as gathering recommendation letters, ect.... I feel that I can accomplish want I want to here in China in 6 months. Everything is going great, nothing bad has happened to make me want to return early. I'm just excited to get back and get started, its a great feeling to have direction and know what I want to do in my future.

I've gotta fly! I have to teach this little guy, hes around 7 years old and so cute! We are going to play Snakes and Ladders today, I'm excited!! Don't worry there is an English language point to the game.

I love and miss everyone!

School Starts Monday!

It has now been two weeks since I’ve arrived in China and I still love it. It is very beautiful here and everyone I have met (even strangers) have been kind and helpful. Last week it was extremely hot, but this week it has been cooler with light showers. When it is sunny outside all the women carry umbrellas or those who ride bikes to work wear a coat or special sleeves just for their arms so that the do not get burned. Many woman are concerned about tanning, they try to stay as pale as possible. My house mom is always concerned when I leave the house without an umbrella on sunny days because she doesn’t want me to get tanned. MOSQUITOS! I never see them, but I get bit all the time and the bites itch and get really big.

Training just ended yesterday! I start work on Monday at a primary school here in Nanjing. I’ve heard great things about the school; it is among the top primary foreign language schools in the city. My house mom says the children there are relatively well behaved in comparison to children at other primary schools in the city. Training was difficult for me in the beginning. By the 2nd week of training we were “performing” in front of 5-6 children, their parents, our teaching colleagues, and our instructor (who was evaluating us). In the afternoon our instructor went through her notes and told us everything we did wrong. The first couple days it felt like everything we did was wrong and it was hard to have to sit professionally and take criticism without being emotional about it. However, everyday got better and better, soon we getting “Great Job!” on our evaluations, so that was very rewarding after such hard work. Our instructor did laugh at us occasionally because we would play games with the 4-5 children (all who were little angels and eager to participate), our instructor was imagining us attempting to play those same games with 40-55 children, many of whom wouldn’t be interested in English, let alone games. So, I know I am in for a rocky time, at least for awhile until I get the hang of teaching and class management. The good news is that my ability to draw stick figures has improved immensely as have my skills at making crafts and props for my lessons!

I’ve done some sight seeing around Nanjing. The pictures at the top of this are from our visit to Purple Mountain, it was really bright out and very hot when we stopped to take pictures, which is why we all have our eyes half shut and are sweating. Up Purple Mountain is Dr. Sun Yat Sen’s mausoleum, which is at the top of a tremendous amount of stairs. We also climbed the Linggu Pagoda and were able to see Nanjing from above. I’ve been doing a lot of sightseeing with the other new teachers, but unfortunately they all left today to their respective cities. Next week I will move into an apartment with a teacher who has been in Nanjing for about 6 months. He is very helpful, he helped me get a cell phone, he told me where to find the foreign book store (I bought a text book to learn Chinese), and has been helpful when our group has gone out to eat because he can order for everybody. My house mom has equally been helpful; I’ve bought shoes and other things with her help. She has been able to get the prices down, usually by about half of what the seller started at. I don’t know what I am going to do when I have to go out on my own. We’ve been playing a lot of charades at training and pictionary, so I’m thinking those skills will come in handy. I had to draw a picture of a clothes pin at a shop the other day; the woman was then able to show me right to them!

Food has continued to be entertaining. My house mother knows many people and has many connections; I’ve been to several banquet dinners with her. Women almost never drink; the men get very drunk and smoke non stop. There is always three times the amount of food needed. Usually no one at these dinners speaks English so she has to translate a lot for me. However, many of the people try to speak to me in Chinese and try to include me in the conversations at the dinners. The more the men drink the more they try to speak directly to me in Chinese. As the men become more drunk my house mom stops translating everything because they become very troublesome and boisterous. No one expects me to drink which is a big relief, but they always offer. I’ve noticed that the women don’t drink so I try to follow their leads; besides it’s usually beer or very bitter straight alcohol.

I’m sure I will have more to write after my first week of teaching. Wish me luck!

CHINA AT LAST!

Hi Everyone!! I miss you all so much! Things are going well, a little bit of a rough start, but everything is fine now. By the way I apologize for spelling and weird punctuation if it happens, the key boards are odd. Also, this program/site I use to make a blog comes up in all Chinese so I hope I can remember what all the tabs are!

I arrived at the airport in Shanghai and had a huge surprise, I was forgotten!! Just kidding, it turns out I was standing 10 yds from the man with a sign with my name on it. I waited for an HOUR. Then I found the airport's business center and found phone numbers. By the way, I was so special, I traveled to a foreign country and didn't think to take any contact numbers! Finally it was worked out and I found the guy. I'm going to skip some details and give the highlights so far.

The office where I do my training is air conditioned and my home stay family has air conditioning, so I am very happy and cool! It rained the first full day I was here, but since then it has been unbelievably hot. I'm getting use to being wet all the time from sweating. I drink water constantly and as a result have to use the restrooms in a lot of ... how to put this, interesting places. The office and my home stay have western toilets, but everywhere else is Chinese. They have literally very nice toilets, but they are in the floor, and they flush just like ours, you just have to squat. I'm finding that I kind of like them better, they seem more sanitary because there is no toilet seat. I think in most places guys use a trough and there are no partitions or anything.

My host family is the greatest! It is soooooooo much better than my stay in Spain. The mother is so nice and sweet, she takes me a lot of places and helps me with anything I need. Today was Saturday so we have spent it together. We went to her friend's house and ended up eating there. Meals are communal everywhere (everyone eats from the center of the table), including restaurants. I like it because you don't feel like you have to finish everything on your plate. Plus I don't eat as much because it takes me a little longer to eat with chop sticks, so my stomach gets a chance to tell me when I am full before I feel overstuffed. The family gave me their daughter's room. It is very nice, it has an attached private half bath. The best thing about the apartment is that the bed isn't too hard. The one at the hotel almost broke my back it was so stiff, I couldn't sleep at all. There is only the mother, her husband, and daughter. The mother is a principle at a primary school and the father is a police officer. The daughter is 14 and has great English, but like me, she is shy to use it with a foreign stranger. They always take their shoes off when they enter the house, which is great, but then they put slippers on. I always forget the slipper part.

Eating... that could be its own entry. The first day we were treated to a banquet like meal. This is where there is a lazy Susan in the middle of a large round table and the waitress brings out dish after dish after dish for like an hour. You have to be careful to not eat too much at the beginning or you won't make it. The director of our program thought it was really funny to order the weird things. We ate eel, squid, duck, chicken, pork and many veggie dishes. I was proud of myself I tried everything. However, nothing was gross, which surprised me, the worse problem I have with food here is when it is too spicy (Dennis you'll love it). Food didn't get unusual until dinner time when I went out with two other teachers who have lived in China for 3 yrs but don't really speak Chinese. So, we ordered chicken and the waitress said okay. Then, she went out the front door, went to the cage with the live chickens, selected one and weighed it, then came back in to ask us if that chicken was okay. When it came out of the kitchen it was in a large communal bowl in a broth like thing with lots of veggies. I went first and tried to scoop out some meat, I got the HEAD! The entire head of the chicken that had been alive 10 min before. Then on the next try I came up with chicken feet! We finally found the parts that were okay to eat, but it was still weird. For lunch the teachers break up into small groups and go out for lunch, it is incredibly cheap to eat out. Today's lunch was my second experience with rare food. The dishes were all laid out and everything looked great. So I started eating, and I tried everything and I really liked the pork. At about this time they asked if I knew what it was, turns out I was right, it was pork, it was the liver of a pig! So far I haven't had any digestion problems, which is really good!

Teacher training has been slightly dull. Since my house mother is a principle I've learned a lot about the school system between her and the training. Nothing I've heard has struck me as odd. They do have a lot of competitions though. Everyone competes over something. There is even a competition for teachers, the goal is to write the best and most effective lesson plan. Teachers are also given marks based on their students grades so many feel a lot of pressure to do well. The students, even at the primary level, have a ton of homework. By third grade students average 2 hours a night for homework. Plus their days are crammed with extra activities, many either do some type of art thing or a sport. The daughter here does ballet on Saturday nights, I think she takes calligraphy at some point, and she use to take piano lessons. English lessons for kids is not a part of their day, its more like an extra class parents sign students up for, thus giving them more work to do.

I've been getting nervous about teaching. I guess it never occurred to me when I was assigned 7-9 yr olds that there would be a lot of creativity needed. I thought it would be like our 3rd graders, where we sit and do quite exercises to learn the material. Turns out we are expected to be a heck of a lot more entertaining then my 3rd grade teacher ever was. Everyday our lesson plan must include a game and a song, plus the regular things like vocab and oral practice. I don't know if any of you know this about me, but I'm not the biggest fan on having come up with songs to teach children things like the weather and the names of family members. I am excited to teach, but I think I am going to have to adapt to a different mind set and really try to understand what a 7 yr old child would need to learn a completely new language. Basically we are told to constantly be changing the activities so the students don't get bored.

That is most of the highlights, sorry it was so long. Nanjing is beautiful, they have tons of trees and green stuff lining the city streets and small parks around apartments. Last night we went to the most beautiful park (you have to pay to enter). It had a huge lake in the center and it was so serene to walk along it, and there were areas with the traditional like architecture that made up parts of the walk way. We then rented a paddle boat and paddled around the lake for a bit. I was with my house mother and she had taken me there to meet a cousin of her Irish friend who teaches English here, it was something to entertain both of us since we don't know the city. I definitely want to go back and spend more time there. I have to take a bus and then a taxi to get to my office for training because they live farther from the center of the city. The whole thing costs 10 kuai one way, which is like $1 something. However, we have been repeatedly told to not convert prices into dollars because we will be making a Chinese salary, so we need to base our ideas of what is expensive or cheap on our salary.

Hopefully next week I will be able to post more. As many of you know I am not a big picture person (Thats another funny thing. My house mother is always taking pictures for me with her camera of things she knows I like. However the Chinese are huge into being in the center of their pictures, so she is always making me stand in front of things. Mom, I'm sure you can imagine how much I'm enjoying that. Its hard to explain that I'm camera shy and don't like to be in photos. There are a lot of things we both try to explain to each other, we use the same language, but sometimes I can't understand why they do some things and she can't understand why I wouldn't want to be in my own photo.) Sorry for the detour. Anyways, my point was that, when I get around to taking pictures I will start posting them, until then you all will have to use your imaginations!

My 2007 Summer Chinese Immersion Class

This is a photo of the whole class including our teachers (laoshi).
Starting on the top from the left: Neil; John; Daniel; Meshal
On the bottom from the left: Chiu Laoshi; Shelby; Me; Megan (TA); Li Laoshi

The Heroine's Quest...

The Departure: Broomfield, Colorado to Nanjing, China
I was called to this adventure by a random email that landed in my mail box not long after returning from studying abroad in Spain. There was never a "refusal" of the call to adventure; I jumped in head first without a second thought. Throughout my final year of college I made the preparations for leaving. This included the planting of the seed. I had to plant the seed of my newly found quest into the minds of those around me and then help it grow. By this I mean I watered it with thoughts that it would only be a year; I pruned it with ideas and hopes that this adventure would give me great advantages in the future, especially if I were to gain a bit of Chinese language in the process; and finally I fertilized it with a little BS when I didn't know the exact answers I was asked at first. Questions like, "is this a reputable company." "where will you be living," "why are you going for a whole year." However, now I can answer many of those questions with more certainty. The point is, it was important for my loved ones to like my new adventure so that they would in return give me the support I would need through this quest.

Now that I was on the road to my adventure, it was time for my trials to begin. Every good hero/heroine must accomplish 3 tests before they can succeed...

First: Obtaining a Visa
This was a red-tape nightmare. My hosts in China wanted me to originally obtain a work visa, so they sent the required paperwork through certified mail to me. I then sent the paperwork and, with a little resignation, my passport to an agency that acts as a go between. The agency is needed because without it I would have had to go to the Chinese consulate in Chicago in person! When the agency obtained my documents they said that one of the forms was a photo copy and wouldn't be approved. I assured them I had made no copies of the documents, so they sent it to the consulate. Sure enough, it was rejected because the consulate said the forms were photo copies. So, after several phone calls and emails between my host, the agency, and my self we finally decided that I would apply for a temporary business visa that is good for 60 days. Once in China, my host will help me to obtain the correct visa.

Finally with the arrival of my visa and my passport safely back in my hands, I began the second test: Travel Shots
I was informed that I would be required to have three different types of shots. They were Typhoid, Hepatitis ?? (A,B,or C, I can't remember), and Japanese Encephalitis. We began three weeks ago with the Hep and the Japanese in my left arm and the Typhoid in my right. 3 shots all at once! Let me tell you, the next day my right arm hurt like I'd been in boxing match and had lost; that Typhoid was not fun. Then, last week I had to go back because the Japanese shot is a series shot, a series of THREE. When I went in they had it ready to go, but when they looked up my records they noticed I needed yet a forth shot to catch me up on some immunizations. That forth shot, by the way, went into the muscle, and it hurt a lot!! Ouch! Plus I had the Japanese one put in the same arm :( So, in two weeks I go back for the last shot for the Japanese series. By the way, all this time I'm thinking, I'm going to China, why in the world am I getting a Japanese Encephalitis vaccination!

Onto the third test: The Removal of my Wisdom Tooth (yes, I said Tooth, not teeth)
I went to the dentist to have a regular cleaning and low and be hold they decided that my one and only wisdom tooth must be removed before leaving. So, we went to the oral surgeon, who also agreed that it should come out. Since my departure is approaching quickly I was scheduled to have it out 2 days later. Today is the 2nd day of my recovery, and its better. Let me tell you, the drugs they hand out are amazing. Between the meds and the anesthesia wearing off I've slept for almost 36 hours straight! I still resemble a squirrel on the right side of my face because it is still kind of puffy and swollen, but everyone says it looks cute.

Thats all the trials for now. There are only suppose to be 3 tests for the hero, so I'm hoping everything will go smoothly from here on out. The next on the to do list is to go shopping! Where am I going to find shoes to teach in that are cute and that are comfortable to walk and stand in, but don't look too old ladyish?? Any suggestions?

"Those who can, do; Those who can't, teach; Those who can't teach, teach English in China

Hmmmm... this quote is packed with a lot of "stuff"... You might wonder where I got this from, it was from a chat forum off the Internet. One of the sections was about why Americans go to China to teach. Turns out it is a hot topic because some feel that many Americans go to China for the wrong reasons. Reasons like: to travel, learn Chinese, to have a guaranteed job, to live at a higher living standard then the majority of the population (thus making some feel superior). I had never really thought about it before, but began to question if I was qualified to be a teacher and what qualifies a person to teach. Also, what are my reasons for going to China. Honestly, I'm more interested in meeting Chinese people and getting to know them, versus making sure they know their adverbs from their nouns. Also, I really want to learn the language, what better place then the country itself. Finally, I want to see China, and by living and working there I will have a better opportunity of seeing places the average tourist might not get to.

Having said all that, I do want to teach. Two generations before me have been teachers, so there must be a reason. I'm curious to know what joys there are to be had from teaching, and perhaps from children in general.

The discussion went on to talk about the high demand for English teachers because part of the opening up of China involves the push for the Chinese to learn English. While many want standards for teachers, right now it can't be regulated because of the demand and the high turn over rate; which leaves many employers having to find new teachers every year.

Something else was that some Chinese feel some Americans, men usually, have a negative influence on Chinese students. Some Americans are said to lead "loose" lives, dating and being with many young girls, going out routinely, starting classes later/ending classes early. For women there doesn't seem to be much talk about us being a negative influence, but I'm sure there are plenty of girls who probably act in the same manner as those guys do.

My Chinese teacher said, that even if a person knows how to speak English (or whichever language) doesn't mean they can teach it. She pointed out that some English speakers don't know about tenses, how they are used or how sentences are structured, or know the difference betwwen verbs and adjectives.... those kind of things. Most people just speak, we don't think about it. However, she feels that if a person is going to China to teach, it is okay if they have other motives, so long as one of those is to teach the Chinese English. Also, that the person be willing to do some homework of their own about the subject they will be teaching (for example culture) and learn about the culture they are going to in order to avoid miscommunications.

I agree, but I think there should be some type of teacher training either before they leave or right when they get to China, to at least help those who are not necessarily fully qualified to teach to be better teachers. What do you think?

Friends

The post prior to this is a song called "Friends" I thought it was funny, especially after our teacher made our class sing it at our party... in Chinese! Here are the lyrics.


These years, by myself/ I walked through wind and rain/ have cried and made mistakes/ still remember my stubbornness/ Once you have fallen in love, then you will understand/ will get lonely and look back/ There will be dreams and you will be in my heart/ Friends who go through life with you/ Those were the days/ One talk can be remembered for a life time/ One drink together can mean lasting friendship/ With friends, will never be lonely/ One call and you will know/ there is sadness and pain/ there is parting, but I am always there

周華健 - 朋友

Plaza de Toros - Bull fight in Granada

My Fav Place from Study Abroad 2005/2006

Venice was one of my favorite places I visited in Europe when I studied abroad. It was a little cold, but it was beautiful. I loved all the water and boats and small alleys. It was a very cozy feeling place. Of all the places I've seen in the world I would go back to Venice again. However, while I love my parents, I think next time I'd like to share it with someone special (in a different way than my wonderful parents)... hint hint Gary! :) I hear I was lucky because some people don't like Venice because of the smell, but that is usually because they visited in the middle of the summer months when all the heat makes things smell odd. I also got some of my top fave souvenirs here. I bought two masks, two water color drawings, and some Venetian glass. I have all of them out in my apartment and I love to look at them. I automatically feel better when I see them and remember my time in Venice with Mom and Dennis (not to mention I remember the slightly tight hotel room all three of us stayed in, talk about close quarters!).