First off, this is a family friendly blog, so I don't get to talk about things like using the restroom nearly as much as I would like to. I've been meaning to write a blog entry discussing nothing but that, but I didn't want to put it up here. Anyways, my friend who is also in Heqing with me just wrote an entry with her take on the whole situation (http://laurita.blog.com/2011/08/30/pooping/#more-74) so check that out. I've got my own stories to tell as well, but will have to wait for another time (and probably a different blog).
I'm more than halfway done with my second week of teaching! And nobody has stabbed anyone else yet! And I haven't had a nervous breakdown! In short, things are good. One of my favorite things about this school is that some of the male students have definitely gone through puberty, but (probably due to general malnutrition) are really short, so you get this kids that look like they're in 5th grade talking in these epic deep voices. It's just so incongruous.
Wednesday, August 31, 2011
Tuesday, August 30, 2011
Scheduling
Scheduling anything in China can be a mess. Yesterday I was getting ready to go teach class and my supervisor walks up and tells me that I (and all the other foreign fellows) need to catch a bus in the next hour to go to Dali (which is about 2.5, 3 hrs away) where we'll be spending the night and take care of visa stuff in the morning. It was kinda a surprise but it ended up being a nice trip because we got to swing by the Dali walmart to buy all those wonderful things that walmart has (3 jars of peanut butter and a folding camping chair).
In general, schedules in China are subject to change at the last minute, and aren't really general knowledge. Last year, at my school, fellows were told on a Friday that there wouldn't be any classes for the next week because there was going to be a vacation. This was the first time the teachers had heard of this week long vacation. In general, you hear about vacations about two days before they actually happen, which makes scheduling trips, and having people visit....interesting.
In general, schedules in China are subject to change at the last minute, and aren't really general knowledge. Last year, at my school, fellows were told on a Friday that there wouldn't be any classes for the next week because there was going to be a vacation. This was the first time the teachers had heard of this week long vacation. In general, you hear about vacations about two days before they actually happen, which makes scheduling trips, and having people visit....interesting.
Saturday, August 27, 2011
Two Days of Classes Done!
So, I've only had two days of classes, and I'm pretty sure my students already got me sick. I'm not really surprised; coming into close contact with sixty little kids is probably not the best way to stay healthy. Hopefully I'll be feeling better by the time that Monday rolls around.
Anyways, I've been at my placement for a few days now, and I've already had some fun food: duck head (which is just kind of hard to eat, definitely prefer duck neck), and chicken feet (which I liked much more than the last time I had it, tasted kind of like barbecue), as well as other random things that I ate without knowing what they were.
Anyways, I've been at my placement for a few days now, and I've already had some fun food: duck head (which is just kind of hard to eat, definitely prefer duck neck), and chicken feet (which I liked much more than the last time I had it, tasted kind of like barbecue), as well as other random things that I ate without knowing what they were.
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
I'm moved in!
I'm finally moved in to the teacher dorms at my school. It feels so good to not be lugging around my stuff, and to actually have everything organized.
Apart from that, the dorms I'm in now are awesome. I've got a little study area, a bed (that is at least 6 inches too short if not more) and a room with a faucet where I can do laundry. I'm in the same room where Collin, one of the first batch of fellows and now in charge of organizing the Yunnan region for TFC, was living, and he left a bunch of stuff behind that I can use (various pieces of furniture, a small laundry machine!, a space heater and an electric blanket (it gets horribly cold here in the winter), and powerstrips and buckets). It's a great little place. It also even has internet! And it's all mine--I don't have to share it with anybody, and that feels surprisingly good.
I'm teaching class in two days, so I've got to run around preparing for that, and buying all those little things that I need, so I'm definitely going to be busy for the next few days, but I'm excited about it.
Apart from that, the dorms I'm in now are awesome. I've got a little study area, a bed (that is at least 6 inches too short if not more) and a room with a faucet where I can do laundry. I'm in the same room where Collin, one of the first batch of fellows and now in charge of organizing the Yunnan region for TFC, was living, and he left a bunch of stuff behind that I can use (various pieces of furniture, a small laundry machine!, a space heater and an electric blanket (it gets horribly cold here in the winter), and powerstrips and buckets). It's a great little place. It also even has internet! And it's all mine--I don't have to share it with anybody, and that feels surprisingly good.
I'm teaching class in two days, so I've got to run around preparing for that, and buying all those little things that I need, so I'm definitely going to be busy for the next few days, but I'm excited about it.
Sunday, August 21, 2011
heqing!
heqing is awesome and gorgeous! sadly mt hotel doesnt have internet so l can only use my kndle. i will be .eeting my pyincipal omorrow so lm pretty excited. we ill ne doing evemts all day that will culminate in a dinner where the principal will try to make me drink too much baijiu (a chinese spirt that tastes like rubbing alcohol).
lm excited to be here and even more excited to find out more about when l start teaching and other vital info like that
lm excited to be here and even more excited to find out more about when l start teaching and other vital info like that
Friday, August 19, 2011
Great New Diet!
Apparently, eating nothing but Chinese food ends up being a fantastic diet. I've lost 10 to 15 pounds since I've been here (not really sure exactly because of lack of scales) and it just happened by accident. Guys just can't get the same amount of protein and fat here that we do in the states that allows us to bulk up, so the weight just goes away. My pants are all falling off, and I might have to punch another hole in my belt pretty soon.
Sadly, girls have the opposite problem. Most of the girls who came here last year with TFC ended up gaining a good amount of weight over the year. We've all got our theories for why this happens, but it definitely does. I'm just glad I'm on the good side of this weight change thing.
I've been in Dali for the past couple of days, and I've been eating almost all Western food (Dali has a lot of tourist stuff) and I can definitely feel the difference. My wallet also is feeling the difference--I've been paying about 5 times as much per meal, and it's tasty but it's not even that good. I want to get to my placement and start eating delicious Chinese food again.
Sadly, girls have the opposite problem. Most of the girls who came here last year with TFC ended up gaining a good amount of weight over the year. We've all got our theories for why this happens, but it definitely does. I'm just glad I'm on the good side of this weight change thing.
I've been in Dali for the past couple of days, and I've been eating almost all Western food (Dali has a lot of tourist stuff) and I can definitely feel the difference. My wallet also is feeling the difference--I've been paying about 5 times as much per meal, and it's tasty but it's not even that good. I want to get to my placement and start eating delicious Chinese food again.
Sunday, August 14, 2011
Placement Day!!!
I got placed!! I'll be in heqing county at heqingerzhong, a middle school. Here's a link to all the information that wikipedia has on heqing: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heqing_County It's pretty informative. It's an awesome placement, I really like the people that I'll be with (Jarlene, Tim, and Laura are the American fellows, and I really like the Chinese fellows as well) and Teach for China has been established at the school I'll be at for 3 years so we've got a good relationship with the principal and the locals.
The location is fantastic also. It's pretty near Dali. People say that Yunnan is the New Mexico of China, and if it's the New Mexico of China, Dali is like Santa Fe. It's this hippie mecca that has great restaurants and is near some really great climbing, and has a cool expat community.
We also got moved to different dorms yesterday, and they're awesome. We actually have bathrooms in the dorms, which is incredible. We also have power outlets and tables so it feels like we're living a life of luxury. We moved in yesterday, and pretty much everybody was on the 5th and 6th floors so I got horribly sweaty carrying peoples' luggage up for about an hour. The two flaws in these dorms is the absurd number of cockroaches that are sharing the dorm with us, and the construction that is perpetually happening in and around our rooms at 6 in the morning. I'll be leaving pretty soon for my placement though, so I'm hoping the place I go to next will be even nicer.
The location is fantastic also. It's pretty near Dali. People say that Yunnan is the New Mexico of China, and if it's the New Mexico of China, Dali is like Santa Fe. It's this hippie mecca that has great restaurants and is near some really great climbing, and has a cool expat community.
We also got moved to different dorms yesterday, and they're awesome. We actually have bathrooms in the dorms, which is incredible. We also have power outlets and tables so it feels like we're living a life of luxury. We moved in yesterday, and pretty much everybody was on the 5th and 6th floors so I got horribly sweaty carrying peoples' luggage up for about an hour. The two flaws in these dorms is the absurd number of cockroaches that are sharing the dorm with us, and the construction that is perpetually happening in and around our rooms at 6 in the morning. I'll be leaving pretty soon for my placement though, so I'm hoping the place I go to next will be even nicer.
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