Today was national teachers day in China which is apparently a really big deal! 2 days ago the headmaster and both principals took us hiking at this BEAUTIFUL tropical chinese oasis. It was so pretty, it looked like something out of a movie. The stone pathway and stairs that winded their way elegantly up a mountain next to a stream. There was also a little restaurant/cafe place about halfway up the mountain. It was just so cool, the atmosphere was unreal! It was just set back in the trees a little and had a awning that was held up by bamboo poles. The tables were quaint with candles in the middle and small bamboo stools to sit on. There were lanterns along the sides (it was sunset when we went, so it got dark rather quickly.) There was also another place where you crossed a bridge and the trees cleared and there was a gorgeous lake that reflected the few lights that were on the mountain. A tall pagoda stood at the summit which made the end of the hike worth it to get to the top and see such a different building architecturaly. We also had an awesome view of the city. The ambiance of it all was so enchanting, and it was only a 20 min bus ride away. Jenna and I want to go there more often, and hopefully in the day so we can take pictures. Anyway, that was a fun activity to do with the headmaster and principal, then we went out to dinner to a really nice restaurant. I cant remember the name of the style of restaurant but they are at every formal dining place i have been so far. It is where you all sit at a round table, and there is a smaller round thing in the middle that spins and is raised up a bit. that is what they put all the food on, and you just spin it and take what you want. We had some delicious dumplings, flat bread, pita-type sandwhiches, chow mein, sauteed green beans, and asparagus. They also brought out pork ribs but I explained to the headmaster I didnt like meat but she insisted that we try it because it had a "very unique flavor that is very famous in Guangzhou" so she gave me a small piece. I ate it, and it was fine but I was glad she didnt give me the entire thing. Anyway that food was quite good. Then last night, we went out for dinner again to a different place. This time when we first walked in the restaurant there was big tanks with tons of different fish, shrimp, crabs, turtles, frogs etc. We went upstairs and the first thing they brought out was a large bowl that looked like it was full of chicken broth. So one of the chinese teachers put some broth in all of our cups. I tried a few mouthfulls but didnt like it at all. It tasted like dirty water with a hint of meat. It also tasted quite strongly of iron which was strange. (remember this bowl of broth, ill get to it later in my story...) so i pushed my cup aside and hoped for something better...unfortunately it didnt come. The next dishes were shrimp which would have been fine, had they not been whole shrimp that were completely whole. (Eyes, feelers, legs and all.) The next was a plate that had chunks of chicken and chunks of beef. They looked like they had a really good glaze on them so i tried a piece but it was so wiggly I couldnt even pretend to like it. A few minutes later when the plate came around again i noticed the chicken head sitting on the plate looking up at me. it had been cut in half so if you turned it over on one side you could see the chicken brain, the nasal pasage, eye socket etc...yum! so i definately had to pass on that, and my appetite was dwindling although I had been starving at the beginning of dinner. The next dish was a whole fish. Yes, a large fish that was completely whole, the only thing they had done after cooking was slit open the belly so if you wanted to eat the organs, they were fresh and readily accessible. The next dish was oysters. Then chicken feet. Then scallops and mushrooms. and towards the end of the meal after eating a lot of green beans that came with one of the dishes and drinking coke, Jenna thought, well maybe that chicken broth will be ok if we put it on rice...So we stood up to spoon some in to a bowl, and there in the bottom of the broth bowl was a black bird. Just hanging out in the bottom of this bowl. and we had just drank his hot juices!!! We started laughing so hard I had tears streaming down my face and obviously any desire I had previously to eat anything was absolutely absent. It was hilarious that we thought there would be normal chicken broth there. Of course it was something weird, and of course we tried it (and hated it by the way...) before knowing it was just hot water they had poured over a dead birds body. So that was a really interesting outing. Also, the restaurant was really crowded and the big tables full of people would walk around and toast us all. So when it came to be our turn, we got up with our coke and orange soda in our glasses and toasted a bunch of drunk chinese people who just wanted to celebrate teachers. It was pretty funny!
That was last night, so today for teachers day we went to a performance at the town square building that was for all the teachers put on by students and the school board for the town of Guzhen. The major part of the get together was for the children to dance. I have never been to a stranger dance concert! They had the most bizarre costumes, and music, and dance moves, i just couldnt believe my eyes. For example, in one dance there was about 8 of the kids wearing full lime green spandex suits and had a big plastic dark green thing strapped to their back that resembled a piece of lettuce. There was also an angel, 2 fairy's, a boy in a trash bag (he was a cloud) another boy in a superhero/vampire costume, and 3 main girls, one of the main girls was wearing a red and gold hoop skirt and red tree branches strapped to her back, another was wearing a yellow ruffly dress that had a looooong train and a candlestick on top of her head, and the 3rd girl was wearing a green mini dress with a big green bowl thing on her head. they danced around for a billion years to weird music and bizarre sound effects. I couldnt believe it! there was another dance that about 6 boys did that was a breakdancing number to the mario game theme song!!!! it was so crazy. anyway, that was funny and then we went to get our hair washed. It was a pretty good day, and fun that we didnt have to teach and got to do some other things instead.
I am leaving in the morning for Hangzhou, it is a 19 hour train ride north of where I am now. So that will be an interesting experience, 19 hours sitting on a train! I am very excited though, it is only about an hour away from Shanghai, so maybe we will be able to go there for a day. The main reason we are going to Hangzhou is because there is a lake there called West Lake. I think I told you about it, it is where monks and emperors would go as a retreat. It is supposed to be a very tranquil environment, and very beautiful. I am prepared to take a lot of pictures! When we go on vacation like this (like when we went to Xi'an and Kaiyin) I only took the backpack dad let me borrow. So I feel like I am just backpacking through China and it really is so fun! I better get to bed, I have a long 2 days of traveling ahead of me.
Thursday, September 10, 2009
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Weekend trip to Kaiyin
Well, it is sunday night here (about 11pm) and I have had the longest day ever. I can't believe I am still going! We left yesterday afternoon for Kayin which is another city in Zhongshan, it is about 2 hours away on bus. There are 2 other groups of teachers living in Kayin so we stayed with them sat night and woke up early this morning around 5:30am to get to church on time which started at 10. The branch is in Shenzhen (shen-jen) which is about an hour and a half - two hours from Kaiyan. So, we woke up and caught the bus which came around 630-7 and arrived there close to 9am. It was so odd, the church building is just like a house but inside it is extremely similar to a church. (white walls, pictures of Christ everywhere...etc.) Except, it is still a house. So the living room and like 2 bedrooms have all been joined together to create like a chapel, then the kitchen is closely connected, there is a bedroom downstairs along with a bathroom. The relief society room is upstairs along with more bedroom aand a bathroom. I never went in the basement but thats where primary was held. It was such a cool experience. It was really different from the branch in Xi'an only because in Xi'an it was in a classroom and only 20 people or so. At this branch in Shenzhen there was families with babies, toddlers, children of all ages, etc. Most all of them were from America too which was nice to finally be able to speak English and actually understand what people are saying. The branch presidency had interviews with all of the teachers from ILP at some point throughout the day. It was really funny meeting with the branch president in a closet/laundry room, but it worked! They were all really really nice, and said if we needed anything they would help in any way they could. They also are going to work on getting a few preisthood holders from the branch presidency to come to Zhongshan once in a while so we can have church here. It only makes sense that 3 men come to 20+ teachers and not the other way around. Anyway, they also gave us a phone number and email address we can contact them at if we (or you as parents) ever need anything. If you want that let me know.
The sacrament meeting was really awesome, it was fast and testimony meeting today and I havent ever felt gratitude for the gospel and for my family like I did today. Just watching the families interact with one another made me realize that you are doing the same thing at church in the states without me and I will admit that was the first I have felt a little homesick this whole trip. The testimonies I heard were truly inspiring. A boy about 16 gave the sweetest and most sincere testimony I have ever heard in my life. He is Chinese but lives in Hong Kong (I dont know why he was in the mainland...) and he said at school that week some of the kids he eats lunch with were talking about how he is Mormon. They asked him why he doesnt drink tea or coffee (I think this was the question that came up because tea and coffee are HUGE over here. Tea is for obvious reasons, but they really do serve it with every meal without you even ordering it. So obviously it is odd for a chinese person to not drink it.) Anyway, the kids were wondering why he didnt drink tea or coffee and he said he didnt have a very good answer for them besides it coinsides with what he believes in. He got a little choked up when he said that later he was pondering his answer and what he could possibly say that would be better in the future he realized the REAL reason he doesnt drink tea or coffee. Because it is asked of him. That hit me so hard, I couldnt believe it. What a smart kid! That is so true. We don't really need any other answer to give other people or even to give ourselves if we are ever contemplating why we are following hte commandments. Because it is asked of us. He went on to say how Christ gave him agency and paid for every bad choice he has ever made and that the least he could do to pay back his older brother is by doing what is asked of him without further question or doubt. His testimony was so inspirational. Another guy got up and talked about how in the Doctrine and Covenants, if someone does wrong to you, and hurts you in some way one time, you should forgive them. if they hurt you again, you should forgive them. if they hurt you a third time, you should forgive them. He said there is NO point in our lives when we will ever be justified in saying, I have forgiven this person enough times. This time is where I draw the line. That we will always be asked and expected to forgive everyone every single time they hurt us. This also was humbling to hear the more I thought about it.
Relief society was also really awesome, it was on Family Home Evening and they told us that even though we are away from our families for so long and we obviously cant participate in FHE with you guys back home, that the girls I am living with here in Guzhen are my China family. So we have decided to do family home evening every week together and I think it will be really fun. We are starting to get in to a routine that is incredibly productive, and it is really nice to have the structure in our crazy lives here in China. They told us how FHE will strengthen our bonds as a "family" and we are excited to experience that.
After church the bus dropped us off at the school in Kaiyan, we grabbed some lunch (peanut noodles mmmm! and dumplings in peanut sauce...mmmm!) then caught another bus from the school in Kaiyan to the bus station in Kaiyan. It was about a 45 min trip from the school to the bus station. Then we caught another bus into Guzhen which was about a 2 hour ride. The 2 hour bus ride was on a bus that was so packed I couldnt believe it was legal. all the seats were full and people were just standing so close together everytime someone new got on i had no idea where they were going to stand. I had a seat luckily but I was touching people on everyside, and on top of all that there was zero air conditioning on the stupid thing! That many people in such a small space with no air flow when everyone was already hot and sweaty because the humid weather here is the pits but it really was the worst thing that I have experienced so far. I really was trying with every breath not to burst in to tears from being literally drenched in not only my sweat but all the strangers around me also, and feeling like I couldnt breath because the air was so hot and stale and heavy....ahhhh! Anyway, we got home around 6:30 and I never thought I would be so grateful to come back to our cockroach infested, sweaty, smelly apartment but I couldnt wait.
Jenna and i made a suddenly pasta thing for dinner tonight that was the alfredo. We dont have cows milk here so we used velveeta cheese to thicken the alfredo sauce. It didnt taste quite the same as it should in america, but it was delicious. I love my roommates and they are my China family. I got really lucky with my group. I am really excited that we all get a long so well.
We have a vacation this week which I am really looking forward to. Thursday is teachers day, so we dont ahve to teach, and we are going to get our hair washed with all the other teachers for only 10 kuai (about $1.20US!) and also possibly a movie so that should be fun. Then we do have to teach friday, but we are hopefully leaving friday night for our vacation and will be home tuesday night. We were initally going to Yangshuo/Guilin but are thinking we might go to West lake instead for this trip. West lake is a retreat that the emporers would go to, it is supposed to be really beautiful. anyway, I cant wait and I think it will be really fun. We always have some crazy adventures on our vacations and trips.
I was talking to the other girls the other day and we all realized how fast all of our expenses are adding up and it is a little startling...yes, everything is cheap but we really havent eaten in the school cafeteria ( mostly because we see the rice soaking in garbage cans, and a few other things in the kitchen that can not be sanitary and we dont want to get sick! also, its always mystery meat, however they are quite fond of fish heads on plain rice for some reason?) anyway, so we are having to eat out for almost every meal which isnt a big deal other than its getting really old eating rice...noodles...or dumplings...for every meal. So, we go to the grocery store and try to buy groceries which is still cheap, and allows us some variety but it is adding up which worries me a little. I think we are spending between $10-$15US a week on food which is pretty awesome actually because in america that would be like one meal, maybe two eating out and we do get full of some delicious food...BUT. ILP told us all meals were included so that is 10-15$ that none of us had planned on spending each week. Which is frustrating, because yes we probably COULD eat the food from the cafeteria and just get some sauce from the grocery store to put on plain rice and only eat the vegetables and toss the meat, but it would get old fast, and i dont think its very sanitary the way they do things. And yeah, Chinese standards for health is obviously lots different than in america, but they are used to eating this way...we arent. Anyway, i just realized the other day that the money i thought i was going to be able to use 100% for traveling and souveniers and some treats here and there is going a lot faster and to other places than what i had initially planned. So that is kind of a bummer for sure, I'm not sure what to do about that, I might have to let you know how garbage can soaked rice is with fish heads on top.....
ps. we found these ice cream treats yesterday that taste like sugar cookie dough with vanilla ice cream in the middle! They are so so weird! they are only 1 kuai so they are really cheap but i have never had anything like it. its like a frozen sugar cookie dough ball with ice cream inside...Oh China!
The sacrament meeting was really awesome, it was fast and testimony meeting today and I havent ever felt gratitude for the gospel and for my family like I did today. Just watching the families interact with one another made me realize that you are doing the same thing at church in the states without me and I will admit that was the first I have felt a little homesick this whole trip. The testimonies I heard were truly inspiring. A boy about 16 gave the sweetest and most sincere testimony I have ever heard in my life. He is Chinese but lives in Hong Kong (I dont know why he was in the mainland...) and he said at school that week some of the kids he eats lunch with were talking about how he is Mormon. They asked him why he doesnt drink tea or coffee (I think this was the question that came up because tea and coffee are HUGE over here. Tea is for obvious reasons, but they really do serve it with every meal without you even ordering it. So obviously it is odd for a chinese person to not drink it.) Anyway, the kids were wondering why he didnt drink tea or coffee and he said he didnt have a very good answer for them besides it coinsides with what he believes in. He got a little choked up when he said that later he was pondering his answer and what he could possibly say that would be better in the future he realized the REAL reason he doesnt drink tea or coffee. Because it is asked of him. That hit me so hard, I couldnt believe it. What a smart kid! That is so true. We don't really need any other answer to give other people or even to give ourselves if we are ever contemplating why we are following hte commandments. Because it is asked of us. He went on to say how Christ gave him agency and paid for every bad choice he has ever made and that the least he could do to pay back his older brother is by doing what is asked of him without further question or doubt. His testimony was so inspirational. Another guy got up and talked about how in the Doctrine and Covenants, if someone does wrong to you, and hurts you in some way one time, you should forgive them. if they hurt you again, you should forgive them. if they hurt you a third time, you should forgive them. He said there is NO point in our lives when we will ever be justified in saying, I have forgiven this person enough times. This time is where I draw the line. That we will always be asked and expected to forgive everyone every single time they hurt us. This also was humbling to hear the more I thought about it.
Relief society was also really awesome, it was on Family Home Evening and they told us that even though we are away from our families for so long and we obviously cant participate in FHE with you guys back home, that the girls I am living with here in Guzhen are my China family. So we have decided to do family home evening every week together and I think it will be really fun. We are starting to get in to a routine that is incredibly productive, and it is really nice to have the structure in our crazy lives here in China. They told us how FHE will strengthen our bonds as a "family" and we are excited to experience that.
After church the bus dropped us off at the school in Kaiyan, we grabbed some lunch (peanut noodles mmmm! and dumplings in peanut sauce...mmmm!) then caught another bus from the school in Kaiyan to the bus station in Kaiyan. It was about a 45 min trip from the school to the bus station. Then we caught another bus into Guzhen which was about a 2 hour ride. The 2 hour bus ride was on a bus that was so packed I couldnt believe it was legal. all the seats were full and people were just standing so close together everytime someone new got on i had no idea where they were going to stand. I had a seat luckily but I was touching people on everyside, and on top of all that there was zero air conditioning on the stupid thing! That many people in such a small space with no air flow when everyone was already hot and sweaty because the humid weather here is the pits but it really was the worst thing that I have experienced so far. I really was trying with every breath not to burst in to tears from being literally drenched in not only my sweat but all the strangers around me also, and feeling like I couldnt breath because the air was so hot and stale and heavy....ahhhh! Anyway, we got home around 6:30 and I never thought I would be so grateful to come back to our cockroach infested, sweaty, smelly apartment but I couldnt wait.
Jenna and i made a suddenly pasta thing for dinner tonight that was the alfredo. We dont have cows milk here so we used velveeta cheese to thicken the alfredo sauce. It didnt taste quite the same as it should in america, but it was delicious. I love my roommates and they are my China family. I got really lucky with my group. I am really excited that we all get a long so well.
We have a vacation this week which I am really looking forward to. Thursday is teachers day, so we dont ahve to teach, and we are going to get our hair washed with all the other teachers for only 10 kuai (about $1.20US!) and also possibly a movie so that should be fun. Then we do have to teach friday, but we are hopefully leaving friday night for our vacation and will be home tuesday night. We were initally going to Yangshuo/Guilin but are thinking we might go to West lake instead for this trip. West lake is a retreat that the emporers would go to, it is supposed to be really beautiful. anyway, I cant wait and I think it will be really fun. We always have some crazy adventures on our vacations and trips.
I was talking to the other girls the other day and we all realized how fast all of our expenses are adding up and it is a little startling...yes, everything is cheap but we really havent eaten in the school cafeteria ( mostly because we see the rice soaking in garbage cans, and a few other things in the kitchen that can not be sanitary and we dont want to get sick! also, its always mystery meat, however they are quite fond of fish heads on plain rice for some reason?) anyway, so we are having to eat out for almost every meal which isnt a big deal other than its getting really old eating rice...noodles...or dumplings...for every meal. So, we go to the grocery store and try to buy groceries which is still cheap, and allows us some variety but it is adding up which worries me a little. I think we are spending between $10-$15US a week on food which is pretty awesome actually because in america that would be like one meal, maybe two eating out and we do get full of some delicious food...BUT. ILP told us all meals were included so that is 10-15$ that none of us had planned on spending each week. Which is frustrating, because yes we probably COULD eat the food from the cafeteria and just get some sauce from the grocery store to put on plain rice and only eat the vegetables and toss the meat, but it would get old fast, and i dont think its very sanitary the way they do things. And yeah, Chinese standards for health is obviously lots different than in america, but they are used to eating this way...we arent. Anyway, i just realized the other day that the money i thought i was going to be able to use 100% for traveling and souveniers and some treats here and there is going a lot faster and to other places than what i had initially planned. So that is kind of a bummer for sure, I'm not sure what to do about that, I might have to let you know how garbage can soaked rice is with fish heads on top.....
ps. we found these ice cream treats yesterday that taste like sugar cookie dough with vanilla ice cream in the middle! They are so so weird! they are only 1 kuai so they are really cheap but i have never had anything like it. its like a frozen sugar cookie dough ball with ice cream inside...Oh China!
Friday, September 4, 2009
My life in China
Well I have been in China for over 2 weeks now, and I can hardly believe it...I feel like I have been here at least a month! (In a good way, I am having the time of my life!) Here are some things I have learned since being here.
1. Nothing is REALLY clean in China. If it appears clean, it isn't. And it definitely isn't sanitary.
2.You carry around an umbrella with you when you go out, whether it is rain or shine.
3. Don't wear any article of clothing that is tight. It will end up being the catch-all for perspiration.
4. Chinese people sleep where they fall.
5. The danger zone must only exist in America, because raw (or cooked) meat will sit in the hot humid sun all day in a metal pan and people eat it all the time.
6. Sweet things are hard to come by in China.
7. Chinese fruit isn't as good as American fruit.
8. Living in China and using the yuan/RMB/kuai is a great way to get more for your dollar. ( I went to the grocery store yesterday and bought cereal, soy milk, peanut butter, a loaf of bread, gatorade, 3 juices, 2 packages of crackers, plastic bowls and cutlery, 4 apples and a bunch of grapes and spent 24 kuai which is less than $4.00US.)
9. People don't make eye contact with you. or anyone for that matter.
10. Americans are treated like royalty. (as we walk down the street, Chinese people will yell whatever english they know after us. ex: Hello! Hello!, This or that!, Too Much!, Beautiful!, How much!?, It is quite hilarious.)
11. Carbs are 98% of the Chinese diet. Rice, Noodles, bread, crackers, etc. (i feel like scurvy is a serious concern here...)
12. There is no limit as to how many people can ride on a scooter/motorcycle at the same time. ( The most I have seen is 5...full grown adults!)
13. Hot dogs have glitter on them, and i dont want to know why..
14. To have 2 hard wooden palates as a bed is considered a lot better than just having 1 hard wooden palate to sleep on.
15. Air conditioning is not necessary, even in the most hot and humid climate on earth.
Thats all I can really think of off the top of my head, but I am sure I will learn more as time goes on!
Today was day 3 of class. I am teaching Kitchen this week, and we made Smores! here, they have marshmallows that come individually wrapped like a candy and have different fillings. I bought some with chocolate filling and did my best to pick out a sweet cracker that would resemble a graham cracker. It was a really fun activity and the kids LOVED it! The kids in my home room class are: Lisa, she is a pretty big girl for her age but such a sweetheart. She will always cup her hands and whisper things in to my ear. She will also just mouth things all the time like she is talking, but no words come out. It is pretty funny! Jodi, is an adorable, petite little girl. On the first day of school, she was in Jennas class playing duck, duck goose and she was wearing a glass bracelet, she slipped and fell and the beads broke and cut her face! It was so sad, but she took it like a champ. She and Lisa get along really well. Devan is my favorite student so far. He could not be any more precious! He keeps me laughing all day. For example, the first rule in our classroom is No Chinese. Everytime before we begin class we go over the rules so the kids know them well. However, since English is completely new to them when they want to talk to their classmates often times they will speak chinese.
(When this happens I stop class and say, No Chinese! and if they continue I put them on the Chinese chair for about 20 seconds.) So one particular time, Devan said something in Chinese and I gasped and said No Chinese! he just laughed and mocked me for several minutes...I kept laughing so he kept doing it. He is quite the character. He also must be a dancer or something because he will do sashe-pleas (sp?) all around the classroom, along with several really hilarious dance moves as he chants, 5-6-7-8.... Alex is my other little boy, he has the cutest little face ever! His english is really improving a lot and its only been 3 days. I cant wait to watch him learn more. He communicates really well what he wants and is a great helper in class! When my water bottle runs out, he will run over to the water jug and fill it up for me. I am not a fan of the way the chinese drink their water (its always really hot. I havent had a cold drink since ive been here.) but it is so sweet of him, I drink it anyway. Cindy and Amy are both very quiet. I have a really hard time getting either one of them to speak much, although I know they understand what I am saying. If I get them one on one, and ask a question they always respond appropriately, so it might just take a little extra time and attention to get them to the same level as the other kids. Katie is my last little girl. She is pretty shy, but when you open her up everyday, she smiles and just lights up the room with her laugh and energy! (the hard part is getting her to not be so grumpy...) She is pretty stubborn and doesnt like to follow directions as much as my other kids though. If any of them are going to be troublesome, its her. She just doesnt like to try speaking english. I will have to try a few other reward systems to find one that fits her specifically.
In addition to my regular classes, I have ELE classes on tues, wed, fri from 3:20-3:50. It is basically just like babysitting 30 kids at once. It is kind of a frustrating thing to have to do, because the kids we do the ELE classes for, are not enrolled in the ILP program so they know zero english. So when I go in there and talk or sing, or tell a story in english its not like they have any idea what I am saying. So I have to use lots of actions and singing and pictures to keep them entertained for a half hour. I dont think it is effective, but I have to do it, so whatever.
A weekday in my life here in China is similar to this:
7-8am. wake up, make bed, do AM yoga with Jenna, eat breakfast. (usually cereal and soy milk, yogurt, granola bars, fruit, etc...)
8-8:45am get ready for the day, prepare bag with teaching supplies, make bed.
8:45-12noon. Teach English. 6 rotations total.
12-1pm Lunch (we ate in the cafeteria once, and were so grossed out we havent been back. so we usually eat sandwhiches or whatever we have in the apartment for lunch.)
1-2pm Chinese class (M-TR, although Chinese is really difficult to be motivated to go to. Our teacher isnt very good...)
2-3pm free time
3:20-3:50 ELE classes (T,W,F)
4-10pm is when we go to the grocery store, dancing, wishy washy place, post office, email home, shower, watch movies, go shopping, and out to dinner etc. We eat out almost every night for dinner. Which usually ends up costing between 4-8 kuai per person. ( $0.60-$1.15 US).
People werent kidding when they said that China has a certain smell. It is really in your clothes, especially after you have just washed them. No such thing as clean clothes smell! It is really frustrating.
Chinese drivers are the craziest drivers! I can not believe how insane people are on the road. It is basically just everyone looking out for themselves which seems to work well enough. Everyone completely disreguards any traffic lights, or signs, or lanes on the road. Everyone just drives wherever they can and wherever they want. Even on the sidewalk! I can't believe some of the things I have seen while on the road. They will drive between lanes and I am not kidding when I say if I had my window rolled down, and the car next to me had their window rolled down, I could touch the other cars radio. It is absurd how close people get to each others cars without touching. I am shocked most the time. Ihave to not pay attention to what is going on on the road, or I would lose it every single day.
I have had some delicious dumplings and noodles since I have been here (that is my favorite thing to order when we go out. I am not brave enough to really try much else...) And the thing that makes the dumplings so awesome half the time is the sauce they are dipped in. I think I will buy some of the chinese sauces and stuff that they have here to bring home and see if I can find anything like it back home in an asian market. I am also getting pretty good at using chopsticks! Most the time I have no choice but to use chopsticks, so its either figure out a way to get the food in my mouth, or starve!
I think that is all for now, I have to get to bed!
1. Nothing is REALLY clean in China. If it appears clean, it isn't. And it definitely isn't sanitary.
2.You carry around an umbrella with you when you go out, whether it is rain or shine.
3. Don't wear any article of clothing that is tight. It will end up being the catch-all for perspiration.
4. Chinese people sleep where they fall.
5. The danger zone must only exist in America, because raw (or cooked) meat will sit in the hot humid sun all day in a metal pan and people eat it all the time.
6. Sweet things are hard to come by in China.
7. Chinese fruit isn't as good as American fruit.
8. Living in China and using the yuan/RMB/kuai is a great way to get more for your dollar. ( I went to the grocery store yesterday and bought cereal, soy milk, peanut butter, a loaf of bread, gatorade, 3 juices, 2 packages of crackers, plastic bowls and cutlery, 4 apples and a bunch of grapes and spent 24 kuai which is less than $4.00US.)
9. People don't make eye contact with you. or anyone for that matter.
10. Americans are treated like royalty. (as we walk down the street, Chinese people will yell whatever english they know after us. ex: Hello! Hello!, This or that!, Too Much!, Beautiful!, How much!?, It is quite hilarious.)
11. Carbs are 98% of the Chinese diet. Rice, Noodles, bread, crackers, etc. (i feel like scurvy is a serious concern here...)
12. There is no limit as to how many people can ride on a scooter/motorcycle at the same time. ( The most I have seen is 5...full grown adults!)
13. Hot dogs have glitter on them, and i dont want to know why..
14. To have 2 hard wooden palates as a bed is considered a lot better than just having 1 hard wooden palate to sleep on.
15. Air conditioning is not necessary, even in the most hot and humid climate on earth.
Thats all I can really think of off the top of my head, but I am sure I will learn more as time goes on!
Today was day 3 of class. I am teaching Kitchen this week, and we made Smores! here, they have marshmallows that come individually wrapped like a candy and have different fillings. I bought some with chocolate filling and did my best to pick out a sweet cracker that would resemble a graham cracker. It was a really fun activity and the kids LOVED it! The kids in my home room class are: Lisa, she is a pretty big girl for her age but such a sweetheart. She will always cup her hands and whisper things in to my ear. She will also just mouth things all the time like she is talking, but no words come out. It is pretty funny! Jodi, is an adorable, petite little girl. On the first day of school, she was in Jennas class playing duck, duck goose and she was wearing a glass bracelet, she slipped and fell and the beads broke and cut her face! It was so sad, but she took it like a champ. She and Lisa get along really well. Devan is my favorite student so far. He could not be any more precious! He keeps me laughing all day. For example, the first rule in our classroom is No Chinese. Everytime before we begin class we go over the rules so the kids know them well. However, since English is completely new to them when they want to talk to their classmates often times they will speak chinese.
(When this happens I stop class and say, No Chinese! and if they continue I put them on the Chinese chair for about 20 seconds.) So one particular time, Devan said something in Chinese and I gasped and said No Chinese! he just laughed and mocked me for several minutes...I kept laughing so he kept doing it. He is quite the character. He also must be a dancer or something because he will do sashe-pleas (sp?) all around the classroom, along with several really hilarious dance moves as he chants, 5-6-7-8.... Alex is my other little boy, he has the cutest little face ever! His english is really improving a lot and its only been 3 days. I cant wait to watch him learn more. He communicates really well what he wants and is a great helper in class! When my water bottle runs out, he will run over to the water jug and fill it up for me. I am not a fan of the way the chinese drink their water (its always really hot. I havent had a cold drink since ive been here.) but it is so sweet of him, I drink it anyway. Cindy and Amy are both very quiet. I have a really hard time getting either one of them to speak much, although I know they understand what I am saying. If I get them one on one, and ask a question they always respond appropriately, so it might just take a little extra time and attention to get them to the same level as the other kids. Katie is my last little girl. She is pretty shy, but when you open her up everyday, she smiles and just lights up the room with her laugh and energy! (the hard part is getting her to not be so grumpy...) She is pretty stubborn and doesnt like to follow directions as much as my other kids though. If any of them are going to be troublesome, its her. She just doesnt like to try speaking english. I will have to try a few other reward systems to find one that fits her specifically.
In addition to my regular classes, I have ELE classes on tues, wed, fri from 3:20-3:50. It is basically just like babysitting 30 kids at once. It is kind of a frustrating thing to have to do, because the kids we do the ELE classes for, are not enrolled in the ILP program so they know zero english. So when I go in there and talk or sing, or tell a story in english its not like they have any idea what I am saying. So I have to use lots of actions and singing and pictures to keep them entertained for a half hour. I dont think it is effective, but I have to do it, so whatever.
A weekday in my life here in China is similar to this:
7-8am. wake up, make bed, do AM yoga with Jenna, eat breakfast. (usually cereal and soy milk, yogurt, granola bars, fruit, etc...)
8-8:45am get ready for the day, prepare bag with teaching supplies, make bed.
8:45-12noon. Teach English. 6 rotations total.
12-1pm Lunch (we ate in the cafeteria once, and were so grossed out we havent been back. so we usually eat sandwhiches or whatever we have in the apartment for lunch.)
1-2pm Chinese class (M-TR, although Chinese is really difficult to be motivated to go to. Our teacher isnt very good...)
2-3pm free time
3:20-3:50 ELE classes (T,W,F)
4-10pm is when we go to the grocery store, dancing, wishy washy place, post office, email home, shower, watch movies, go shopping, and out to dinner etc. We eat out almost every night for dinner. Which usually ends up costing between 4-8 kuai per person. ( $0.60-$1.15 US).
People werent kidding when they said that China has a certain smell. It is really in your clothes, especially after you have just washed them. No such thing as clean clothes smell! It is really frustrating.
Chinese drivers are the craziest drivers! I can not believe how insane people are on the road. It is basically just everyone looking out for themselves which seems to work well enough. Everyone completely disreguards any traffic lights, or signs, or lanes on the road. Everyone just drives wherever they can and wherever they want. Even on the sidewalk! I can't believe some of the things I have seen while on the road. They will drive between lanes and I am not kidding when I say if I had my window rolled down, and the car next to me had their window rolled down, I could touch the other cars radio. It is absurd how close people get to each others cars without touching. I am shocked most the time. Ihave to not pay attention to what is going on on the road, or I would lose it every single day.
I have had some delicious dumplings and noodles since I have been here (that is my favorite thing to order when we go out. I am not brave enough to really try much else...) And the thing that makes the dumplings so awesome half the time is the sauce they are dipped in. I think I will buy some of the chinese sauces and stuff that they have here to bring home and see if I can find anything like it back home in an asian market. I am also getting pretty good at using chopsticks! Most the time I have no choice but to use chopsticks, so its either figure out a way to get the food in my mouth, or starve!
I think that is all for now, I have to get to bed!
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