It seemed a little strange to add stuff about China onto a blog labeled Austria, so I've created a new blog
http://rachaelchinakindy.blogspot.com/
Enjoy : )
Panorama
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
8.31.2010
It is hot here. I’ve been trying to convince myself that it isn’t to bad, but it is hot and humid. I think I’m chronicle dehydrated. I can’t drink enough water to stay hydrated. I sweat it all out on my walk from my flat to the Kindy.
I finally got a curriculum that is more than a few flashcards! It is very strangely organized we go over on letter a week in N1 and a few letters a week in L2. We also talk about on colour (and yes I spelled it right) and one shape each week for N1 and a few colours and a few shapes for L2. If I were in charge we would do a unit on colors and a unit on numbers. They are suppose to know the alphabet, so that is just review and fine to do one a week. We also sing old nursery rhymes. The first week is Two Little Dicky Birds for N1 and Polly, Put the Kettle On for L2.
Something that I am having to learn here is humility. I cannot get around on my own right now and venturing into the city by myself seems a little unintelligent. I can’t read anything. I am learning a few symbols and I can recognize them, but saying them is an entirely different story. I am having to rely on people more here than I ever have in my entire life. I am fairly independent, but I’m finding it very hard to be on my own here. I need others. This is something very new for me.
Getting my bearings...a little
Today has been a much better day at Kindergarten. I decorated my room and it colorful. I even had a few of the other teachers help me decide where to put chairs and a few furniture items. It was nice to have them come in and help out. I had some die cuts that I was stapling to the door and I shocked and awed them. They were all amazed and wished America wasn’t so far away so they could have some of their own. It is funny how little things like that impress them. I had teachers coming in all day to look at the things from USA.
One of the office staff I thought was a little snobby I found out today doesn’t know very much English, so she hasn’t been avoiding me she just couldn’t talk to me very well. It was nice to know that she is quite the snob I originally thought she was. I’ve also found out that as long as I’m doing my own thing and not in the way they are more than willing to help me with small jobs when I do go into the office.
I drew a few pictures today, because after lunch I realized that I didn’t have a “color” bulletin board yet. It doesn’t look as professional as some of the other boards, but I did a pretty good job at drawing the objects, so I’m calling it a good day.
There is still a blank corner in my room, but I may need it for the afternoon lessons. I did get a schedule for the morning, so I’ve got three back to back classes from 9:30-10:30 then a 10 min break and then four back to back classes from 10:40-12:00. The first three classes are L2 A,B,C and then the four classes are N1 A,B,C,D. N1 students will be 3-4 years old and L2 students will be 4-5. So they will be young and from what I can gather from the teachers they do not know a lot of English, so we will be basically starting from scratch. They really don’t seem to have gotten a lot of English before even though I know they had an English teacher and that English is taught a little in the classrooms.
When I was in Europe it was very easy to blend in and become almost European. I fit the part, but here I stand out. There is no way for me to blend in, so I have decided to embrace the fact that I am different and I do draw attention to myself no matter what I do. So I think I’m already the crazy American at work, so I’m taking that out with me. On my walk to and from school I have started smiling at everyone who passes me. I really think it kind of weirds them out, because everyone immediately directs their gaze elsewhere. When I am at the school and parents come they love saying “Hello” to me though. I think it is because they expect that from the foreign teacher, but out in the streets they are not ready for that. However, today I did have a little boy run up to me and was so excited to show me that he know how to say “Hello.” He was just beaming as he said it and I waved and said hello back and I think it made his day. He was excited! It is moments like that that are so worth it.
Ponderings
8.29.2010
CS Lewis states, “It is a civil war, a rebellion, and that we are living in a part of the universe occupied by the rebel. Enemy-Occupied territory-that is what this world is.” I see that more here than I ever have while in America. There have been times at home when I have sensed the war, but only for a minute and I could always remove myself from it. I knew I could go home and I would be back on safe ground, but here, here I wonder if even my flat is safe from the enemy. When I’m connected to the internet I wonder who is watching me. It is a horrible thought to know that here I am never truly out of enemy territory.
Guided Exploration
8.28.2010
I went on a tour of some of the surrounding places in Zhongshan. The organization that put on the event is Friends of Foreigners, so if you are not Chinese they provide everything for free. We started of the day with a look at a giant statue of Mr. Zhongshan himself. He over looks the city from the south and has quite a monument built for him. This was the meeting place for all of the “foreigners.” CHES had five people besides me, Helen, Femke, Sven, Bob and Jerry. Helen is the one from Scotland, Femke and Sven are Dutch, Bob is another American and Jerry is English. A few other schools had teachers there (Bond even made there teachers wear matching shirts, we called them the clones), but then there were a lot of business men as well. We really did have a group from all over the world. All of them were very friendly and it made for a great day. The theme of the day was Zhongshan through the eyes of foreigners, so our objective was to take a lot of pictures and there is a photo competition that last for a few weeks. They want to make a brochure and our pictures would be in it. What was funny was that there were a lot of amateur photographers there taking pictures of us taking pictures. I have never been so photographed in my life. So if you are ever in Zhongshan you might just see me on a brochure.
After we all met and got out pictures of Mr. Zhongshan we headed to Xiolan and had a boat tour down one of the canals. We were served tea on the boat. All of the locals came out and waved at us as we rode down the canals in our boats. It was like we were the main attraction for the day, instead of us being entertained we were the entertainment.
The next stop was a old square in Xiolan where we saw a Lion Dance and calligraphy. The lion dance was very impressive. Two guys wear a lion costume and made the lion dance. They were so animated and really gave life to the costume. What made it even more impressive was when they jumped on these poles about 5-6 ft off the ground and made the lion dance while hoping from pole to pole. The calligraphy was nice to see, but other wise not a lot to say about it.
Lunch was in a typical Chinese lunch. About 8 dishes placed on a lazy susan in the middle of the table and everyone shares.
After lunch I think the bus drivers got lost, because they made a few u-turns and were on the bus much longer than our itinerary said we should have been, but we eventually made it to the “ancient” city. This was somewhat disappointing, because it was just a few temples and not really a village. Our tour guide did tell us that the sea came up to that part of Zhongshan, so that was interesting to know.
The last stop of the day was a Buddhist temple. Again very interesting to see, but not a lot to say about it. The monks were going through their evening chants and rituals for us to see, but it really felt like we were invading on their personal lives and in the way. I didn’t take a lot of pictures, because it just didn’t seem right. Me and Femke did find a fly that was deep in meditation hanging to the branch of a willow tree, though.
Of all the people that I’ve met I think Femke and Sven are my favorite to be around. Helen is also a great addition to the group. Its interesting, because the Chinese automatically associate Femke and Sven as brother and sister because they are both tall and from Holland, but when you get to know them they are very different. Femke is really funny and jokes around a lot. She enjoys life and is carefree. Sven also has a great sense of humor, but when he speaks his English is very proper and when he jokes you are almost not sure if he is really being sarcastic or not. But when you have both of them together there is very rarely a dull moment. I was laughing the entire day!
The First Few Days
8.26.10
So far the people that I've met are a wide variety. Bob is also an American and a crazy old man. He doesn’t care what you think of him he will do what he wants. Helen is Scottish and teaching at the primary school. She is quite the talker, but very sweet. There are also two Dutch people at the secondary school, Femke and Sven. Last night I went to dinner with Helen, Femke and Sven. There really isn’t a dull moment when they are around and I laughed the whole evening. I wish I had gone to sleep a little earlier, but we did meet a group of Americans living in Zhongshan. Abby lives down the hall from me and he is from India. He seems very nice and is also a Christian.
Today all three campuses went to lunch together at the King Hotel. It was a little boring because everything was in Chinese. But there were a few priceless moments. CHES was given an award from the Department of Education and when he handed the award to Mrs. Chio the intro music from Star Wars played. I could help but let out a small giggle and the Chinese lady next to me asked what was so funny, but she hadn’t see Star Wars and didn’t understand. A few minutes later this music begins that is very dramatic and then on a lout part of the music the doors to the room fly open and a parade of waiters come out all carrying roasted piglets. It was epic! I have never seen the start of a meal so dramatically introduced. The best part was that the piglets had red flashing light hearts safety pinned to where the eyes should have been. So not only were the piglets given a grand entrance, but they were decorated with the cheesiest thing made in China. Once these piglets make it to the table one of the waitresses begins dismantling the piglet with a pair of scissors that you would expect someone to be trimming bushes with. She cut everything up into bite size piece except the head. I later found out that the piglets are good luck to have at an event.
Something that has baffled me a little is where the “rubbish” goes. China doesn’t seem to be going green at all, but what I can’t figure out is where the landfill is. This makes me a little nervous, because that trash has to go somewhere.
Going back to the hierarchy thing again. It is interesting to see some of the jobs that people here are willing to do. But the conclusion I have come to is that those people sweeping the roads and planting flowers are happy to be doing those things, because it is a job regardless of what they are doing. There are so many people that these jobs where just made up so there would be enough work for everyone.
I also had a moment when I felt like I was in a spy movie. We are walking down the stairs of the hotel after our all school lunch and C comes up next to me and starts talking. It was very loud in the stairwell so it was the perfect place to chat about church. She said she would let me sleep this Sunday, but if next Sunday I was ready she knew of a few options and said she would be in touch. It was crazy and like she was passing off information to me just like in a spy movie, because as soon as we got out of the stairwell she was gone and the Chinese lady who was making sure I made it to and from the Kindergarten was right there showing me which bus we were suppose to be getting on. Arriving
I have officially arrived in Hong Kong and am waiting to be taken to the CHES flat.
This morning seems a world away and in a sense it almost is. It was a lot harder to walk away from my family than I thought it would be and when my Dad said “I love you” I lost it.
It has never ceased to amaze me how smoothly everything has gone. I had no problems in Tulsa or Detroit, in fact both planes arrived to their destination early. 16 hours if far to long to be in a plane, but I did have a two college kids sitting next to me, which was nice because it gave me someone to talk to. The girl has my skype name so we will se if anything comes from it. 16 hours gives you a lot of time to think. I realized that on a plane you are stuck going forward. There is no reverse and there is no eject button. You are trapped on the plane until it touches ground one way or another. Especially when you are over the ocean, there you can’t even make an emergency landing. Its not like being in a car and if you change your mind you can turn around, it forces you to go through with your decision.
As we were landing I had this realization that I maybe a little bit over my head. It feels like a sink or swim situation and right now I’m struggling to tread water. As I got off the airplane signs were in English, but if they weren’t I would be completely and utterly lost. When I was in Europe I never had this fear. I could always at least make out a few words regardless of the language and I knew German which gave me an upper hand. Here not so much.
“Don’t let them see you sweat”
I do have to say that Hong Kong is a very English friendly place. I have again had no problems. I was worried about lugging three bags on wheels and it almost was a problem getting on the train. However, there are Chinese attendants to help you with your excess American luggage. Thank you random women, you will never know how much your little bit of help, helped calm my nerves ever so slightly.
The Beginning
Two years ago I traveled to China on a mission trip. While there we visited a school. I never fully understood the connection, but we spent the afternoon talking to teachers and students. By the end of the day the vice principal asked if I would be interested in a job when I graduated. She was this amazingly adventurous Australian lady who instantly made you feel welcome. I love traveling and adventure so right off the bat I told her yes. We emailed a little when I got home, but I wasn’t going to graduate for another two years, so I put it to the back of my mine.
This past February I received an email from the Australian asking if I was still interested in teaching English at CHES. So I filled out the application, but at the same time I kept other options open. When it came right down to it none of the other options were working out, so I pursued working in China.
I was accepted for the position, but waiting for a contract took well over a month. When the contract arrived I received a big shock with it. I was going to be a Kindergarten teacher. When filling out the application and communicating with the Australian I had assumed high school age, because that is who we talked to and that is where she works.
As of right now I have a plane ticket, a visa, suitcases, dresses and supplies. I leave in a little over three weeks and I’m not sure what I am getting myself into. The contract is vague and the school has told me very little as to what my job will really entail. It is a waiting game until August 23rd now.
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