Q - If you listen carefully to the video, you'll hear me say, "What's going on?" - Ever had a moment like that?
Enjoy!
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| Level 3 final dinner |
Friday, January 25, 2008
Photos from "The End of a Class"
As promised, attached is a link to a slideshow with some pictures from my level 3 final dinner. I also have a short video that one of my students took as well. Looking at these pictures makes me remember why this was such a good class.
Q - If you listen carefully to the video, you'll hear me say, "What's going on?" - Ever had a moment like that?
Enjoy!
Q - If you listen carefully to the video, you'll hear me say, "What's going on?" - Ever had a moment like that?
Enjoy!
Monday, January 21, 2008
A Drugstore Discovery
Every once in a while, something happens here that reminds me how much I haven't learned yet. It has been very cold here - mid 30s and my hands are starting to get chapped. I have a small bottle of lotion that I brought with me, but it's just about gone, so I decided to go to Watson's and purchase some more. Watson's is a drugstore chain and it has a lot of foreign products - I can buy Oil of Olay body wash, Colgate toothpaste and even Nivea hand lotion - at least in theory.
Going to the store takes a lot of time - I don't know the word for lotion, so my method is scanning each aisle and then looking for specifics. I eventually found the lotion aisle and a bottle of Nivea intensive hand lotion. It was just over a dollar, so I decided that I would buy it. Then, I had to find the cash register which wasn't too difficult and stand in line. Chinese people don't really like to wait in line, so it is necessary to stake a claim to a spot of floor and defend it with your elbows or coat and prevent other people from getting in front of you. The "line" was really long, but after about 15 minutes I finally made it to the front. I handed the clerk my bottle of lotion and she let out a sigh and handed it to another attendent. He looked at my bottle of lotion and said, "You get different, this test."
It seems I had managed to choose the "tester" bottle of lotion out of all of the bottles. Of course, it was clearly marked "tester" in Chinese, but unfortunately the characters for "tester" haven't been among the 50 or so that I've memorized thus far. I think in the States if this had happened they would have offered to go get me another bottle, but not here. They just pointed to the back of the line. I had waited for nothing.
At this point, I had had enough. I had already been in the drugstore over half an hour and was batting zero. I left without the lotion. I'm sure this'll be funny some day - I remember the time we completely confused a clerk in a Spanish supermarket in the candy department when we said that we wanted to buy esponjas instead of esponjitas (sponges instead of marshmallows) - but at the moment it's just overwhelming. And my hands are still chapped.
Q - Any frustrating stories about your trips? Amusing ones would be appreciated.
Hope to hear from you soon.
Going to the store takes a lot of time - I don't know the word for lotion, so my method is scanning each aisle and then looking for specifics. I eventually found the lotion aisle and a bottle of Nivea intensive hand lotion. It was just over a dollar, so I decided that I would buy it. Then, I had to find the cash register which wasn't too difficult and stand in line. Chinese people don't really like to wait in line, so it is necessary to stake a claim to a spot of floor and defend it with your elbows or coat and prevent other people from getting in front of you. The "line" was really long, but after about 15 minutes I finally made it to the front. I handed the clerk my bottle of lotion and she let out a sigh and handed it to another attendent. He looked at my bottle of lotion and said, "You get different, this test."
It seems I had managed to choose the "tester" bottle of lotion out of all of the bottles. Of course, it was clearly marked "tester" in Chinese, but unfortunately the characters for "tester" haven't been among the 50 or so that I've memorized thus far. I think in the States if this had happened they would have offered to go get me another bottle, but not here. They just pointed to the back of the line. I had waited for nothing.
At this point, I had had enough. I had already been in the drugstore over half an hour and was batting zero. I left without the lotion. I'm sure this'll be funny some day - I remember the time we completely confused a clerk in a Spanish supermarket in the candy department when we said that we wanted to buy esponjas instead of esponjitas (sponges instead of marshmallows) - but at the moment it's just overwhelming. And my hands are still chapped.
Q - Any frustrating stories about your trips? Amusing ones would be appreciated.
Hope to hear from you soon.
Saturday, January 12, 2008
The end of a class
Last Wednesday night I went with my level 3 class to dinner because they asked me to go and I said yes; not realizing at the time that they really don’t speak that much English and my Chinese is pretty minimal. Luckily my Chinese co-teacher Rose, went with me, but the students put us on opposite sides of the table, so that took away my ability to have a translator.
Teachers are granted a lot of respect in China. The importance of education cannot be underestimated. Small children (7 or 8 years old) attend classes on Saturday and do homework for 3 or 4 hours a night. My students are all adults, but they work a full day and then come in for a three hour class two nights a week, or they give up a Saturday or Sunday to study. It is impressive.
These students were a special group that really seemed to like each other and it was such a great thing to see them in their element – in control of the situation. One of the younger students (he is 24, Tony, same name as my brother) took charge of most of the ordering and it was so neat to see him so in charge. He ordered a fish dish and they brought him the fish live in the bucket to see and he just nodded that it was fine and they cooked it. I was sitting next to him and I’ve never had that happen before, but it was normal for him.
I ate duck and fish and tofu and vegetables and bamboo shoots and salad and soup and shrimp and ribs and.... there must have been over 15 different dishes by the time we were done. Luckily my chopstick skills are now pretty good so I didn't embarrass myself in front of my students.
During the meal I started thinking about these people. In the states they would be my coworkers, my friends, my colleagues and here they were my students. They are engineers and doctors and secretaries and salesmen. Some of them were older than me, some the same age, a few younger. We probably would be friends. Someday when I work internationally they could be my colleagues.
The evening ended. Two things I learned –
1) Chinese dinners last a long time – this one was over three hours
2) Don’t play drinking games when the person explaining the rules does not speak much English – it’s a deadly combination.
The next morning I learned another Chinese word – the word for hangover.
Q – Any interesting foreign dinners in your past? Please share.
ps - If I get emailed a copy of the class picture we took, I will post it.
Teachers are granted a lot of respect in China. The importance of education cannot be underestimated. Small children (7 or 8 years old) attend classes on Saturday and do homework for 3 or 4 hours a night. My students are all adults, but they work a full day and then come in for a three hour class two nights a week, or they give up a Saturday or Sunday to study. It is impressive.
These students were a special group that really seemed to like each other and it was such a great thing to see them in their element – in control of the situation. One of the younger students (he is 24, Tony, same name as my brother) took charge of most of the ordering and it was so neat to see him so in charge. He ordered a fish dish and they brought him the fish live in the bucket to see and he just nodded that it was fine and they cooked it. I was sitting next to him and I’ve never had that happen before, but it was normal for him.
I ate duck and fish and tofu and vegetables and bamboo shoots and salad and soup and shrimp and ribs and.... there must have been over 15 different dishes by the time we were done. Luckily my chopstick skills are now pretty good so I didn't embarrass myself in front of my students.
During the meal I started thinking about these people. In the states they would be my coworkers, my friends, my colleagues and here they were my students. They are engineers and doctors and secretaries and salesmen. Some of them were older than me, some the same age, a few younger. We probably would be friends. Someday when I work internationally they could be my colleagues.
The evening ended. Two things I learned –
1) Chinese dinners last a long time – this one was over three hours
2) Don’t play drinking games when the person explaining the rules does not speak much English – it’s a deadly combination.
The next morning I learned another Chinese word – the word for hangover.
Q – Any interesting foreign dinners in your past? Please share.
ps - If I get emailed a copy of the class picture we took, I will post it.
Friday, January 4, 2008
Who ya gonna call?
Our gym has been a good reliever of stress with its unique musical selections. A couple of weeks ago Chris commented that he had never heard "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" followed by "California Knows How to Party" by Dr. Dre. Today I was riding the stationary bicycle listening to my ipod when I realized that a semi-familiar melody was blasting out of the speakers. It was a techno version of the Ghostbusters theme song. Someone must have remixed it for a club and here it was in my local gym. I turned off my ipod and pedaled along to the music until the song ended and Bryan Adams singing "Everything I Do (I do it for you)" took over. Despite my nostalgia for high school dances, I replaced my earphones and continued my workout.
Q - What's the strangest song you've heard in a normal place? Or rather, what normal song have you heard in the strangest place?
Q - What's the strangest song you've heard in a normal place? Or rather, what normal song have you heard in the strangest place?
Thursday, January 3, 2008
New Year Musings
I have been in China just over two months now. Happy New Year from Shanghai! The majority of my New Year's Days I have spent in Jackson, Michigan, watching lots of football on TV. I must admit not seeing any football this year was very strange, but I'm sure the games will be there next year for me to watch.
The past few days I have been thinking about the freedom that living in a foreign country grants me. In Shanghai, almost all employees work overtime, people change jobs often, hundreds of new people come to the city every day. My students find the chapter on the workplace very useful. One chapter is entitled "Are you stressed out?" which merits a resounding "Yes" from almost everyone. Yet, when they ask me the same question I answer, "No."
Why am I not stressed out? I am working 21 hours a week with an additional 8 hours of prep time and studying 15 hours of Chinese a week. I'm doing language exchanges, going to dinner with friends, braving the bank, the post office, the supermarket and the gym, studying Chinese, working on my blog - so many things, but I'm not stressed. Why?
As far as I can tell, there are two main reasons:
1) I know that my time in Shanghai is concretely defined. My contract is through May 31st - my work visa is through May 31st. This gives me the ability to pick and choose what I like about the culture and the food and the people and know that I am going back to the States in the middle of June. All of my courses last 8 weeks - if I don't like something, it will change in less than two months.
2) Here I am responsible only for myself and don't need to worry about the long term effects of my actions. If I make a mistake or social gaffe, everything I do that is strange here is categorized as something "foreign." "Oh - you don't like to eat tripe - you're a foreigner." "Why don't you have soy sauce in your home? Oh, you're a foreigner." "Why are you taking pictures of our street? Oh, you're a foreigner."
It makes life a lot simpler. When I was in Spain I was worried a lot about "doing the wrong thing." but now I have mellowed and am more accepting of my own shortcomings and willing to accept help from others. Isn't that the first step of a 12 step program? I am a _________. I need help.
This acceptance is one of the things I was looking for by taking this sabbatical by removing myself from the ordinary. Mission accomplished.
Q - Have you had a trip where you were able to redefine yourself? Where were you? Who were you with? How long did you stay?
Cheers!
The past few days I have been thinking about the freedom that living in a foreign country grants me. In Shanghai, almost all employees work overtime, people change jobs often, hundreds of new people come to the city every day. My students find the chapter on the workplace very useful. One chapter is entitled "Are you stressed out?" which merits a resounding "Yes" from almost everyone. Yet, when they ask me the same question I answer, "No."
Why am I not stressed out? I am working 21 hours a week with an additional 8 hours of prep time and studying 15 hours of Chinese a week. I'm doing language exchanges, going to dinner with friends, braving the bank, the post office, the supermarket and the gym, studying Chinese, working on my blog - so many things, but I'm not stressed. Why?
As far as I can tell, there are two main reasons:
1) I know that my time in Shanghai is concretely defined. My contract is through May 31st - my work visa is through May 31st. This gives me the ability to pick and choose what I like about the culture and the food and the people and know that I am going back to the States in the middle of June. All of my courses last 8 weeks - if I don't like something, it will change in less than two months.
2) Here I am responsible only for myself and don't need to worry about the long term effects of my actions. If I make a mistake or social gaffe, everything I do that is strange here is categorized as something "foreign." "Oh - you don't like to eat tripe - you're a foreigner." "Why don't you have soy sauce in your home? Oh, you're a foreigner." "Why are you taking pictures of our street? Oh, you're a foreigner."
It makes life a lot simpler. When I was in Spain I was worried a lot about "doing the wrong thing." but now I have mellowed and am more accepting of my own shortcomings and willing to accept help from others. Isn't that the first step of a 12 step program? I am a _________. I need help.
This acceptance is one of the things I was looking for by taking this sabbatical by removing myself from the ordinary. Mission accomplished.
Q - Have you had a trip where you were able to redefine yourself? Where were you? Who were you with? How long did you stay?
Cheers!
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