I'm exhausted today I was up at 7 and yesterday I was up a bit after 5. This weekend has been amazing. There are photos that need to be posted and whatever but I can't do it now.
I spent Sunday morning becoming better acquainted with the mountains and am completely smitten with the roads around the mountain areas.
Sunday night I was completely embraced by the family of a random girl I met in Jhushan last week.
Today I went and visited my orphanage again and got to know the worker better and had two babies fall asleep in my arms...(not together).
Work is busy, new project etc.
That's it for now, real post when I'm coherent....
Showing posts with label Taichung. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Taichung. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 23, 2008
Sunday, November 16, 2008
Legal
So it's been almost a month since I posted here, I just got preoccupied and sidetracked in various orders.
So here's a breakdown:
My paperwork is through, I'm officially allowed to stay til the end of August 2009, then I'm gonna get kicked out.
School is fine, things are jsut routine, weeks go by quite fast. I really only have 1 sometimes 2 classes a week that take any significant prep time.
I need to work on my classroom management but the truth is I'm hesitant to do that because it changes the energy of my classes. I mean yes a lot of my classes are noisier than they are with their chinese teachers and I know it's just cause I'm the foreign teacher. As soon as a chinese teacher walks into my class they shut up...but then they turn to zombies. There doesn't seem to be any middle ground. It's either they are noisy and whatever but I can get really reactions from them or they switch to being almost insanely quiet but turn to robots.
My weekly grammar class for the other teachers is by far my most challenging intellectially and preparation wise. But I learn a heap of theoretical grammar during the prep for that class. I literally prepare in the morning, learning the stuff as I compile the lesson and then walk into school and teach what I've just learnt. Maybe not the best way to do it but eh.
My internet is back and this time it is officially mine which is nice. I had to go out and buy a bunch of blank dvds just cause my hard drives are running out of room. I could have bought another hard drive but dvds seemed easier.
My Chinese ability is slowly on the up, I am better at understanding conversations that go on around me although my vocab is still pitifully small. I'm starting to figure out sentences. In some ways Chinese is easier to learn to speak than English although I think maybe English is easier to learn to read.
This weekend is being spent in JhuShan. David is coming down to enjoy some 'country' living. I found a great botanical garden about 5 minutes from my apartment last weekend which is cool which I'm looking forward to showing him as he's more of a nature freak than I am, how he survives in Taichung is beyond me.
So that's pretty much it from me for the time being.
Oh last week I went ten pin bowling for the second or third time in my life. It was comical. I started out guttering every ball but managed to come back and even win the second game. Game playing is big over here, like arcade games and stuff. Night markets are full of both adults and children playing such games and there are quite a few game places around even in JhuShan.
Actually last weekend was impressive, I'm getting much better at navigating Taichung and JhuShan. I haven't been lost in a few weeks. Which means I probably should explore further out.
So here's a breakdown:
My paperwork is through, I'm officially allowed to stay til the end of August 2009, then I'm gonna get kicked out.
School is fine, things are jsut routine, weeks go by quite fast. I really only have 1 sometimes 2 classes a week that take any significant prep time.
I need to work on my classroom management but the truth is I'm hesitant to do that because it changes the energy of my classes. I mean yes a lot of my classes are noisier than they are with their chinese teachers and I know it's just cause I'm the foreign teacher. As soon as a chinese teacher walks into my class they shut up...but then they turn to zombies. There doesn't seem to be any middle ground. It's either they are noisy and whatever but I can get really reactions from them or they switch to being almost insanely quiet but turn to robots.
My weekly grammar class for the other teachers is by far my most challenging intellectially and preparation wise. But I learn a heap of theoretical grammar during the prep for that class. I literally prepare in the morning, learning the stuff as I compile the lesson and then walk into school and teach what I've just learnt. Maybe not the best way to do it but eh.
My internet is back and this time it is officially mine which is nice. I had to go out and buy a bunch of blank dvds just cause my hard drives are running out of room. I could have bought another hard drive but dvds seemed easier.
My Chinese ability is slowly on the up, I am better at understanding conversations that go on around me although my vocab is still pitifully small. I'm starting to figure out sentences. In some ways Chinese is easier to learn to speak than English although I think maybe English is easier to learn to read.
This weekend is being spent in JhuShan. David is coming down to enjoy some 'country' living. I found a great botanical garden about 5 minutes from my apartment last weekend which is cool which I'm looking forward to showing him as he's more of a nature freak than I am, how he survives in Taichung is beyond me.
So that's pretty much it from me for the time being.
Oh last week I went ten pin bowling for the second or third time in my life. It was comical. I started out guttering every ball but managed to come back and even win the second game. Game playing is big over here, like arcade games and stuff. Night markets are full of both adults and children playing such games and there are quite a few game places around even in JhuShan.
Actually last weekend was impressive, I'm getting much better at navigating Taichung and JhuShan. I haven't been lost in a few weeks. Which means I probably should explore further out.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Holy smoke batman is that a plane I see
hmm so tomorrow is D-day for my visa. The paperwork has been processing for over a month. I was assured by pretty much everyone it would be easy to get a residence visa within the 60 days I had with the visitor visa. Apparently not that easy.
So ok the paperwork was slow, we got a newbie who slowed everything down and went by the book 110% of the time. This my resident visa application was yet to be filed.
I informed Amy and Bryan last week of the impending expiration and in all fairness to them they did the best they could. So today Amy drove me into Nantou to the nearest immigration office to see if we could either get an extention or just start the paperwork for my arc/visa.....apparently not. ARGH?!!?!
My visa runs out tomorrow (Friday). Fortunately we have a plan b (which doesn't include me having to go out and come back in). Instead of going to immigration which is limited in its ability tomorrow I hit Foriegn affairs office in Taichung with all my paperwork including a piece of paper acknowledging my paperwork is actually being processed. Amy and Brian seem optimistic about this working.
If that doesn't work the next time I write will be from Hong Kong. Amy has however volunteered to come with me to Hong Kong which I thought was an extremely friendly gesture. She made a joke about it being a great excuse for her to go shopping something she hasn't been able to do since her son was born but still it's definitely above and beyond.
So aside from the fact that I may have to leave the country tomorrow things have been going quite well. Amy seems happy with my performance which is good. While some of my classes are still rowdy I'm getting a groove going.
I got paid the other day, I've never held so many bills with 1000 printed on them...of course they were in NT which isn't quite the same as dollars but still impressive wad of cash.
I need to figure out how tax works here which could be interesting.
I have at least a day's worth of new Taiwanese music I've yet to listen to.
So ok the paperwork was slow, we got a newbie who slowed everything down and went by the book 110% of the time. This my resident visa application was yet to be filed.
I informed Amy and Bryan last week of the impending expiration and in all fairness to them they did the best they could. So today Amy drove me into Nantou to the nearest immigration office to see if we could either get an extention or just start the paperwork for my arc/visa.....apparently not. ARGH?!!?!
My visa runs out tomorrow (Friday). Fortunately we have a plan b (which doesn't include me having to go out and come back in). Instead of going to immigration which is limited in its ability tomorrow I hit Foriegn affairs office in Taichung with all my paperwork including a piece of paper acknowledging my paperwork is actually being processed. Amy and Brian seem optimistic about this working.
If that doesn't work the next time I write will be from Hong Kong. Amy has however volunteered to come with me to Hong Kong which I thought was an extremely friendly gesture. She made a joke about it being a great excuse for her to go shopping something she hasn't been able to do since her son was born but still it's definitely above and beyond.
So aside from the fact that I may have to leave the country tomorrow things have been going quite well. Amy seems happy with my performance which is good. While some of my classes are still rowdy I'm getting a groove going.
I got paid the other day, I've never held so many bills with 1000 printed on them...of course they were in NT which isn't quite the same as dollars but still impressive wad of cash.
I need to figure out how tax works here which could be interesting.
I have at least a day's worth of new Taiwanese music I've yet to listen to.
Friday, October 3, 2008
Highs and Lows and Inbetweens
So overall today was actually not so bad. Yes I dragged myself out of bed at stupid o'clock. Yes the Taichung meeting was almost all in Chinese however this time instead of sitting through the whole thing I sat through 1 hour. After I was convinced things weren't gonna change I left with Amy's blessing. Amazingly enough she actually sat in on this lecture which isn't something she's done before. The lecturer was actually very sweet however as I was the only foreign teacher stupid enough to attend she really had no choice but to focus on the masses which in this case were the native Chinese teachers. She did apologise for this and I really don't blame her.
So then I wandered a bit around Taichung, it was an area that I'm not familiar with so I didn't wander far, then I just sat around and read and stole some random person's internet to look up grammar points.
Back at school my schedule got altered so I now have 4 classes on Thursdays and as things stand only 1 class Friday (my lowest level got moved to Thursday). Again not a bad thing and as it turns out I'm likely to have 3 hours eventually Friday so whatever I can handle only having one class on Friday especially when that class is my Level 9 terrors from Hell ;) Ok not that bad they're mostly good kids just combined they make me want to strangle them occassionally.
It also turns out that grammar thing on Tuesdays may not be as bad as I thought. So that's cool. Apparently next week it's back to relying on the patterns guide book. Easy.
I did say I'd work more on setting up the projector for powerpoint tomorrow but as I really have nothing else to do I don't mind.
So that's it,there's a new episode of Fringe calling my name.
Oh yeah I dunno what to do this weekend. Technically this is my Taichung weekend but I just don't know if I feel like doing that especially as I've only just got over a cold and thus I don't think I should go to the orphanage for at least another week just to be really safe.
I may jsut go on an extended bike ride around JhuShan and hope I don't get lost....or maybe jump a bus to somewhere other than Taichung. I know there is more to Taiwan than Taichung and JhuShan.
Anyway that's still two days away. Right now Fringe and bed.
So then I wandered a bit around Taichung, it was an area that I'm not familiar with so I didn't wander far, then I just sat around and read and stole some random person's internet to look up grammar points.
Back at school my schedule got altered so I now have 4 classes on Thursdays and as things stand only 1 class Friday (my lowest level got moved to Thursday). Again not a bad thing and as it turns out I'm likely to have 3 hours eventually Friday so whatever I can handle only having one class on Friday especially when that class is my Level 9 terrors from Hell ;) Ok not that bad they're mostly good kids just combined they make me want to strangle them occassionally.
It also turns out that grammar thing on Tuesdays may not be as bad as I thought. So that's cool. Apparently next week it's back to relying on the patterns guide book. Easy.
I did say I'd work more on setting up the projector for powerpoint tomorrow but as I really have nothing else to do I don't mind.
So that's it,there's a new episode of Fringe calling my name.
Oh yeah I dunno what to do this weekend. Technically this is my Taichung weekend but I just don't know if I feel like doing that especially as I've only just got over a cold and thus I don't think I should go to the orphanage for at least another week just to be really safe.
I may jsut go on an extended bike ride around JhuShan and hope I don't get lost....or maybe jump a bus to somewhere other than Taichung. I know there is more to Taiwan than Taichung and JhuShan.
Anyway that's still two days away. Right now Fringe and bed.
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
Wanted: One backbone
Ok ok so I said the last teachers meeting in Taichung would be my last....but apparently it won't be. I finally got around to discussing this with Amy today and she freaking used reverse psyche on me. I was given my out and I guilted myself into agreeing once more to get up at stupid o'clock to attend another teachers meeting which will probably be in Chinese. I was however given a compromise, in that if I don't understand what's going on I'm welcome to just leave and spend my time walking around Taichung....why I wasn't told this earlier I dunno. So I guess that won't be so bad.
Today was pretty standard, although I did spend the first hour trying to set up the projector which was actually quite easy. This means powerpoint presentations are not only possible but probably expected from time to time.
One thing I have to give Amy credit for is that she is willing to spend the money to get what is needed. Or even what is desired. She isn't stingy which is a good thing.
Aniga's last day was yesterday so today was our first day without her. Winnie her replacement is actually doing better than I expected, she's picking things up fast.
Ok this is gonna be short as I have a 7am start tomorrow. Which sucks as I've become a total night owl and usually have trouble getting myself out of bed before 9.30 these days.
The sacrifices I make.
Today was pretty standard, although I did spend the first hour trying to set up the projector which was actually quite easy. This means powerpoint presentations are not only possible but probably expected from time to time.
One thing I have to give Amy credit for is that she is willing to spend the money to get what is needed. Or even what is desired. She isn't stingy which is a good thing.
Aniga's last day was yesterday so today was our first day without her. Winnie her replacement is actually doing better than I expected, she's picking things up fast.
Ok this is gonna be short as I have a 7am start tomorrow. Which sucks as I've become a total night owl and usually have trouble getting myself out of bed before 9.30 these days.
The sacrifices I make.
Friday, September 26, 2008
3 strikes and I'm out
So last night I was all set to hit the hay when my virus protector went kaput so I decided to reboot and then when that didn't work I did the whole turn off thing thinking i would just turn it back on it would be fine and I'd go to bed....err except my laptop had been running for well I dunno how many days straight and I think it may have effected the power switch connection. So I turned it off and pushed the button to turn it back on and nada ARGH. This was 12.30 (still a reasonable hour) so after trying a few more times I decide I just need to let it cool down and then I'll try it again in the morning...but of course I can't sleep so at 1.30 I try it again for like the 13th time and then decide it's time to operate of course I don't have the tools so after a few futile attempts I give up and hit the button again with no real hope only to have it spring to life.
I dunno if it is totally fixed or if the glitch is still there and I'm not keen to find out either. Of course the virus protector was still not working so I then had to repair that so instead of a reasonable hour to sleep I went to sleep just before 3 only to have to wake up again 4 hours later.
So once again I trek into Taichung to attend what I thought was teacher training. err no it's just a talk. So I rock into the room and head straight to the lecturer like a good little student to talk to her about my inability to speak any Chinese. To which I'm informed that as this is a lecture there will be NO English...NONE WTF!?!?!
So I sign and resign myself to the back of the room which is where Aniga said I should go so I could do my inattentive thing. Except Chloe took pity and came to sit with me which I thought was really sweet and much more than the other 'teachers' did. So we moved closer to the front as she is a much better student than I am and I felt bad. When the lecture started Chloe when out of her way to help translate the main points for me so I wasn't totally lost. Of course her English ability isn't great so she could only give me basics but I still really appreciated it.
That being said I was still pretty lost for the most of it. I did get to write a message to my cell...err like my innerself on a balloon (which later became a punching bag for the kids at my school much to the horror of the other teachers who seemed to be much more attached to their balloons.)
Towards the end there was an activity so I thought I'd take the time to go up to the lecturer as Amy had suggested the last time and try and suss out what the hell the talk was about. err yeah no. I really don't think this lecturer had a great grasp on English. So I went up and I'm like 'I don't really get what I'm meant to be doing..." and she takes my hand and pats it and is like 'it's ok it's ok' and then she hugs me and sends me back to my seat....so much for that idea.
But hey I tried. Ok could have probably tried a little harder but really I don't think I care. Yes I would like to be given ideas for improving my teaching but if I can't understand them then what is the use.
Unfortunately Amy wasn't around when I got back and she was actually quite sick when she did rock up so I didn't have the heart to talk to her about pulling out of the training from now on. I guess that talk will wait till tomorrow.
So while I was writing that I saw not 1 but 2 freaking spiders, one was a smallish daddy longlegs one the other was bigger. So after a slight freak out I kill the small one and then go after the big one which is climbing up the curtain, only to have it fall under my freaking laptop. But I killed it so yay me.
I'm so tired.
Today I started introducing English music to the office dunno how well it went but Amy still seems cool with it so I guess it's not a bad thing. I need to work to censor more of the stuff. I did an initial run through with bands that are obviously gonna have swears but I didn't get them all.
I had a kid ask me today what a vagina was talk about awkward. They were my junior high class so I just said that it's a body part and told him to leave it at that.
Oh after the training session we went to 'little italy cafe' in Taichung and had pasta. It was actually quite decent. Unfortunately while many dishes sounded great they also contained mixed seafood and as I've had slight reactions to at least 2 types of seafood here I figured I'd have to stay clear of that considering I had to head back to school and teach. So I had the creamy chicken mushroom spaghetti which was great.
Ok I'm sure there is more but it can wait cause I'm too tired to write more.
I dunno if it is totally fixed or if the glitch is still there and I'm not keen to find out either. Of course the virus protector was still not working so I then had to repair that so instead of a reasonable hour to sleep I went to sleep just before 3 only to have to wake up again 4 hours later.
So once again I trek into Taichung to attend what I thought was teacher training. err no it's just a talk. So I rock into the room and head straight to the lecturer like a good little student to talk to her about my inability to speak any Chinese. To which I'm informed that as this is a lecture there will be NO English...NONE WTF!?!?!
So I sign and resign myself to the back of the room which is where Aniga said I should go so I could do my inattentive thing. Except Chloe took pity and came to sit with me which I thought was really sweet and much more than the other 'teachers' did. So we moved closer to the front as she is a much better student than I am and I felt bad. When the lecture started Chloe when out of her way to help translate the main points for me so I wasn't totally lost. Of course her English ability isn't great so she could only give me basics but I still really appreciated it.
That being said I was still pretty lost for the most of it. I did get to write a message to my cell...err like my innerself on a balloon (which later became a punching bag for the kids at my school much to the horror of the other teachers who seemed to be much more attached to their balloons.)
Towards the end there was an activity so I thought I'd take the time to go up to the lecturer as Amy had suggested the last time and try and suss out what the hell the talk was about. err yeah no. I really don't think this lecturer had a great grasp on English. So I went up and I'm like 'I don't really get what I'm meant to be doing..." and she takes my hand and pats it and is like 'it's ok it's ok' and then she hugs me and sends me back to my seat....so much for that idea.
But hey I tried. Ok could have probably tried a little harder but really I don't think I care. Yes I would like to be given ideas for improving my teaching but if I can't understand them then what is the use.
Unfortunately Amy wasn't around when I got back and she was actually quite sick when she did rock up so I didn't have the heart to talk to her about pulling out of the training from now on. I guess that talk will wait till tomorrow.
So while I was writing that I saw not 1 but 2 freaking spiders, one was a smallish daddy longlegs one the other was bigger. So after a slight freak out I kill the small one and then go after the big one which is climbing up the curtain, only to have it fall under my freaking laptop. But I killed it so yay me.
I'm so tired.
Today I started introducing English music to the office dunno how well it went but Amy still seems cool with it so I guess it's not a bad thing. I need to work to censor more of the stuff. I did an initial run through with bands that are obviously gonna have swears but I didn't get them all.
I had a kid ask me today what a vagina was talk about awkward. They were my junior high class so I just said that it's a body part and told him to leave it at that.
Oh after the training session we went to 'little italy cafe' in Taichung and had pasta. It was actually quite decent. Unfortunately while many dishes sounded great they also contained mixed seafood and as I've had slight reactions to at least 2 types of seafood here I figured I'd have to stay clear of that considering I had to head back to school and teach. So I had the creamy chicken mushroom spaghetti which was great.
Ok I'm sure there is more but it can wait cause I'm too tired to write more.
Monday, September 22, 2008
Solo in Taichung
So today I decided to wander into Taichung and as things turned out I spent the whole day navigating the busy streets of Taichung alone which was actually quite fun. I'm definitely getting a better idea of how to get everywhere. Of course I haven't really mastered the city buses so it involves much walking but I kinda like that because it means I get to visit the little stores I stumble across along the way which is something I wouldn't get to do on a bus.
So I went to Chung Yo a big department store I'd visited once before and gave up on after 6 levels of clothes clothes and more clothes. But this time I'd done my research and went straight to level 10 home of Eslite bookstore a huge bookstore chain in Taiwan and also home to many Vitas Lu singles and also books in English...well ok not that many but still some books in English. The place was pretty cool although it was actually walking to Chung Yo where I made a great discovery.
The discovery being a second hand bookstore on the same street but further up. While many books were in Chinese they had a small section dedicated to english literature. And there were many classics there, I found ithard to walk away empty handed but at that stage I'd yet to see what Eslite held and was wary to buy anything. But the second hand bookstore will be somewhere I will visit again. I think I'll have to limit how much money I bring on trips to Taichung from now on! While eslite had modern literature such as Kite Runner and PS I Love You the SH bookstore had such classics as the portrait of dorian grey and my favourite Little Women as well as not so classics such as Grisham's The Client.
After buying all the Vitas Lu stuff I could find and also exploring the top levels of Chung Yo department store I wandered back and stumbled across a huge market which was packed with heaps of funky little side stalls and food stalls. Having already hit my puffie store I wasn't really interested in food though so I kept wandering.
I also stumbled upon a pet store with cats and dogs. The conditions they are kept in is quite disgusting, at least they weren't crammed in but they have nothing but wire surrounding them even on the bottom of their cages. One puppy was chewing it's water dish. I've been tossing up getting some sort of pet after my paperwork comes through. I'm not talking cat or dog as that would be cruel given the hours I work and the size of my apartment. But a fish or a bird is viable. There are birds for sale everywhere here...how many of them are sold as pets and how many as food I'm not sure. I'd love to get a duck but 1 I don't think my apartment is suited for a duck and 2 I'm pretty sure all ducks sold are designed to be food and I'd hate to pay for one and watch it get slaughted in front of me in some warped translation problem. They do have smaller birds though such as canaries etc I dunno it's just an idea.
I ended up hitting the guitar store again and grabbing some stuff I needed and made some fanboys who saw my label.
After wandering around all day I was tempted to catch a movie however the only movie I was remotely interested in seeing was x-files 2 and that didn't start for another hour so I skipped that and went in search of food. I was going to check out this food court I stumbled across last time however this time it didn't look so appitizing and the fact people were smoking all around turned me off even more so I kept wandering. I ended up at a "pizza" stand where I ordered my 2nd pasta dish since arriving. It actually wasn't horrible although I doubt I'll be rushing back again.
After all the excitement I headed home.
If it is nice tomorrow I will head to the swimming pool and do a few laps. Aside from that I think tomorrow will be a lazy day, I have a heap of movies that are just asking to be watched, not to mention the entire 2nd season of Dexter.
So I went to Chung Yo a big department store I'd visited once before and gave up on after 6 levels of clothes clothes and more clothes. But this time I'd done my research and went straight to level 10 home of Eslite bookstore a huge bookstore chain in Taiwan and also home to many Vitas Lu singles and also books in English...well ok not that many but still some books in English. The place was pretty cool although it was actually walking to Chung Yo where I made a great discovery.
The discovery being a second hand bookstore on the same street but further up. While many books were in Chinese they had a small section dedicated to english literature. And there were many classics there, I found ithard to walk away empty handed but at that stage I'd yet to see what Eslite held and was wary to buy anything. But the second hand bookstore will be somewhere I will visit again. I think I'll have to limit how much money I bring on trips to Taichung from now on! While eslite had modern literature such as Kite Runner and PS I Love You the SH bookstore had such classics as the portrait of dorian grey and my favourite Little Women as well as not so classics such as Grisham's The Client.
After buying all the Vitas Lu stuff I could find and also exploring the top levels of Chung Yo department store I wandered back and stumbled across a huge market which was packed with heaps of funky little side stalls and food stalls. Having already hit my puffie store I wasn't really interested in food though so I kept wandering.
I also stumbled upon a pet store with cats and dogs. The conditions they are kept in is quite disgusting, at least they weren't crammed in but they have nothing but wire surrounding them even on the bottom of their cages. One puppy was chewing it's water dish. I've been tossing up getting some sort of pet after my paperwork comes through. I'm not talking cat or dog as that would be cruel given the hours I work and the size of my apartment. But a fish or a bird is viable. There are birds for sale everywhere here...how many of them are sold as pets and how many as food I'm not sure. I'd love to get a duck but 1 I don't think my apartment is suited for a duck and 2 I'm pretty sure all ducks sold are designed to be food and I'd hate to pay for one and watch it get slaughted in front of me in some warped translation problem. They do have smaller birds though such as canaries etc I dunno it's just an idea.
I ended up hitting the guitar store again and grabbing some stuff I needed and made some fanboys who saw my label.
After wandering around all day I was tempted to catch a movie however the only movie I was remotely interested in seeing was x-files 2 and that didn't start for another hour so I skipped that and went in search of food. I was going to check out this food court I stumbled across last time however this time it didn't look so appitizing and the fact people were smoking all around turned me off even more so I kept wandering. I ended up at a "pizza" stand where I ordered my 2nd pasta dish since arriving. It actually wasn't horrible although I doubt I'll be rushing back again.
After all the excitement I headed home.
If it is nice tomorrow I will head to the swimming pool and do a few laps. Aside from that I think tomorrow will be a lazy day, I have a heap of movies that are just asking to be watched, not to mention the entire 2nd season of Dexter.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Show me the money
Still sick, although I did find a great drink store that sold fresh drinks and had both an english and chinese menu. They have a great lemon juice and honey drink so I sipped on that during the day.
I got paid for my first 2 weeks training today, not a lot but to be honest that figure was never really discussed anyway so it was more than I could have got. Plus it was cash in hand so I don't have to worry bout setting up a bank account yet....not that I could anyway as I have no paperwork
Classes were pretty good today. I played battleship in like 3 of my 4 classes lol I keep expecting someone to get sick of it but so far it's holding strong.
I found my little man who makes puffie like things in JhuShan tonight. Not as good as those in Taichung but still it's a minute bike ride versus a 60 minute bus ride heh
Their version of 2 minute noodles here is much better than the Maggi variety back home although I miss the other kind...and I'm totally blanking on the name. Amazingly enough I can't seem to find the oriental flavour though lol
Still tossing up whether to stay in JhuShan or go to Taichung this weekend. If this cold clears up I think I'll head to Taichung for a day, I really want to see if I can find more Vitas Lu albums.
Part of one of my classes tomorrow involves getting the kids to fill in a workbook which has both English and Chinese...of course in order for me to make sure they do it correctly I need to know the answers which means I need to at least recognise the chinese translation so guess what I'm doing tonight lol It's only level 2 so it's not too bad. I will have one of the chinese teachers look over my book tomorrow to make sure I've answered it correctly before I go to class though.
Anyway I have noodles to cook and homework to do.
I got paid for my first 2 weeks training today, not a lot but to be honest that figure was never really discussed anyway so it was more than I could have got. Plus it was cash in hand so I don't have to worry bout setting up a bank account yet....not that I could anyway as I have no paperwork
Classes were pretty good today. I played battleship in like 3 of my 4 classes lol I keep expecting someone to get sick of it but so far it's holding strong.
I found my little man who makes puffie like things in JhuShan tonight. Not as good as those in Taichung but still it's a minute bike ride versus a 60 minute bus ride heh
Their version of 2 minute noodles here is much better than the Maggi variety back home although I miss the other kind...and I'm totally blanking on the name. Amazingly enough I can't seem to find the oriental flavour though lol
Still tossing up whether to stay in JhuShan or go to Taichung this weekend. If this cold clears up I think I'll head to Taichung for a day, I really want to see if I can find more Vitas Lu albums.
Part of one of my classes tomorrow involves getting the kids to fill in a workbook which has both English and Chinese...of course in order for me to make sure they do it correctly I need to know the answers which means I need to at least recognise the chinese translation so guess what I'm doing tonight lol It's only level 2 so it's not too bad. I will have one of the chinese teachers look over my book tomorrow to make sure I've answered it correctly before I go to class though.
Anyway I have noodles to cook and homework to do.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Another week begins
In two days time my return ticket home will be forfeited, in a way it feels I've been here longer than a month. I think I've got a cold my nose won't stop running and my head feels slightly congested. I'm not overly surprised one of the girls at work had a cold last week, add to that the dramatic change in climate due to the typhoon and well it's a perfect mix for a cold.
Saying that I couldn't sleep last night so around midnight I said to hell with it and went for a jog. Now I've not jogged in Taiwan and before that well lets just say it's been a while since I was capable of running 10km. Still the school near me has a proper running track and the weather was perfect for jogging so I felt confident I could do a couple of laps...er no. Just over half way round I had to slow to a walk and get my breath back. It was only my 5th time round that I managed to make it through an entire lap without walking part of the way. Talk about out of shape. Although now I think about it it may have been the cold affecting my breathing....at least I'm willing to put part of the blame on that.
Either way I will have to start getting into a jogging routine as there is no gym here and while there is a pool I'm too lazy to go in the mornings and it's too late when I finish work. So I will have to satisfy myself with the running track.
I'm tossing up extending my travel insurance for the duration of my stay. It is set to expire in a few days and while I won't sign with the same company there are other companies out there that have decent deals for reasonable prices. While the health insurance is said to be excellent and cheap over here as soon as the health card comes through I still think travel insurance may not be a bad idea.
Today I have 3 classes one of which will take some time preparing just to try and make it fun, the other 2 basically write themselves.
I don't know whether to head into Taichung next weekend or not, I guess I will play it by ear...after all that's a whole working week away.
Oh last night I managed to find the Monday Night Markets all by myself, I was so proud (it wasn't hard I just followed the fireworks and then the mass of people). After walking around for a bit I bumped into my boss and her family and some other people I work with. The polite thing to do would have been to hang around with them but I didn't really feel like it so I kept doing my own thing. I found a stand that made great lemonade. Unfortunately I couldn't find any puffies though.
I still can't find the musical instrument store here in JhuShan and I managed to break my capo the other day. I really need another one, but more importantly I need to get a tuner. I think I'm going to have to ask someone again where the hell it is as 'near the school' just doesn't cut it. There are like 6 schools in JhuShan, not counting language schools.
Saying that I couldn't sleep last night so around midnight I said to hell with it and went for a jog. Now I've not jogged in Taiwan and before that well lets just say it's been a while since I was capable of running 10km. Still the school near me has a proper running track and the weather was perfect for jogging so I felt confident I could do a couple of laps...er no. Just over half way round I had to slow to a walk and get my breath back. It was only my 5th time round that I managed to make it through an entire lap without walking part of the way. Talk about out of shape. Although now I think about it it may have been the cold affecting my breathing....at least I'm willing to put part of the blame on that.
Either way I will have to start getting into a jogging routine as there is no gym here and while there is a pool I'm too lazy to go in the mornings and it's too late when I finish work. So I will have to satisfy myself with the running track.
I'm tossing up extending my travel insurance for the duration of my stay. It is set to expire in a few days and while I won't sign with the same company there are other companies out there that have decent deals for reasonable prices. While the health insurance is said to be excellent and cheap over here as soon as the health card comes through I still think travel insurance may not be a bad idea.
Today I have 3 classes one of which will take some time preparing just to try and make it fun, the other 2 basically write themselves.
I don't know whether to head into Taichung next weekend or not, I guess I will play it by ear...after all that's a whole working week away.
Oh last night I managed to find the Monday Night Markets all by myself, I was so proud (it wasn't hard I just followed the fireworks and then the mass of people). After walking around for a bit I bumped into my boss and her family and some other people I work with. The polite thing to do would have been to hang around with them but I didn't really feel like it so I kept doing my own thing. I found a stand that made great lemonade. Unfortunately I couldn't find any puffies though.
I still can't find the musical instrument store here in JhuShan and I managed to break my capo the other day. I really need another one, but more importantly I need to get a tuner. I think I'm going to have to ask someone again where the hell it is as 'near the school' just doesn't cut it. There are like 6 schools in JhuShan, not counting language schools.
Monday, September 8, 2008
Taichung again
So once again I headed to Taichung this weekend. I was in the mood for some retail therapy. I was also in the mood for buffalo wings. I experienced my first shopping mall after arriving early in Taichung. It was stupidly crowded and reminded me more of a market than a shopping centre. There were also movies playing, so at least I know where to go when I want to see a movie. David and I met up and ended up taking the long way to Taichung Park home of a huge goat family (statue). The park was nice despite being within walking distance of Central Taichung the park was very serene. There was a huge bunch of kids doing something I'm still not sure what there was much screaming, jumping and laughing. After that we dawdled around and found a huge shopping mall. All it sold was clothes, jewellry and more clothes. Very disappointing. We did manage to find a music store on the way to TGI Fridays and I found the cd of the chinese singer I like (although I already had that cd but still).
TGI Friday's was a great experience. David says they were American prices and admittedly it was the first meal I'd payed over $500 nt for but really that wasn't much considering the amount of food I had. I ordered a full plate of buffalo wings and a bowl of fries and a milkshake. The waiting staff there was awesome most spoke English and spent alot of time around our table teaching us (well mostly David) various Chinese words. When we left every single waitress there came to say goodbye and one came running and asked when we were coming back and said that if we came at certain times she would be able to help us with our Chinese which was really friendly of her.
We then dawdled back towards the train station finding King Wang's Bakery on the way.
This morning I was meant to meet up with a social worker (YiChen) from my old home to take me on a visit. Unfortunately I decided to first go get some travellers cheques cashed which was fine and then proceeded to walk away in the wrong direction. After a while of walking I asked in my broken way which way the train station was and got pointed in the direction I was walking...so I kept going. It was about 20 minutes later that I realised my mistake. By then I was due to meet YiChen so I called her up and she managed to come find me and take me to the home.
Daniel A Poling's Babies Home is a lot bigger than I first imagined. The staff there was amazing, all very friendly. Many of the kids I saw today were special needs and unable to go to school. I also saw some of the little babies (1-2 years old) who were adorable. One girl loved playing with my watch. Cameras weren't allowed in with the babies but they were welcomed everywhere else.
One volunteer there studied in America and has travelled a lot of the world. She lives in Taipei and comes and volunteers a few days a week. She offered to be my guide in Taipei whenever I make it there. Everyone was very accomodating and said I was welcome to come back any time.
They gave me lunch and we discussed my family and what I'm doing in Taiwan I showed them the old photos I had of the Home and they told me my chinese name meant "beautiful piano". All in all it was a very special few hours and I look forward to visiting again soon.
I then got dropped back at the bus stop and decided that I wanted to explore more. I wandered around places I'd not yet been to and stumbled upon a musical instrument store. The guy spoke English and gave me a decent deal on a basic guitar so I took it.
While I was waiting for my bus two people came around with key rings trying to raise money. I gave the 100 NT and they were so grateful it was embarrassing. I think they spent a good minutes saying thankyou. Today I got off the bus in an area I actually knew which was nice.
I missed the garbage trucks and was slightly peeved as I haven't thrown out any rubbish since being here so I was going to go try and follow the trucks and dump the stuff when I stumbled upon a load of rubbish in the stairwell. I honestly don't know if it's allowed to be there but as I don't know where the main rubbish bin in for my apartment building I followed suite and dumped my rubbish there.
All in all I think this weekened went well and apparently my health check is back so the paperwork can commence tomorrow hopefully. yay I will eventually be legal.
TGI Friday's was a great experience. David says they were American prices and admittedly it was the first meal I'd payed over $500 nt for but really that wasn't much considering the amount of food I had. I ordered a full plate of buffalo wings and a bowl of fries and a milkshake. The waiting staff there was awesome most spoke English and spent alot of time around our table teaching us (well mostly David) various Chinese words. When we left every single waitress there came to say goodbye and one came running and asked when we were coming back and said that if we came at certain times she would be able to help us with our Chinese which was really friendly of her.
We then dawdled back towards the train station finding King Wang's Bakery on the way.
This morning I was meant to meet up with a social worker (YiChen) from my old home to take me on a visit. Unfortunately I decided to first go get some travellers cheques cashed which was fine and then proceeded to walk away in the wrong direction. After a while of walking I asked in my broken way which way the train station was and got pointed in the direction I was walking...so I kept going. It was about 20 minutes later that I realised my mistake. By then I was due to meet YiChen so I called her up and she managed to come find me and take me to the home.
Daniel A Poling's Babies Home is a lot bigger than I first imagined. The staff there was amazing, all very friendly. Many of the kids I saw today were special needs and unable to go to school. I also saw some of the little babies (1-2 years old) who were adorable. One girl loved playing with my watch. Cameras weren't allowed in with the babies but they were welcomed everywhere else.
One volunteer there studied in America and has travelled a lot of the world. She lives in Taipei and comes and volunteers a few days a week. She offered to be my guide in Taipei whenever I make it there. Everyone was very accomodating and said I was welcome to come back any time.
They gave me lunch and we discussed my family and what I'm doing in Taiwan I showed them the old photos I had of the Home and they told me my chinese name meant "beautiful piano". All in all it was a very special few hours and I look forward to visiting again soon.
I then got dropped back at the bus stop and decided that I wanted to explore more. I wandered around places I'd not yet been to and stumbled upon a musical instrument store. The guy spoke English and gave me a decent deal on a basic guitar so I took it.
While I was waiting for my bus two people came around with key rings trying to raise money. I gave the 100 NT and they were so grateful it was embarrassing. I think they spent a good minutes saying thankyou. Today I got off the bus in an area I actually knew which was nice.
I missed the garbage trucks and was slightly peeved as I haven't thrown out any rubbish since being here so I was going to go try and follow the trucks and dump the stuff when I stumbled upon a load of rubbish in the stairwell. I honestly don't know if it's allowed to be there but as I don't know where the main rubbish bin in for my apartment building I followed suite and dumped my rubbish there.
All in all I think this weekened went well and apparently my health check is back so the paperwork can commence tomorrow hopefully. yay I will eventually be legal.
Saturday, September 6, 2008
Yay for the weekend
So after a late finish last night I wandered in at 9am today feeling well tired. My schedule was still up in the air and quite frankly I was just ready for the weekend to start. I wasn't sure how my first class would go as I kinda sucked last week (although in all fairness I didn't know I was going to teach it until literally 5 minutes before it began). This week I got the response I was after so I was well happy. My list of games is ever expanding and I'm worried at how fast I go through them. I went straight from that into another class which was also not too bad. Technically this class wasn't on my scedule but it was given to me anyway so I did it. I was meant to do a 1 on 1 for 1.5 hours but that never happened thankfully. I then had another relatively straightforward class then I had my two GEPT classes. The second GEPT class is challenging in that I'm often a walking theasurus trying to explain words they don't know using words they do. The first is just challenging because it is big and we have a lot to go through so very few games get played.
I decided to try again at ordering food. This time I slightly cheated and went to the same place Brian took me to so I knew what I wanted I just wasn't sure how to say it. I ordered the seafood noodle hot pot. For around $3AUD I get this great hot meal with a fair bit of seafood in it plus drinks are included. Honestly I think I'm going to have to go there more often. This time I avoided the clams.
This weekend will be spent in Taichung. I'm looking forward to hanging out in Taichung and I'm really hoping to find a decent music store. I'm even considering finding a musical instrument store. David wants to check out the art museum. There is a TGI Fridays in Taichung too so I may have to check that out (Buffalo wings here I come bwhahaha).
I've been expanding my Chinese music collection thanks to the generous person supplying my internet and a great LJ site dedicated to Taiwanese music.
My favourite Taiwanese performer so far has to be Vitas Lu or 盧廣仲 (Lu Guang Zhong). He has a very acoustic pop feel.
For those who are interested here is one of his video clips.
My goal now is to see him play live during my stay here. He's so geeky but I love it.
I need sleep. I was so tired before and now I'm totally re-energised.
I can now count in Chinese heh I made my students teach me and I'm also learning one handed juggling (with two balls).
And now I have two days of r'n'r. Yay for weekends. Sucks to be a native teacher as all the other teachers at my school have only 1 day off. I couldn't live with only 1 day off. I could really go for 3 days off but I guess that's pushing it.
I decided to try again at ordering food. This time I slightly cheated and went to the same place Brian took me to so I knew what I wanted I just wasn't sure how to say it. I ordered the seafood noodle hot pot. For around $3AUD I get this great hot meal with a fair bit of seafood in it plus drinks are included. Honestly I think I'm going to have to go there more often. This time I avoided the clams.
This weekend will be spent in Taichung. I'm looking forward to hanging out in Taichung and I'm really hoping to find a decent music store. I'm even considering finding a musical instrument store. David wants to check out the art museum. There is a TGI Fridays in Taichung too so I may have to check that out (Buffalo wings here I come bwhahaha).
I've been expanding my Chinese music collection thanks to the generous person supplying my internet and a great LJ site dedicated to Taiwanese music.
My favourite Taiwanese performer so far has to be Vitas Lu or 盧廣仲 (Lu Guang Zhong). He has a very acoustic pop feel.
For those who are interested here is one of his video clips.
My goal now is to see him play live during my stay here. He's so geeky but I love it.
I need sleep. I was so tired before and now I'm totally re-energised.
I can now count in Chinese heh I made my students teach me and I'm also learning one handed juggling (with two balls).
And now I have two days of r'n'r. Yay for weekends. Sucks to be a native teacher as all the other teachers at my school have only 1 day off. I couldn't live with only 1 day off. I could really go for 3 days off but I guess that's pushing it.
Thursday, August 28, 2008
Taichung Continued and JhuShan town
So after scouring JhuShan with my little eeepc to find an internet connection I discovered that my big laptop could jump onto someone's wifi from the comfort of my own apartment (with a little tweaking) yay. So I type this for the first time in my apartment. So much nicer.
So anyway I have a heap of stuff I wrote during the last few days. Warning: it is long, read at your own peril! There are also a bunch more photos here.
Monday: So I met with Bryan (who is younger than I thought and a hell of a lot cuter than I expected) and we headed to Taichung Hospital where I was poked and prodded and x-rayed. It was all very painless and easy though he then dropped me back at the bus stop I would need to go to in order to get back to JhuShan. After getting my bus ticket (with some help from the Visitor centre and my phrase book) I boarded the bus back to JhuShan and sat happily eating my puffies (dunno if that is what they are called here but I know stores in Australia use that name) and being snap happy with the scenery. Before boarding the bus I took a careful gander at people's tickets to see where they were going thinking I would be smart and just find someone with the same destination as me and then get off when they get off.....works in theory. In practice I got confused as to who I was meant to follow and followed the wrong people...fortunately we weren't too far from my destination so with some common sense and a lot of blind luck I made it into familiar territory without too much hassle. The down side is I still don't know where I'm actually meant to catch the bus to Taichung from in JhuShan.
Monday night I took a walk around the shops in JhuShan just to see what was around. I found another English school a couple of blocks away and I was tempted to go talk to their foreign teacher but decided that being from a rival school that may be frowned upon. The central area itself is quite busy and a lot bigger than my initial impression. I found lots of great little food stores dotted around some time. Then on my way home I went into the supermarket and saw they had fans on sale so I lugged one of them home with my daily groceries and assembled it first thing. I have a spare part and the switch to make the fan stationary doesn't seem to work but aside from that it is perfect. With both that and my air con going I no longer wake up dying in the heat at night.
Some interesting differences:
- the Taiwanese just don't seem to walk everything is scooter, bike, bus or car....a 10 minute walk is considered a long way away.
- I kept hearing this cool music reminiscent of a Chinese version of Mr. whippy and at first I thought it was like something festive it was only today that I realised the music is played by garbage trucks as a way to signal people they are in the area so everyone can run down and throw out their garbage.
- Red lights seem to mean stop if you feel like it.
- No one locks up their bike.
Wednesday: It occurred to me the other day that there could possibly be a great view of the countryside at the back of my apartment block (it is only apparent during the day for obvious reasons) so I wandered down and low and behold I have a great view of the countryside just outside my door.
I was watching tv the other night and stumbled across a music program which was showcasing well known Taiwanese musicians. Of course I hate music and turned it straight off…..actually I was riveted, I brought out my trusty camera and took photos of the artists I liked the sound of. Now being somewhat of an expert at navigating JhuShan the next day I wandered into a music store and started doing my little mime routine only to discover the owner spoke English. I was actually a bit disappointed because music is one of the only words I know in Mandarin and I didn’t get a chance to use it. I did however have a nice conversation with the owner who grew up in JhuShan and knows the area well (unlike most of the people I’ve met so far) and he told me I could come ask him about anything if I was unsure which I thought was well nice of him. He was astonished that I would want to 1 listen to music in a language I still don’t know and 2 would actually buy the music. In fact he suggested I just download it as it was cheaper….how he makes a living I have NO idea. I told him I was still in the process of getting the internet and I like to support artists. So in the end I walked away with 2 cds and a dvd from a Taiwanese singer called Elva. I listened to it last night and decided that I like it but I think it is more because I have no idea what is being said. She reminds me of a Taiwanese version of J Lo.
Tuesday I only taught 2 classes as we are in the transition between summer school and regular school (the new term starts Sep 1). Today I have 5 classes however most of these classes write themselves which isn’t too bad. I should probably prepare more but to be honest I just don’t feel like it.
I found a wifi hotspot Tuesday however before I could do much I lost the signal. Actually there are a lot of unlocked signals floating around but most of them won’t let me connect.
I’m developing quite a nice routine now.
8.30am wake up
9 go for a wander
11 go back to apartment and make lunch
12.45 wander off to work
9.30 get home from work, watch tv, look over next day’s lessons
12.30 go to bed
Making lunch is not an easy task if I want it hot. It takes over an hour to boil water in my little oven. Hot lunch made by me consists of noodles and a curry from a packet. I also eat a lot of fruit, bread and jam. I love the soy milk here. Occasionally I pick up something hot at the supermarket to munch on at night but most of the time I’m just not that hungry. My Mandarin still isn’t good enough to go around ordering food from the many cafes and stalls around town.
I now know my address and will post it here soon.
Quite often I seem to get mixed messages from my boss at school, maybe it’s a translation thing but it can sometimes make things really frustrating. Here’s an example
My first day of teaching I rocked up in shorts and a top and my boss made a passing remark that made me think that maybe I wasn’t dressed appropriately so I brought this up with her and she said that formal is definitely better ie pants over shorts and shirts over tshirts. Fine. So then I started wearing pants and a shirt each day. Almost all my formal wear is black (because it is easier to wash). I then got told in a round about fashion that I was wearing too much black…..I’m now compromising and wearing tshirts and pants. No one has said anything about this yet.
Wednesday 27th August 2008
I taught 5 lessons today each at 1 hour a pop. I’ve never taught 5 hours in one day. Fortunately the classes kinda wrote themselves and I was given a basic lesson outline by the other native teacher for each class so lesson planning wasn’t too bad. My voice however was another story. I tend to shout a lot in class not as in get angry just shout to be heard. So by the start of lesson 5 my voice was faltering, but the middle I was spluttering out words and by the end my throat was raw. I also discovered today that Amy and her family have actually gone to Taipei….this was never mentioned to me, not that it matters much but it is nice to know.
So far I have one class tomorrow. Whether I will get more later I dunno, I can totally live with 1 class.
Next entry will be shorter.
So anyway I have a heap of stuff I wrote during the last few days. Warning: it is long, read at your own peril! There are also a bunch more photos here.
Monday: So I met with Bryan (who is younger than I thought and a hell of a lot cuter than I expected) and we headed to Taichung Hospital where I was poked and prodded and x-rayed. It was all very painless and easy though he then dropped me back at the bus stop I would need to go to in order to get back to JhuShan. After getting my bus ticket (with some help from the Visitor centre and my phrase book) I boarded the bus back to JhuShan and sat happily eating my puffies (dunno if that is what they are called here but I know stores in Australia use that name) and being snap happy with the scenery. Before boarding the bus I took a careful gander at people's tickets to see where they were going thinking I would be smart and just find someone with the same destination as me and then get off when they get off.....works in theory. In practice I got confused as to who I was meant to follow and followed the wrong people...fortunately we weren't too far from my destination so with some common sense and a lot of blind luck I made it into familiar territory without too much hassle. The down side is I still don't know where I'm actually meant to catch the bus to Taichung from in JhuShan.
Monday night I took a walk around the shops in JhuShan just to see what was around. I found another English school a couple of blocks away and I was tempted to go talk to their foreign teacher but decided that being from a rival school that may be frowned upon. The central area itself is quite busy and a lot bigger than my initial impression. I found lots of great little food stores dotted around some time. Then on my way home I went into the supermarket and saw they had fans on sale so I lugged one of them home with my daily groceries and assembled it first thing. I have a spare part and the switch to make the fan stationary doesn't seem to work but aside from that it is perfect. With both that and my air con going I no longer wake up dying in the heat at night.
Some interesting differences:
- the Taiwanese just don't seem to walk everything is scooter, bike, bus or car....a 10 minute walk is considered a long way away.
- I kept hearing this cool music reminiscent of a Chinese version of Mr. whippy and at first I thought it was like something festive it was only today that I realised the music is played by garbage trucks as a way to signal people they are in the area so everyone can run down and throw out their garbage.
- Red lights seem to mean stop if you feel like it.
- No one locks up their bike.
Wednesday: It occurred to me the other day that there could possibly be a great view of the countryside at the back of my apartment block (it is only apparent during the day for obvious reasons) so I wandered down and low and behold I have a great view of the countryside just outside my door.
I was watching tv the other night and stumbled across a music program which was showcasing well known Taiwanese musicians. Of course I hate music and turned it straight off…..actually I was riveted, I brought out my trusty camera and took photos of the artists I liked the sound of. Now being somewhat of an expert at navigating JhuShan the next day I wandered into a music store and started doing my little mime routine only to discover the owner spoke English. I was actually a bit disappointed because music is one of the only words I know in Mandarin and I didn’t get a chance to use it. I did however have a nice conversation with the owner who grew up in JhuShan and knows the area well (unlike most of the people I’ve met so far) and he told me I could come ask him about anything if I was unsure which I thought was well nice of him. He was astonished that I would want to 1 listen to music in a language I still don’t know and 2 would actually buy the music. In fact he suggested I just download it as it was cheaper….how he makes a living I have NO idea. I told him I was still in the process of getting the internet and I like to support artists. So in the end I walked away with 2 cds and a dvd from a Taiwanese singer called Elva. I listened to it last night and decided that I like it but I think it is more because I have no idea what is being said. She reminds me of a Taiwanese version of J Lo.
Tuesday I only taught 2 classes as we are in the transition between summer school and regular school (the new term starts Sep 1). Today I have 5 classes however most of these classes write themselves which isn’t too bad. I should probably prepare more but to be honest I just don’t feel like it.
I found a wifi hotspot Tuesday however before I could do much I lost the signal. Actually there are a lot of unlocked signals floating around but most of them won’t let me connect.
I’m developing quite a nice routine now.
8.30am wake up
9 go for a wander
11 go back to apartment and make lunch
12.45 wander off to work
9.30 get home from work, watch tv, look over next day’s lessons
12.30 go to bed
Making lunch is not an easy task if I want it hot. It takes over an hour to boil water in my little oven. Hot lunch made by me consists of noodles and a curry from a packet. I also eat a lot of fruit, bread and jam. I love the soy milk here. Occasionally I pick up something hot at the supermarket to munch on at night but most of the time I’m just not that hungry. My Mandarin still isn’t good enough to go around ordering food from the many cafes and stalls around town.
I now know my address and will post it here soon.
Quite often I seem to get mixed messages from my boss at school, maybe it’s a translation thing but it can sometimes make things really frustrating. Here’s an example
My first day of teaching I rocked up in shorts and a top and my boss made a passing remark that made me think that maybe I wasn’t dressed appropriately so I brought this up with her and she said that formal is definitely better ie pants over shorts and shirts over tshirts. Fine. So then I started wearing pants and a shirt each day. Almost all my formal wear is black (because it is easier to wash). I then got told in a round about fashion that I was wearing too much black…..I’m now compromising and wearing tshirts and pants. No one has said anything about this yet.
Wednesday 27th August 2008
I taught 5 lessons today each at 1 hour a pop. I’ve never taught 5 hours in one day. Fortunately the classes kinda wrote themselves and I was given a basic lesson outline by the other native teacher for each class so lesson planning wasn’t too bad. My voice however was another story. I tend to shout a lot in class not as in get angry just shout to be heard. So by the start of lesson 5 my voice was faltering, but the middle I was spluttering out words and by the end my throat was raw. I also discovered today that Amy and her family have actually gone to Taipei….this was never mentioned to me, not that it matters much but it is nice to know.
So far I have one class tomorrow. Whether I will get more later I dunno, I can totally live with 1 class.
Next entry will be shorter.
Monday, August 25, 2008
A night in Taichung
So it is Monday morning and I'm due to meet up with my agent in about 30 minutes but i just wanted to jump on and write a bit more (the internet addict in me needs its feed). So after writing that essay last night I wandered back into the hotel and bumped into David again thus sparking a major conversation from two Englsh starved individuals. Not having to work the next day we chatted happily in the lobby for hours just about random stuff, I talked about my limited teaching experiences and he talked about his dreadful job hunt. Unlike me he can speak a little Mandarin which came in handy when we decided to ditch the lobby in search of a night market. Asking directions was interesting as David would ask something in his broken Mandarin while I stood behind with a map. The locals would automatically turn to me and start spouting directions in Mandarin to which I would stare back with a bewildered look and point back to David.
We eventually found the nightmarket and were overwhelmed by the sights and smells. i smelt stinky tofu for the first time and was automatically disgusted, we saw pig liver and intestines and loads of other local delights. The adventurer in me was done for the night so we settled on grabbing some chicken (although I think mine may hav been duck).
There are photos but i haven't uploaded them yet.
In David I think I've found a twin soul in this crazy place.
We stumbled home around 3 full with food and good conversation. We also discovered lemons are for the most part green here...they still make for good lemonade though.
Ok time to go get poked and prodded by a doctor and then try and find my way back to Jhushan for another round of teaching madness.
In coming posts I will talk more about the school and my teaching adventures but I'm wary to do so now as my circumstances are still quite up in the air.
Til next my wifi connects.
We eventually found the nightmarket and were overwhelmed by the sights and smells. i smelt stinky tofu for the first time and was automatically disgusted, we saw pig liver and intestines and loads of other local delights. The adventurer in me was done for the night so we settled on grabbing some chicken (although I think mine may hav been duck).
There are photos but i haven't uploaded them yet.
In David I think I've found a twin soul in this crazy place.
We stumbled home around 3 full with food and good conversation. We also discovered lemons are for the most part green here...they still make for good lemonade though.
Ok time to go get poked and prodded by a doctor and then try and find my way back to Jhushan for another round of teaching madness.
In coming posts I will talk more about the school and my teaching adventures but I'm wary to do so now as my circumstances are still quite up in the air.
Til next my wifi connects.
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