Boo hiss

So although I can write up entries, I cannot view them on the webpage, nor can I look at comments. So any comments you have please feel free to e-mail them to me. I don't want to share my e-mail address on this blog, but I'm assuming if you know me well enough to be reading it regularly/have something to say about said entries, then you'll know how to contact me.

Also, an "ohmygod" note: The Phillies are currently TIED FOR FIRST PLACE with the Mets in NL East, and are TIED FOR SECOND PLACE (with the Mets) in the Wild card run. San Diego is in first place in the Wild Card race, but is only 1/2 a game ahead. AHH. I really really really really hope the Phillies don't break my heart, again.

BALI TOMORROW.

Here's my card

So here are some exciting firsts:

Yesterday I got my first real world paycheck. I've obviously gotten checks in the past, but this check represents work post-graduation. This is simply an amazing feeling, seeing money in a bank account.
Second, today I (finally) received business cards from the school. They are SO SWEET. The cards are a nice navy blue with a dull gold line going down the side. Even cooler is that the card says my name, my Chinese name, my position, and my position in Chinese. I love them, but watch me give my card to almost no one. Also the back side of the card has a map that shows how to get to the school. They are a really nice accessory to have.

That is all. I'm tired. Bali in 2 days, yes!

Work to live, don't live to work.

So, being a type A personality, I of course will dive head first into a job and work my tail off. That being said, I have a new perspective. I came to China to improve my Chinese, and thus far I've had the opportunity to practice speaking, but I haven't had time to find an appropriate class that suits my speaking, reading and writing needs. This is unacceptable. While I like working this will not be my life long term, and I'm losing the opportunity to really enhance my Chinese. This break, upon returning from Bali, I will find a good Chinese class, work out on a regular basis, cook, and just be more open to really experiencing China. I don't want my entire life to be school, with school friends, and school school school. The faculty members here are great people, but I need a social life outside of where I work.

Also, now for some reason I can update my blog but I cannot see the website address of my website. I'm assuming the government may have something to do with this, which is unfortunate because I really do enjoy China. I've had a variety of fascinating experiences and observations here thus far, and it's frustrating that my speech may be a bit thwarted.

Bali on Saturday. I'm psyched. Still need to play what I want to do/see there. I will take pictures and post them when I return!

Working Hard or Hardly Working?

So my neighborhood has a playground that is made for both adults and children. Included is a standard playset, but in addition to this there are also "exercise machines" in bright colors. These are also prevalent in Beijing parks, and you usually see playgrounds of this type in many other open areas. Chinese adults of a variety of ages use the blue, yellow and red machines to "exercise". I use the word exercise in quotations because I really do not see how a real workout can be achieved using the machines. There is one in our complex that is simply a circle thing that you lean against and move your back back and fourth. I don't get it. Then there is the elliptical machine whose spin is too small so every pedal is awkwardly tight and jolty. It's quite fun to play there though, but I also will never understand the elaborate pulley system with two cords, each with a handle. You hold both and pull back and fourth, but it does absolutely nothing for your arms.

One very admirable trait of Chinese people is that they love to be outside. In the mornings, afternoons, and evenings you can see a myriad of people walking by themselves, with friends, children, pets, etc, just enjoying the outdoors. Sometimes you see men jogging, but it's usually a very light jog. We have a walkway next to a fake lake pond thing, with 50 or so beautiful lily pads. I've gone walking with Jen R twice in the past few days, and I'm looking forward to making a real habit out of it. My neighbors at home, the Ips, have their grandmother living with them. I'm not sure if they are from Korea, Japan, or China, but every morning she goes for a few walks around the block, despite the weather. It will be interesting to see if this is strictly a Chinese trait or if it describes people who live in other parts of Asia.

Also, today is the Mid-Autumn Festival which is the 15^th day of the 8^th month in Chinese lunar calendar. Happy Mid-Autumn Festival! Because of this we get a week off in October. For more information about it visit: http://www.chinavoc.com/festivals/Midautumn.htm
Mooncakes, depending on the flavor, can be quite delicious or really gross.

RELAXING

This weekend was pretty uneventful. I felt like I was coming down with a cold on Friday afternoon, so I opted out of playing ultimate frisbee. Instead I came home, and immediately fell asleep for about 2 hours. Although the work week was only four days long, going out on Tuesday and Thursday really exhausted me.

I woke up Saturday morning originally at 6:30am. You may ask, "Why God why?!" but that is the routine I've grown accustomed to. Obviously though I fell back asleep and stayed in bed until 8:30am. Late, yes I know. I then straightened up my house, tidied things up and did some laundry. I have yet to hire an aiyi, which in Chinese means aunt, but can also mean a cleaning woman. Most teachers have hired one just because it's easier to pay $2/hour for someone to clean, buy groceries, and pay the bills, but so far I'm doing just fine. Mom, you raised me well and luckily I am competent enough to clean up after myself!! Who knows though, at some point I may hire one, but I feel a bit strange giving someone I don't know the keys to my house with the freedom to rummage through my drawers and look through my things. Plus, it just makes me a tad bit uncomfortable. I really don't want to get used to that short of "hand and foot" lifestyle.

Afterwards I had a very nice lunch with Jen, who teaches 3rd grade. We went to a fancier restaurant where we ordered a pork dish, rice, some bean dish and a wonderfully light soup. Delicious. Afterwards we went downtown to qipu (che-pu, almost sounds like cheap), where we got bombarded by merchants. We took the subway and then proudly figured out the public bus. So instead of spending 11 kuai to go like 5 minutes away, we took a bus and only spend like 2 kuai/person to get there.

When we arrived at qipu, random Chinese merchants were literally following us, heckling us, nagging us. It was awful when we first entered the building. The market itself consisted of many buildings. But every time we'd enter a new one, people would follow us. "Lady you want bag? Manicure? Help? Watches?" And we'd just say "Go away help another foreigner we don't want your help." It was ridiculously annoying. I really need to learn how to stay the word, "Stalker". Many that would get them to go away. And especially on a rainy dreary day, where the crowds were numerous inside, and Chinese people not understanding the basic rules of walking, it got frustrating very quickly. I bought a t-shirt to work out in and a pair of leggings to go under my denim skirt, but that was it.

Afterwards we wandered a bit and had a small snack, followed by a more substantial meal. We then found a foot massage place and decided to try it. The massage cost us 38 kuai for an HOUR LONG FOOT MASSAGE. Reflexology studies areas in the foot, so usually people can determine what kinds of health problems you have based on the pain in your foot from the massage. I don't know if I believe in it, but it was still a lot of fun, and luckily it didn't hurt at all. It was very relaxing. I didn't realize how much rest my feet needed at the time, and the five dollar splurge was so worth it.

Saturday night I just watched a movie, read a bit and went to bed. Sunday was pretty lazy too. I woke up around 9:30, and went to the gym around 11. I worked out, returned home, showered, and put up my laundry to dry. Unfortunately the shower poll collapsed and my clothes became wet again, so I have to re-wash them. I had lunch at the Muslim restaurant right nearby that has DELICIOUS food. There they gave me their Chinese menu, and asked if I could translate it for them because the number of foreigner customers (because of the two schools nearby) is increasing. I've already started and it's a great project because it's forcing me to learn the vocabulary that I've been putting off for the past month. I also learned how to use the dictionary as well to look up characters I don't know how to say. I'm going to ask them, in exchange for helping with the translations, if I can learn how to cook some of their dishes. Then they won't be paying me anything, will actually get free help, and I'll learn how to cook some real (delicious) Chinese food.

After lunch I was at school, worked for 3.5 hours then went to the supermarket to buy some groceries. I bought some chicken, random spices, milk, and some fruit. I accidentally left the chicken at the grocery store, but I returned and got it back. I tried making curry chicken for the first time and, despite not having a measuring cup, coconut milk or potatoes, I added in extra yogurt and milk for the coconut milk, and also added raisins. Curry really is delicious, and not spicy at all. Following dinner I watched a movie and worked on translating the menu. Now I'm in school-- I have off from now, 10:30 until 11:55, then it's lunch duty until 12:40, then my Pre-K class at 1:05-1:45, then my K class from 2:10-2:50. BALI IS IN 5 DAYS I'M SO EXCITED!

The Great American Pastime

LET'S GO PHILLIES!

The Phillies are so close to the playoffs I can almost taste it.

Typhoon Wipha? Plz

So we essentially got a day off of school for rain. YES. The storm was supposed to hit Tuesday night around 8pm/12am, and originally the soccer game I was supposed to go to got postponed for Wednesday. So I just hung out with some of the other teachers at Bonnie's apartment, where we had a Typhoon party! So much fun!

Typhon Wipha lived up to it's name. While it was bad in some areas, Shanghai was basically unaffected. It just rained a little bit, and the wind picked up at times. AND WE HAD A DAY OFF FROM SCHOOL YAY! I mostly stayed inside because if anything dramatic were to happen with no notice, I didn't want to be stuck somewhere downtown with no way to get home. I did work out though- 5 min walking, 30 running, 5 walking, and then I lifted weights.

Tonight I may go in town to hear some Indie music. I still don't quite know what Indie music is (even though Wesleyan should have taught me) but I'm looking forward to it anyway. That's it for now. Also: I fixed the pictures that originally didn't show up on the previous post.

Snow day, but a typhoon day...? It's the same difference I guess.

Well, this weekend was a lot of fun. The singing and dancing in 42nd street was amazing, but unfortunately I realize that the reason I didn't like the show the first time I saw it was because it lacked a coherent plot. Afterwards I hung out with Geoff and his friend Richard. It was awesome catching up with him. I haven't seen Geoff in about 5 years which is crazy.

I stayed the night at Lindi's so I wouldn't have to travel all the way back to Pudong. In the morning she had to head to Hangzhou so I just explored the city in the morning. I walked from NanJing Road to People's Square (where I was for a jazz concert last week), followed by finally finding the Bird and Flower market. The B&F market was full of crickets, fish birds and many other pets. Why crickets? I still have no idea, but there were millions of them on display, and many Chinese people paying close attention to the quality of the cricket. Maybe they are good luck. I myself don't want to buy any pets because if I leave in June, or am home for December and January, there will be no one around to take care of them/it. It took me almost 40+ minutes to find it, but fortunately it rocked. The B&F market was also surrounded by a separate electronics market and an "antique" market. I ended up buying a beautiful black and white skirt for 125 kuai (maybe 12 dollars), and ate xiaolongbao for lunch. Around 2pm I found the public bus that I took back to the school, but there were no seats so I stood for like another 50 minutes. Returning to school (where the bus let off and where I left my bike anyway), I stayed at school for several hours working. Afterwards I had dinner and met Barbara and Jen to watch a movie.

Sunday I was supposed to get up early at 8am and go biking with a group of regulars who like to explore the area, but for some reason I missed them. So instead of being defeated and just return home, instead I biked into areas I've never been before. I biked for about an hour and a half, found myself another weird narrow market, and looked around the myriads of farmlands. Here are some pictures:





I then returned to school, worked for about 5 hours on my emergency plans and added some furniture to my room, went to the market, cooked dinner, watched a movie and went to bed.

Yesterday, Monday, I had the leftover food for lunch but immediately after I got sooooooooooo sick that I had to go home early. I got home around 2pm and slept from 4pm until 11:30pm. I then woke up, cooked and ate pasta, then watched another movie and went to bed.

Now about today. Today is Tuesday, and tomorrow, Wednesday, school is canceled. "Why?" you may ask. A typhoon. Yes. a typhoon. There is a typhoon in the area that is supposed to be very severe, so they are canceling school. Now I was never expecting any snow days in Shanghai because I researched the weather. But a typhoon day? Ridiculous. In the areas that are more costal, where people live in huts, they are evacuating them for safe measures. I'm honestly worried, but no one who's lived here longer seems to be worried. I'm supposed to go to the US v. Nigeria women's soccer match tonight, but who even knows if the game is still on.

_____
Update: I doubt I'm going to the game. It's raining pretty heavily and won't be that enjoyable even if I manage taking a taxi or public transportation all the way out there. Oye. I guess tonight I'll try to maybe workout and/or have a nice dinner, typhon-proof my house, possibly buy some candles, study Chinese and read a bit. CRAZY.

Biking

So I've told you all I've purchased a bike within the first three days of being here, and it has by far been my best purchase ever. My bike is a metallic red (similar to my car), with a few blue Hawaiian flowers on it. The handlebars are gray, with hand breaks. The bike has no gears, but makes up for this with a sweet black basket and a little bell. The bell does not have as dramatic effects as a car horn, but it does the trick. The angry "ring ring!" can go a long way.

In the morning I bike to school and home. The bike ride takes about 5 minutes on a good day, but can take 10 if the weather is bad. Supposedly it won't snow here in China, but when it rains it is really a pain to get to school. I could take a cab for 11 kuai, or a motorized bike with walls and a ceiling thing for 3-4kuai, but since I'm trying to save money I hope to do so by minimizing extraneous purchases. So, if I want groceries, it makes sense to spend 20 kuai on a week's worth of veggies and fruits from the local market rather than go to the foreigner's store and spend 300 kuai on the same items because of shear convenience.

Back to the rain issue. So, I have this basket, and am armed with a raincoat and umbrella, but this does not protect the basket or the items in the basket. Here they sell this ridiculous looking poncho shown here:















I mean seriously. The picture on the right does not even begin to show how ridiculous people look in these things. Attached to the front of the poncho is a clip that links to the front part of the basket, in order to protect the contents. The design of the poncho is pretty genius, despite the lack of fashion sense.

I bought one last weekend and had the pleasure (note sarcasm) of having to use it today. Oye what a pain.

Chinese traffic is also pretty dangerous. There are lines designated for car roads and bike roads, but people rarely pay attention. Sometimes I've even found cars driving down a bike road on the wrong side of the street No one gets mad, they just get out of the way. The same works for traffic lights... The light turns from red to yellow to green, but during the yellow phase people from both directions tend to go at the same time. The light also goes from green to yellow to red. Bikers bike down the wrong side of the road all of the time, and drivers cut each other of left and right. It's really frustrating at times but I'm being careful. It's better to be careful then stupid and hurt.

There are also lots of mopeds here, but they don't have the same elegance as ones in Italy. Maybe that's because Shanghai is much dirtier, larger, and rushing to be more modern, while with Italy there's a sense that part of their leisure loving life culture is frozen in time. It could also be because going on a moped through Italy is 100x more enjoyable than the scenery around here, but I still prefer a bike or car to a moped.

I think the reason why the drivers here are ridiculous is because they drive the same way they bike. It is mostly defensive, but people also try to cut in and get ahead, but not in a malicious way. When people honk the horn (which is REALLY irritating), it's not like in the US where people curse and yell and scream, but more of an informative honk, or a "I'm restless get out of my way please" honk. Cars even honk at bikes sometimes which isn't that enjoyable.

Mind you, I still love biking to work. I see parts of the area I wouldn't be able to find by foot, and a bike helps me get to places faster too. I still believe that everyone in China still really needs driving lessons, or some kind of crash course on basic rules of traffic and which side of the road to drive on!

Tonight: 42nd street! Geoff's performing. I'm psyched.

Shana Tova

So Jen N, Zack's Mom, was kind enough to both treat me to the services and dinner at the Pudong Communty Center. Not only did she do that, she also had her driver personally pick me up from school. The services were very nice, but I know no Hebrew nor do i know the songs people normally sing. The Rabbi's wife just had her third child about a week ago, but the baby was too young to come.

Chabad was certainly interesting to experience. The room was divided with plants so prayer and conversation with God would be free from distraction. There was, as always, a ridiculous amount of food. I had challah, which made me incredibly happy because I haven't really had any bread since coming to China. The dough staples that I live on really just consist of noodles, rice, and dumplings.

The Rabbi ended up sitting next to me at dinner, and he was speaking about his brother, who for the most part lead the kids activities during the Service and during part of the dinner. A bit later Jen just said to me, "Well he wants you to date his brother." I of course obviously did not pick up any of the cues, so during the conversation with the Rabbi I just responded with things like, "Oh how interesting! Yes, he seems like a great person", etc. Haha, oops. I still feel like I don't belong to either religion because I'm caught between the two belief systems, despite their many similarities. I'm always in awe of people who are so devout because having the strength in that kind of faith seems like one certainty in life that I don't quite have. Not that it worries me, I just look up to those who can be so happy and peaceful with a belief system.

No matzah yet, that's in the spring

So yesterday I had the following lovely schedule:

School: 7:15am-3:45pm
Gym: 4:00pm-4:45pm
Home: 4:45-5:15pm
Dinner with Lindi: 5:30-6:50pm
Back to School Night: 6:55pm-8:45pm
Bar with Coworkers: 9:00pm-10:15pm

I had a total of two, count 'em, TWO teachers stop by my room. What a waste of time. I even decorated the room for them. Very frustrating.

Today I'm exhausted because I didn't get enough sleep last night. I'm leaving here early so I can go home to get ready for Rosh Hashanah services and dinner. It will be interesting to go to Chabad Jewish Center...

Yep yep

Also, we had an in-service day yesterday, today happens to be Sept 11, but no one is saying anything about it, tonight is back to school night, and tomorrow is Rosh Hashanah. Oy-vey.

Apologies

I would just like to apologize for being a bit out of touch recently. The past 5 or so days have been extremely busy. I'm really starting to get the hang of teaching, but I need to work on a Long Term Plan for the year, which requires a lot of work on my part in addition to coordinating with individual teachers. So while I may want to teach second graders about Microsoft Word, the project that they do may be a bit different between the three sections because although the 2nd grade curriculum is the same, teachers choose to tackle the same areas of study differently. In addition to the long term plans, no one who has had my position previously has made lesson plans, let alone have provided a real legitimate long term plan.

I teach 4 classes on Mondays and Fridays, and then 5 classes on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays. As of now I also have two lunch duties on Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday, and I have only one lunch duty on Wednesday. This is a decrease from the 2 duties everyday and 1 on Friday that I had previously.

The guy who has been teaching technology at SCIS for several years now is wonderful. He doesn't like to keep things written down (so no lesson plans), but he has an electronic record of various projects he has done with his students. The other teacher who taught the younger children is an absolute doll, but she basically only had the kids play games for the entire year, which isn't really what they solely should be doing.

I joined a gym last Wednesday. It has basic weights, a few ellipticals, treadmills, a stairmaster, a rowing machine, and a few bikes. They also provide classes such as aerobics, yoga (but Chinese yoga), tae kwondo, and maybe one or two other classes. I got a lower price of 1700yuan for 10 months, which is about $23/month. After school Andrea and I worked out at the gym, as well as her husband Adam. Thursday was uneventful. Just school, working long into the afternoon after school, the elliptical at the gym, and then home, dinner, home, bed. Friday I had my normal classes, and afterwards I tried running for about 45 minutes with the cross country team. My friend Simon coaches it, and Andrea had tried running with them the day before, so I thought I'd give it a try as well. Even though I wasn't as fast as these 16, 17 year old guys, I was definitely more flexible with the stretches, and I still helped lead them.

Speaking of after school activities, as an elementary school teacher we are required to help out 2/4 quarters. New teachers are exempt from the first quarter, but we have to do a 1 hour activity once a week for two 6 week blocks. The same activity can be repeated (I think) because you work with different kids. I had spoken to Andrew who does college counseling for the upper school, and he mentioned that kids lack the appropriate interview skills. I said I am happy to help out, because I absolutely love interviewing, so I spoke to both someone in the administration and Jane (the LS principal) about possibly substituting my LS activity requirement with an US interview workshop. This place is so bureaucratic that in order to do the Interview Workshop, it cannot be substituted (even if I find an Upper School teacher to do my LS activity), so if I wanted to do the Workshop I'd have to do my LS activities in addition. I feel that totally discourages mixing upper and lower school students and faculty. Similarly it impedes people's abilities to really choose activities that will be truly beneficial to the student body. If I have time, I may, but Jane simply said, "Amy I honestly wouldn't recommend you put more on your plate anyway, since you're a new teacher." I understand her point because too much work could impede my time in the classroom, but it's still frustrating that I don't have support to do something that will really help the student body.

Anyway, after running for about 45 minutes Simon and I biked around and outside of our neighborhood. What I didn't know (and pictures will be posted soon I promise!) is that we are like a 5 minute bike ride from the rural farmland areas. It's incredible to just bike through fields of water chestnuts, rice patties, corn and cucumbers. Totally awesome.

Forgetfulness

Wow, guess who totally forgot about Labor Day. And yesterday I ended up working from like 7am-3:30pm, and then again from 4:30pm-6pm. Excellent. But then again, I am going to Bali (part of the expenses are paid), during my week off in October. So.. Week off in October > 1 day off in September

Fitness

So this weekend was interesting because many emotions were felt. Friday after school I joined some of the other teachers in a game of ultimate frisbee. My ankles hurt afterwards but all-in-all I had a wonderful time. Afterwards I went to a coworker's apartment where they were throwing a party. Who would have thought that even 2-7 years after college adults still play drinking games? I mean, flip cup is fun and I certainly don't mind playing it, but I was surprised nonetheless.

Saturday was a dreary day both emotionally and the weather reflected my bad mood... or maybe it was vise-versa? It was cloudy, overcast, drizzling/pouring, and flat out gross. All the people I knew were busy doing something somewhere else, so I felt a bit isolated. This really was one of the first times that I had been really alone since arriving in China. When I first got here, I just slept, adjusted to jetlag, then rushed around with starting my job. The first weekend here I was busy doing lots of things and meeting new people. The second week of work was still orientating myself to Shanghai, and beginning classes. The following weekend was spent with Laura exploring all of the new things around me. The third week involved getting through my first real week of school. Then Saturday comes, and I have nothing to do and no one to do anything with, so I was a bit down. I did laundry, and bought a few necessities at the local grocery store. Exciting I know.

This mood significantly changed the next day. When I first woke up, I re-read the material given to me about culture shock, also known as "culture fatigue". I gained a fresh perspective, and shortly following that I got to speak to my parents on skype. Despite some scary news, I was thrilled to see and hear them again. After that my lunch plans fell through, so instead I met Lindi in the city where we ate a nice lunch, and explored a local market/shopping center near her. I bought some placemats (the same burgundy/maroon ones I bought last summer), as well as matching pillowcases, coasters, a tissue box thing, and a decoration that goes on a bottle of wine. Of course the price was good. Following that I had a light snack around 6pm, returned home and met my friend Andrea at the local gym to try out a yoga class! It was all in Chinese, and my first one, but I enjoyed it. I didn't know human bodies could be so flexible! Afterwards we lifted biceps and back afterwards which felt so good. This gym costs 1800kuai for 10 months, and includes a sauna, your own locker, and access to the variety of classes that they have during the week. I'm also looking into other gyms too to see what they have to offer.

This afternoon (Monday afternoon) I went to a Taiqi class which is taught by Holly Xi, one of the Chinese lower school teachers here. Only three people are in the class, but I'm hoping it will gain popularity in the future. We're planning on having class in the morning, maybe around 7/7:10am, because Taiqi should be done in the mornings, especially in big groups.

That's it for now!