September 6th, 2006

Today I had my first Western Culture class. It has 60 students, about 45 of which are girls. Many of them have chosen fairly standard English names; Joe, Norman, Jack, Sally, Amanda, Penny, Jessica. Others names are less common, such as Ivy, Selma, Cherry, or Winter. Then there are the far out names; Shuttle, Easy, Twinkle, Fighter, Greeting, New River, Coca, Stone, Danger, Volcano Ice, and Jane. I was a little dumbfounded by these names until I discovered that many of them are direct translations of their Chinese names. Although.......Danger? Easy? I gave them an in-class writing assignment asking them what they would like to know about western culture. Here are some of their responses: "I want to know: 1: The most updated words and sentences using in America which we cannot study in our books and from our Chinese English teachers. 2. Some daily used slangs. 3. Something about American culture and Americans' habits." (So basically this guy wants me to teach them how to swear.) "I'd like to know something about American Country music. I think it is relaxed and makes me comfortable." (AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!) "First of all, I'm so glad to be your students. And I think we'll become good friends in the following days. In my opinion, I want to know something about the way that the foreign people communicate with each other. And How do they arrange their spare time when they have no work to do? What will they do? Then, I want to know about the interesting programs in the festival, for instance, Christmas Day?" "What does America economic contains? What do America women like? What kinds of clothes? Do they wish to be slim? What do America youths of nowadays worship? Money or Love or other things? Do they have beliefs, if any, what's it?" (I personally worship and believe in food) "I want to learn something about American movies, because they are very famouse. Especially the Oscar. In China, a lot of directors want to get a cup from the Oscar." "1. The history about some famous historical universities. 2. What's people's daily life like in Western countries? 3. Do Americans like Bush? Like Iraq war? Like tradition? 4. What's the opinion of Americans' about Japan and China?" (I have been hearing a LOT about Japan, and hatred for the Japanese.)And one of my personal favorites: "Music. Rock. I know a lot British band. But I don't know too much about bands from U.S.A. Greenday is a so wonderful band. So would please introduce some good band as good as them? And I want to know the American Punk culture. (Do I write the "punk" correctly? I'm not sure.) And anything weird."(I'm totally going to teach a "weird" section this semester.) So those should give you all an idea of my students' level of English, as well as their interests. Looks like I've got a lot to cover! This class was actually better behaved than my first, even though it was twice as big. After class I ran into my new friend Tom, who decided to take me to the fruit and vegetable market. I'm glad he came, because I got a good price with him around. I've been getting pretty sick of all the heavy grease, so I was excited to get some fresh fruits and veggies. (Don't worry Mom, I only got stuff that I can peel.) Tomorrow night is Lollapalooza, a huge party for all the foreigners in the city. JJ is the host, so he's allowed to come. Apparently only hard liquor is allowed, no beer. Should be fun and fantastic and a skull blasting headache the next day. Good thing I'm done teaching for the week. Adieu

September 4th, 2006

So my gastrointestinal system woke me up this morning at about 5:45am. Super. Bad food or just nerves? We'll never know. At 6am the speakers outside started blasting orchestral military songs. Then some guy came on over the music and started drilling out marching steps. It was still going when I left for class at 7:10. 6am. Everyday? I'm so excited to find out.I arrived at my Oral English class around 7:25. I took a picture to give you all a visual image of what facing the class for the first time was like. (Picture to the right.) They were all very sweet. I introduced myself, said where I was from and where I went to school. They asked me some questions, is this my first time to China, how do I like it, where else have I traveled, etc. I talked a bit about what I hoped to cover in the class, and asked them what they hoped to get out of the class themselves. Silence. Any particular focus? Grammer? Role-play? Slang? Yeah, slang! I asked one girl individually what she wanted to get out of the class. She stood up and this was her reply: "My name is May. M-A-Y. I would like to learn oral English." Sigh.Next I gave a short lecture on Vermont and how it compares to the Shandong province. (650,000 people vs. over 90 million. huh.) I then gave them each 15 minutes to prepare a short presentation on their hometown and province and how it compares to mine. Each student came to the front of the class and spoke for about 2-5 minutes. This was great, because I got to see each individual's level of English speaking, to a certain extent. They all introduced themselves (spelling and all) before they began. One guy said that last year he had chosen the English name Sunny, but then he found out it's a girl's name, so he wants to find another one. I told him that if he spelled it Sonny it was a boy's name, and that there was a character named Sonny in the Godfather. He immedietely decided to go with Sonny.Anyway, overall it went great. The students were very cooperative as individuals. As a group, they took a bit of prodding to get started. They also talked a lot during class, which was annoying. But overall they were fine. I'm looking forward to my next class with them. The class monitor is named Jordon, he's very helpful. Every class has a monitor who is a party member and reports back to the party about the class.My next class isn't until wednesday because some classes start next week, some the week after that, and some the week after that, I'm not really sure why. I think something to do with military training for the freshmen. Greg and I spoke to a guy named Lenny yesterday who was very enthusiastic about his past military training. "You learn to shoot guns with real bullets! Really cool!" Kind of a foreign concept to Americans, military training that everyone has to go through. But they do it in Europe too. Not all countries but some. I think in Switzerland every citizen is required to do at least three months of military service. Or something like that.So, that was my first day. It's done!

September 2nd, 2006

Thursday night Kara's Chinese friend Cabby took us out to dinner in the citywith some of his friends. We were given a private banquet room on the second floor of the restaurant. (This has been pretty standard. Many restaurants do this.) Cabby is president of the English Club at the university. He's HILARIOUS. He's got a lot of energy and is very outspoken. His friend Tom is much more subdued and very sweet. I tried a few new dishes that I liked, especially the niu nai mai pian zhou, which is a cold milk soup that has what I think is oatmeal, nuts, dried fruit and huge chunks of sugar. The tang zha nan gua tiao (fried pumpkin) was also good. We were there probably about three hours and drank too much beer. After dinner, KTV! (kareoke television). The place was really fancy. It's about four stories, with a very big lobby where you can buy drinks and snacks to bring upstairs. They give each group a private room with couches, a TV and a kareoke machine. Apparently at some KTV places you can hire girls to come keep you company and poor your drinks while you sing kareoke. We passed. Maybe next time. We alternated between Chinese and English songs. The "music videos" that played along with the songs were some of the cheesiest I've ever seen. Every once in a while an actual music video would play instead of the Kareoke adapted song, and we went crazy when we found Michael Jackson "Thriller." Seriously, "Thriller" and "Smooth Criminal" are two of the best ever made. (Some would argue that "Billie Jean" easily takes the cake over "Smooth Criminal," but I thought it was kind of boring.) ANYWAY, it was a lot of fun, everyone made a fool of themselves, as per usual with kareoke. Yesterday (friday) Kara and Zack took us to meet their Chinese friend JJ and see his new bar which is opening next weekend. It's still under renovation right now. JJ is Zack's best friend and roommate, and he loves foreigners, and so his bar is geared specifically to them, especially Americans. (Someone already drew a picture of Stewie on the wall.) It's located on the main prostitution street in Dongying. Hmm. Not sure if that will help or hinder. Probably help. There is a huge sign on the outside of the bar that you can't miss and will definitely attract English speaking foreigners. I took a picture. Take a look. JJ's lingo is very Americanized (yo, girl, put yo f*#&$ing number in ma phone.) and it's clear he wrote the sign. After JJ's we went to a hot pot place for dinner. Hot pot is noodles and broth with yummy meats and veggies mixed in, but you add the noodles and goodies to the broth yourself at the very last minute when you are served. Apparently they're also called over the bridge noodles. It comes from an old Chinese story about an intellectual who would go out to the gardens to study, and his wife would bring him the soup for lunch. But, since she had to walk pretty far and cross a bridge, the noodles were always cold by the time the intellectual ate them. So the solution was to add the noodles at the last minute. I don't really get it because wouldn't he just be adding noodles to cold broth? I think I've got to get my story straightened. In any case, it was very good and a nice change from the heavy greasy food that we've been eating a lot of lately. Today Cabby helped me buy a cell phone, which was an experience. We went to about four different places to compare prices and bargain. We ended up at a HUGE warehouse full of counters selling electronics. It was daunting. But, I got a good deal, and now I have a cell phone! If anyone wants the number let me know. Tonight we're going to JJ's bar to play video games and meet a bunch of his friends. I'm looking forward to meeting more new people. (Well, a bunch of people meeting me, the new person.) As for teaching, I believe we start this monday, but we STILL don't know who, what, where, or when. Apparently we're supposed to be informed by a Mr. Li, who has yet to appear. I heard a rumor that he's in Florida. I hope he materializes soon. I'm getting a bit anxious. However, last minute is the Chinese way, as I'm swiftly beginning to learn, so I'm sure whatever happens will work. -Carrie

Hello!Yesterday Kara Chin arrived. Kara was a teacher here last year. She went home for the summer and will be spending this year in Beijing. She came to Dongying to pick up her stuff and spend a few days with her Dongying friends. So we now have an expert to show us around! Last night Kara brought us to a couple places for drinks. At the first place, City Freemans, we met Zack and Jessie, who have been teaching English at another school in Donying and will be here for another six months. We then moved to 2046 (I think that's the name??) which is a fairly new dance club. It was RIDICULOUS. The dancing was very funny, I'm not gonna lie. Zack whipped out the robot and they LOVED IT. While in the majority of the city most people dress fairly modestly, here it was completely different. Many scantily clad people, both male and female. (one guy dancing on stage wore nothing but white briefs and a little red cape. nice.) It's been pretty hot here, and during the day around the city I've seen men tuck their shirts up and expose their bellies and lower back to cool off. Men did this in the club too, while they were dancing/bobbing. The whole experience reminded me a lot of Italy. Unfortunately I was too distracted to get any good pictures, but I'll be back.Today for lunch Kara took us just outside the North Gate of the University. Here there are many food stalls and restaurants, as well as a fruit market. Apparently this is also where we can buy a bicycle, but only before 7 in the morning. Kara introduced us to one of her favorites, bao zi, which are very yummy bread dumplings. Life on campus is beginning to grow since everyone goes back to work tomorrow. Yesterday evening Chinese pop music was playing on a loudspeaker in the square outside our hotel, and later you could hear someone playing a Guzheng, which is a plucked stringed instrument. I'd really love to learn how to play a Chinese instrument while I'm here. I still don't know very much about them, though. Any knowledge/suggestions??Back soon-Carrie

August 29th, 2006- Where I live

So like I said, I'm in Dongying, at Petroluem University. The campus is pretty big, compared to Skidmore, anyway. I still don't know my way around. I've posted some pictures of my apartment to give an idea of my living space. I'm patiently waiting for a clear day to take more pictures of the campus and the city. It's been very hazy and a bit rainy. As soon as the sun comes out, you'll be seeing more!

August 28th, 2006

Finally, access to the internet! Here's a quick catch-up of the past five days. I arrived in Beijing on Wednesday, August 23rd in the evening. Dasen, a liason from PU (Petroleum University, where I will be teaching) met us at the airport and brought us to an apartment building affiliated with the school. The next day he brought us to see the wall of China and the Summer Palace. Both were quite stunning despite the hazy weather. Friday we took a bus to Dongying with 30 PU teachers who had just returned from a month in Australia. I was expecting a scenic trip, but the landscape was pretty bleak. Basically oil fields the whole ride down. (Here's a link to what I was looking at, can't post it here without copyright, I'm afraid.) The teachers were great though, incredibly energetic and full of questions about American life. Dongying is a city of about 2 million people in the Shandong province, just across the Yellow Sea from North Korea. It sits on an oil field, thus Petroleum University. There are oil drills all over the place, including on campus. I still have a lot of exploring to do of the city. We've been out a few times, mainly to go to the supermarket to stock up on hangers, cleaning supplies, food, etc. The city is very modern, looking at it out of context you wouldn't even know it's Chinese. Walking through the streets was a bit overwhelming. A lot of stares and "halloooo!" But it's clear that people mean well. All the international teachers live in apartments in the hotel on campus. Besides Richard and Greg (those of us affiliated with Skidmore) I've only met one other teacher, Anatoli from Russia, who looks to be in his fifties. The apartments are pretty nice, a living room, bed room, bathroom and porch. And a nice big double bed. Yay! There are about nine restaurants on campus, so we've been eating out for all meals. Each meal costs about 1-2$. Everything's been pretty yummy so far. I've got some work to do on my chopsticks though. I've dropped food in my tea about 10 times so far. It's hard when everyone's eating from one plate in the middle of the table! Last night was my first food adventure, though. We met our waiban (basically the man assigned to watch over us) Mr. Luan last night and he took us out to a fancy restaurant at a hotel. I ate fish lips and a slug. (ok, it was a sea cucumber, but do any of you actually know what a sea cucumber is? It's a slug, but lives in the sea and has edible spikes.) It's a good thing Mr. Luan kept the Qingdao beer flowing. (Qingdao is a city slightly larger than Donying and is about three hours from here.) We also had a tasty hard alcohol, but I can't recall the name. Man, it was toast after toast after toast. By the end of the meal everyone was struggling to find things to toast to. Everyone here is very nice and very helpful, despite the language barrier. I'm a little lonely and homesick, but adjusting and doing well. More to come soon.