Yesterday and the day before have had me falling into bed physically, emotionally, and mentally. Monday was orientation which meant running around Shenzhen then watching a powerpoint. Lunch was amazing though. We went out with the other five new teachers and two women who work with the program as Chinese English-speakers. They ordered so much amazing food and it was all fantastic.
After lunch we got to see the school we will be working at. Three of us will teach at School 3 in Nanshan. Welooked at some apartments and met some of the other teachers.
Tuesday we had to get medical exams. The Chinese hospital was crazy! Therewas a station for every part of the exam: blood testing, ultrasound, blood pressure, lung x-ray...you get it. After being poked and prodded we had a few hours of relaxation at the hotel before apartment hunting again. We still haven't chosen a place yet but hopefully by the end of today.
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Saturday, June 25, 2011
And now I'm in China
Well, the plane ride was painfully long. Technically plane rideS, there were 3! Got cheched into the hotel last night, I don't even know what time it was. Our plane flew into the future so I lost my Saturday. It is Sunday in Shenzhen and aside from one minor adventure I plan on spending the day sleeping, watching my American DVDs and typing forever on my kindle to update this blog. I haven't yet decided how personal this blog will get or what privacy options suit me. I also don't have internet on a computer to really play with this stuff.
Today's adventure was a dull old trip to the grocery store. Finding the stoe was the hardest part! The word 'grocery' is aparentlly not too common here s he first obstacle was remembering the word 'supermarket.' Who woulda thunk.
Luckily most of the packaged food is labeled in Chinese and English. If it doesn't have English labeling, it is probably covered in pictures of the food. It is really hard for me to not think of Chinese RMB as dollars when I look at the price of things. Milk was 11.60! But when you convert that back to US dollars its less than $3. It is weird to see a 100 bill and realize it is not like carrying a big bill like that at home.
The hotel the company reserved is really nice! I'm going to hae to go back and add pictures as soon as my computer can get online.
I will say this for China: so far everyone is very kind. I felt so lost in the grocery store, on the way to the grocery store, at the front desk, etc. But the people I have encountered just smiled and helped me out as best they could given the language barrier. In the grocery store a man helped me with getting milk. I used my first (and only) Chinese words to say 'thank you.' We laughed at me, probably because he knew it was all I could say. And I probably pronounced it wrong.
I plan on taking the rest of the day to lounge and relax. Tomorrow someone from EF will pick us up at the hotel lobby for the first day of the three week orientation. Wednesday is apartment hunting! Super exciting.
Today's adventure was a dull old trip to the grocery store. Finding the stoe was the hardest part! The word 'grocery' is aparentlly not too common here s he first obstacle was remembering the word 'supermarket.' Who woulda thunk.
Luckily most of the packaged food is labeled in Chinese and English. If it doesn't have English labeling, it is probably covered in pictures of the food. It is really hard for me to not think of Chinese RMB as dollars when I look at the price of things. Milk was 11.60! But when you convert that back to US dollars its less than $3. It is weird to see a 100 bill and realize it is not like carrying a big bill like that at home.
The hotel the company reserved is really nice! I'm going to hae to go back and add pictures as soon as my computer can get online.
I will say this for China: so far everyone is very kind. I felt so lost in the grocery store, on the way to the grocery store, at the front desk, etc. But the people I have encountered just smiled and helped me out as best they could given the language barrier. In the grocery store a man helped me with getting milk. I used my first (and only) Chinese words to say 'thank you.' We laughed at me, probably because he knew it was all I could say. And I probably pronounced it wrong.
I plan on taking the rest of the day to lounge and relax. Tomorrow someone from EF will pick us up at the hotel lobby for the first day of the three week orientation. Wednesday is apartment hunting! Super exciting.
Friday, June 24, 2011
Is this the right time to start?
Is this the right time to start blogging? I don't know. I hope I can access this from China but we will see when we see, right? I've never been a blogger or a journal-er but this is like my New Year's resolution, only its not a new year at all.
I'm sitting at Logan Airport, gate B29. They've just started boarding but I really don't understand the rush to get on the plane. It takes me a few minutes to get settled and I'll be sitting there for hours, I'll take my time getting on. There was a couple behind me bitching about security and swearing up a storm but they just got on the plane. That is good because it means they will not be sitting near me.
I'm super jittery right now, I didn't sleep last night because I was finishing packing. This morning, Dad drove me to the airport and we stopped for coffee on the way. Bad choice! Caffeine and no sleep is a pretty horrible combination for me. You'd think I would have learned that in college.
Here I go, getting on the plane now.
I'm sitting at Logan Airport, gate B29. They've just started boarding but I really don't understand the rush to get on the plane. It takes me a few minutes to get settled and I'll be sitting there for hours, I'll take my time getting on. There was a couple behind me bitching about security and swearing up a storm but they just got on the plane. That is good because it means they will not be sitting near me.
I'm super jittery right now, I didn't sleep last night because I was finishing packing. This morning, Dad drove me to the airport and we stopped for coffee on the way. Bad choice! Caffeine and no sleep is a pretty horrible combination for me. You'd think I would have learned that in college.
Here I go, getting on the plane now.
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