Killing Time

Our plane doesn't leave until about 11:30 PM tonight. Yes, I did say PLANE! I have decided that I love - LOVE flying! Now, don't get me wrong, the trains are nice and all, but can still be a bit of a hassle when you need to fight for space to put your bag. Plus, I like going to sleep without chicken feet next to my head.

We have had a great time in Dunhuang （post bus ride)! The first major site we went to see were the Mogao caves (thanks for the tip Anajli!). The morning we were looking to head out was rainy. We were told that the bus going out to the caves would not be running because of the rain, and to try back at 1 PM. We didn't think that rain would really matter because the Mogao caves are actual caves you enter with flashlight to look at the paintings and statues. So, we eat. At the cafe, we meet a really friendly German couple and decide to share a taxi out to the caves.

Once there, we found out that yes, the caves were in fact closed due to rain. They told us to check out the little on site museum and check back in about an hour. An hour later, still closed. Later still - we see the Germans in line and they excitedly point to the window and say, "tickets!" We get in line and purchase our chance to see the glorious caverns (with guide) with our new German travel friends.

The caves did not allow us to bring in our cameras, but I wouldn't have taken pictures anyhow (would need flash). I can't even begin to describe just how incredible awesome the caves were! The other big Buddha things that we have seen else where in China were not this awe inspiring. Truly amazing. I will try to send some postcards out sometime....

Okay, I won't go into too much detail, but it is definitely one of the best sites I have seen here in China and worth a visit if you come out this way.

The other big thing we did while out here was visit the singing sands of the Mingsha Shan dunes. I love the desert! The dunes were so beautiful! We went on the touristy camel ride and I was lucky to ride on a very docile, mild-mannered camel. However, something did spook my camel and it did a little run-jump thing and scared the bejeezus out of the little girl ahead of me who started to whine in fear. On the way up the dune, the picture booth kinda ruined the effect for me - a guy in a cowboy hat trying to get us to smile. From his truck, "We Will Rock You" blaring from a half working speaker.

Anyhow, we got off of the camels near the crescent moon lake, which is really not that spectacular, and hiked up one of the dunes. The view was amazing! The dunes were so beautiful and the sand felt great on my feet. We got to the top and waited for the sun to set (see the obscene number of pictures I took on my flickr site). Meanwhile, we got, well, stupid (was it the sand? height? admission price?) and were "comrade posing" (and *shudder* Chinese girl posing) on top of the dune. A group of kids saw Matt striking a particularly good comrade pose and got a huge kick out of it and did some similar posing of their own.

The sunset was spectacular! My pictures just don't capture the brilliance of the colors and the way the sand reflected the sun light. Cool. Seriously Cool.

Anyhow, now we wait. I load pictures and wait.

Mr. Toad's Wild Ride

Another update from the road!

Thank you to all of you who shared their thoughts about the knicker craze sweeping the East! I enjoyed reading your comments!

Right now I am in Dunhuang (western Gansu) and so far it seems like it is a nice city. Tomorrow we are going out to look at the Mogao Caves and possibly hop on some camels for some more desert fun!

When I was little I seem to remember a theme park ride called, "Mr. Toad's Wild Ride". I remember getting into one of those little cars attached to a rail and going through a tunnel. But nothing much more than that, must not have been too wild. Why am I writing about a children's ride? Why, let me tell you!

We decided to take the express bus out here - about 5 hours and totally doable. I am once again sick with bathroom problems (both ends again), but decide that 5 hours would be okay. So, we board our bus, wedge into the little seat and prepare for our ride out to Dunhuang. What we didn't realize was that there is a ton of road construction going on. Unlike in the states, there isn't an easy detour road that we can take, so we just pull off the road and travel on God's road. Yup, dirt and rock. It was like travelling in/on a huge pothole filled with potholes for 7 hours. Yes, I said 7 hours. You might be thinking, "wait, you said that the bus ride was only 5 hours". Well, the road work seemed to add at least another 3 to that. So we are getting violently rocked back and forth, up and down for HOURS while I am nauseous and have diarrhea (really, really bad diarrhea), it gets better - no bathroom. Everywhere we pull over does not have a bathroom option. Have you even held in your urine and bowels for so long and under such aggravating circumstances that you actually feel like you will pass out? Well, now I can check that off of my list.

So, I decide it is best just to try to go to sleep. Getting lulled by the bus motion wasn't easy, but after a little bit I managed it. Just as I nod off, the lady behind me on the aisle side pokes me on the head. I ignore her. Then the pokes me on the head again. I ignore her again. Third she hits me. I wake up and stare at her, thinking, "what the hell is your problem?" She motions to the window in front of me and motions for me to pull the curtain open. I fumble with it a little but it was stuck and wasn't worth the effort to me. So I just go back to sleep. A minute later she leaps to her feet and reaches over me, making sure to wake me up again with her elbow forcibly placed on my head to tear at the curtain. I can't even begin to tell you how incredible pissed off I was. Mind you, from where she was sitting she really wouldn't be able to even look out the window, much less appreciate the desolate view.

At the next stop off, she made sure to disturb me once again by whipping me in the face a couple of times with the curtain as she tried to tie it back before switching to a different seat which would make my window accessibly not necessary at all. In her new seat she immediately leaned over the woman at the window seat and tore away at that curtain too. She has thus been dubbed the "curtain Nazi". I never was able to really fall back asleep and every time she heard a curtain being moved the "CN" immediately shot me a disgusted look.

So finally, we are about 1 hour away from town and the bus breaks down! For the next 1.5 hours or so the driver and assistant battle the bus transmission every 200-300 meters or so. The bus driver can't shift gears and can only toggle between first and second gears with incredible difficulty. Then it breaks down. They go to fix it, toggle between first and second, break down, etc., etc., etc. Finally, it is unrepairable and they have another bus come and pick us up and drive us into town. We roll into to town just before midnight, we left at 2:30.

Anyhow, we are swarmed at the bus station right after we get off of the bus. I REALLY have to use the bathroom and am in no good mood to deal with the people looking to rip off the tourists.

Long story short, I'm still not in the best of health. Got a little food in me. Slept most of the day (our hotel is actually fairly quiet!) and will hopefully be able to enjoy my time here tomorrow.

Oh, happy birthday, Dad! I spent your special day getting sick on a bus and harassed by the window treatment gestapo. But ate at "Charlie's cafe" and had chocolate souffle in honor of your birthday (thanks for the excuse）！

Knicker Snickers

Hello from Lanzhou! It is polluted and hot here, but we were expecting that. It isn't helping my cold though. We are killing time, waiting for the train to Jiayuguan.

Lanzhou is okay, not great, just okay. There isn't a whole lot to see around here and the city is kind of ugly. We did make it out to see Binglingsi - another big Buddha carved on the side of a cliff type of thing. But it was a cool ride out there - mini bus and speed boat. This one was better preserved than some of the other sites as its remote location spared it from the Red Army during the Cultural Revolution which sadly destroyed many of China cultural relics. You can only go out to see it when the water level of the Yellow River is high enough.

Other than that, we attempted to go to another Provincial Museum and like before we were denied. I think there must be something going on at all of the provincial museums, everyone we have tried to go to has been closed. The city museum was okay, but not too exciting. There was a cool little pagoda, but there are many cool little pagodas in China. We were thinking about taking the chair lift up the mountain, but the smog is so bad we won't be able to see anything anyhow and might as well save the money for something worth while.

But, I must tell you all, I have some very bad news. It seems that, sigh, knickers are the "IT" wear for the summer season here. I can't even begin to tell you how stupid they look and how mad I get when I see them. Seriouly, unless you are 3 and don't know any better or a little dutch boy, knickers really don't have any business on anyone. Now, I know my mother would like to tell you all that even I had a pair of these maddening, blooming short pants (I think they were purple). Yeah, I know. But, I must point out that in my particular case this fashion faux pas falls into the youthful ignorance category rather than the delusional, "this is a hip trend" one. I wish that I could even begin to describe just how absolutely ridiculous they look on adults. Really, I do. But I just don't think that my language abilities allow me to capture all of the angst this particular fashion is causing me. I am not the biggest fan of capri pants either, but they never really made me angry. Yes, these pants actually make me feel anger and, well, sometimes they make me laugh/cry because they're dumb.

What else...

I think prostitutes have been calling our room. Yup. We had been getting calls between 7 - 11 PM in our hotel room. All women. All would say a super sugary sweet, "Ni hao!" before I said, "hello, what do you want?" in English. They - giggling. Me - hang up phone. Matt told me about how some prostitutes will call rooms at random for business.

Anyhow, I know it's summer and you all have a ton of other things to do besides sitting at the computer, but drop me a line or a comment sometime - we're a little e-lonely. And sorry for typos and misspellings, I am back to internet cafes and Chinese programs.

Outta Here!

Farewell banquets - check

Hours of the dice game - check

Hauling all of our stuff down to the post office to ship - check

Throwing the rest of it away - check

Contacting Gateway to make sure my computer won't explode at 16,000 feet - check (?)

Saying goodbye to 1,200 kids - check

As you may have guessed from my last post, the last was the most difficult to do. We got our train tickets to Lanzhou (will be leaving later tonight) and will be homeless again until August when we will journey to our new home in Beijing.

Right now it is peaceful in Guyuan. It is late Sunday night and there is really no noise. Quite a feat! No cabs honking, no people hacking, no cuckoos coo-kooing....Quite a contrast to the flurry of activity from the last couple of days. Many of the senior three teacher are going on a vacation together - a special reward from the school for doing such a good job with the students this past year (the senior three students from Yi Zhong were ranked really high for the National Exam).

So, this caused quite a bit of activity for us as we are trying to get everything all done before we head out of town too. Unfortunately for us, what we have on our plate is of little or no concern to them as long as we do what they want us to do. So much for a relaxed exit. Actually, with all of the hubbub and pomp concerning our arrival, our departure is rather anticlimactic (must like this post).

Anyhow, I won't go into the details as you probably can guess pretty well what the dinners are like and what goes on during 'em. I'll just fast forward to the result, I'm tired, irritated and sick. Yes, I am starting off yet another vacation ill. Foiled again by the family-style food sharing system. Luckily, most of the people who were concerned with our day to day lives are out of town so I won't have the "injection" threat looming this time.

So, for those of you who are curious: Guyuan to Lanzhou to Xining to Lhasa to Nanjing to Beijing. There will be some little side trips, but that is generally what our IT is shaping up to be.

So, farewell Guyuan! We have had some good, bad and interesting times together. I don't know if Beijing will be a better or not, but we know it will be a lot different. Hopefully we will be able to make it back a few times.

Stay tuned to posts from the road!

Heartbroken

This past mini-week has been really difficult. I really didn't think that I would bond so much with these kids, but I guess that I did and now I have to leave them. So, me very sad.

They changed the exam schedule, so I had lessons Mon., Tues., and Wed. So, I ended my teaching at Guyuan Junior School with one of my favorite classes. It was good, but really, really sad. I don't think that I have ever really been sad about leaving a place and people before. And, for those of you who might be wondering, yes, I did cry and I'm comfortable telling you all that. :-)

My Monday Junior classes weren't too hard to leave as we have had a lot of difficult classes. But my seniors! Geez - those kids were so wonderful, I am so sad to be leaving them. Every week that I had class with them was such a great experience. I just want to bring them all home with me. Many of these kids come from the country side and are really poor and don't really have anything (some can't afford to call home more than once a year). But they are just the most caring and warm hearted kids. I just want to give them the world.

Tuesday was really difficult. I had to say goodbye to two of my favorite classes - one of my kids told me that he was really having a bad day because his best friend was moving to Yinchuan the following day and that this was his last class with me. He is normally a very happy, smiley kid but that day he was just slumped on his desk with his face in his arms. We walked home together and he said that he can't stand it (just learned that phrase in class) and that he had to hurry home so he could cry. The other class was the famous class 6 - the class with Sam. I have had so many great times with that class, I just don't know where to begin. All I can say is that China just won't be as happy without my weekly dose of my posse. I can't even begin to tell you how much I loved these two classes.

My last day was yesterday, Wednesday. I decided to write goodbye letters to all of my classes, so I delivered all of the notes to the English teachers so they could help with the translation. The morning was a half 'n' half. One good junior one class, one bad. I hated saying goodbye to all of my little girls in my junior one class one - they decided to make a bunch of copies of my letter because it was written by a "real" English speaker and they wanted to always keep the words of Ms. Molly.

Oh man, I dreaded the afternoon. Matt and Ms. Wang sat in on one of my classes - Matt caused quite a stir of excitement. Then I spent the recess period with some of my favorite students and said goodbye. Then, oh god, my LAST class - Junior 2 Class 1. This is probably the friendliest class that I have had - they were so welcoming when I first came here and I don't think that there is a more friendly kind-hearted group of children out there, well besides groups of my other students.

We did my lesson - a fun ASL lesson and EVERYONE participated, even the students who usually don't do a whole lot in class really enjoyed it. We had a great last class together and I held it together pretty well (although I did have to excuse myself once). At the end of class, I told them how much I loved being their teacher and they all stood up and applauded, did a deep bow and thanked me for being their teacher. I excused them from class and was swarmed by people wanting me to autograph things (books, papers, uniforms, skin) and write a little message to them and get a last hug. I started to tear up. This was followed by, "Please teacher, don't be sad." Which, of course, made me want to cry more. But, I was able to restrain.

I was writing a message to one of my SFSs and he blurted out, "I love you so much Miss Molly. I will love you everyday you are gone more and more until I see you again and then I will be happy again. I don't want you to ever leave me." Then, he gave me a huge hug and, well, tears. He then said, "Oh, Miss Molly, please don't cry. Because when you cry I feel very sad and I want to cry to. But if I cry, my friends will hit me." This kid always makes me smile.

The last student I said goodbye to was another one of my SFSs. He gave me his necklace. He told me it was one of his favorite things and that he has worn it everyday since he got it (it is a tag with his name, birthday, and blood type and a little charm). I told him that I couldn't possibly take it as it was something that he loves. I refuse, refuse, refuse. Then he told me that he really wanted me to have it because he loves it so much. He wanted me to know how much that he loves me by giving it to me and that I have to take it so he will feel happy - also, to know that in some way we will always be together and be friends. Then he put it in my hands and threw his arms around me. I just lost it and tears just started to pour out.

By the time I left school, it was pretty empty - all of my usual gang had already left. So, my SFS and I had a nice casual walk and talk home all alone. It was a perfect way to say goodbye to my experience at Guyuan Yi Zhong and Guyuan Wu Yuan middle schools and just what I needed.

I was thanked so many times for coming to China to be their teacher and for what I have done for them. But, I strongly feel that I should be thanking them for what they have given me as it is so much more than what I could have ever possibly given them.

To all of my students, I will miss you all so very much, all of your smiling faces, I will remember you always and I love you.

Orchard Blossom

So, today was a really difficult day to me. I had to say goodbye to two of my favorite Junior 1 classes. Many tears. I will miss them all so much! Tomorrow will be a long and hard day for me. It will be my last day teaching and I will go from first period t the very last period with a dinner banquet to wrap up the day. My last class at the middle school will be my Junior 2 class 1 - a class that I am very close to. I don't know how to say goodbye to them.

Today, I was just hanging out with some of the kids between classes when one of the kids started to sniff my arm. Shortly after me asking him what he was doing, he ran away and yelled something in Chinese. Suddenly, I am surrounded by kids all trying to get a whiff of the laoshi.

Finally, one of the kids said that I smelled "beautiful", another said like a "sweet apple" the others agreed that my scent was very pleasing and continued to jockey for a good sniffing position.

Their head teacher casually strolled by just as a couple of students were inhaling my underarm odor treatment. He walked about 10 paces down the hall, came to a complete stop and turned on his heal, just to make sure that he did just see a crowd of kids smelling their teacher. He stood there a little dumbstruck? amused? befuddled? before laughing a little, shaking his head and continuing down to his office.

It is very strange to have about 50 people smell you, have others watching you being whiffed and being given some sort of passing approval about the whole ordeal.

Egads, Dude!

T-minus 10 days and counting....

I am actually really, really sad to be leaving Guyuan.

Of course, there are some things that I really won't miss. And, lucky for you, this is a post about one of those things.

Mr. Horse - AKA Math Dude.

Seriously, dude, what's your deal?

Today, I wrapped up things with two more classes (junior two this time, not as tear filled, as I didn't really get to know these kids quite as well). Mr. Horse is the head teacher for one of these classes. I wanted to have the time to be with my students, take some pictures and wrap up the final exam. And, well...

Okay, inhale, getting a little ahead of myself.

I posted a little while ago, after the English competition, that I was afraid that things were going to start up again after that most unfortunate dinner I was duped into with him and another couple of teachers. Well, I'm not happy about being right about things this time.

To recap, the English competition dinner: Confused English about being happy about the students' success and wanting to celebrate. Me thinky - "ooh! Student dinner - fun, fun." Reality: dinner with Horse and another teacher who I don't know. Back story - I had already refused an apology "sit" with Horse ("sit" - a smoke screen that meant dinner).

It is fairly obvious to me, at least, that I put out nothing but a toxic vibe when around him. I think others notice this as well. But he just doesn't GET IT. The big "IT". The big "Stay away from me, I can't stand your presence" or more bluntly, "F-off" type of thing. Seriously, I don't think that I could be more blatant with my attitude or body language than if I flat out said, "Dude, I hate you. Go away. Now."

Alright, now that we have my general comportment on record, let's take a trip down memory lane, shall we? Since the dinner that I really didn't want to be at, he now thinks that I have "forgiven him" for his drunk-ass behavior from October and worse yet, that I am his friend. I honestly, do not know what would possible give him that idea.

So, besides just the routine annoyance of having him seek me out in the common areas of the school, having him dismiss students I am playing with and such, he has brought his game to a whole new irritating level.

So, he has this book called, "Crazy English". He has decided to catch me and interrupt me no matter what I am doing to have me try to explain to him what certain phrases in this book mean. The phrases are usually "hand picked" and of a certain theme. Like: "Oh, you are such a sweet man!" and "what a sweetheart" and something that was the equivalent of "that dress is hot" and the like. Yeah, cherry picked phrases so he can make example sentences with the convenient characters of Ms. Molly and Mr. Horse.

Crrreepy!

The headmaster for the junior school decided to throw a special dinner for all of the junior teachers. All of the junior 1 teachers were in one room and all of the junior 2 teachers were in another. So, I went to dine with all of the junior 1 teachers. Enter Mr. Horse - Junior 2 teacher. The only junior 2 teacher in the room. We thought that he would only be staying for a little while and then retire to the other room. Nope. He stayed. Stayed for the whole dinner. Other teachers made fun of him - "why are you here?" and "go to your room, get out of here!" Nope. He stayed. Sat right across from me. Yup. Stared at me the whole entire dinner. It not only made me feel uncomfortable, but also the other teachers at the table. At the first opportunity for me to leave, one of the English teachers grabbed me and said, "You should leave now". So I am rushed out with the Horse nipping at my heels.

So, fast forward to about 4 weeks ago. I had started to give his class my final exam. It is a talking exam (how else to test spoken English). So, I was taking students in pairs out into the hallway to give them the test. Suddenly, the students stop talking and start gaping. I look up from my stool to find Horse looming over me holding ice cream over my head. I don't know how long he had been there or what, but, I mean, what the hell...? I told him that I really didn't need the ice cream but he insisted. Rather than dragging it out DURING MY CLASS TIME, I accepted it so he would get lost. Nope. Instead, he starts to comment on how he thought that he thought that I must be hot and that he thought that I looked tired, blah blah blah. Finally, I told him that I really must work and that I need him to leave so I can test his students. So, he said that he would come find me after class so we can talk during the free period. Like hell! I slip away down the back staircase as soon as class lets out.

Now, let's jump to last Friday. So, I had written about these mad exams that the kids take to get into University, well the Junior 3 students take one to get into Senior School. So, now that the test is over, they must all be corrected and my school was chosen to be one of the test correction sites. What does this mean? It means that they emptied out the top two floors of the Junior building to accommodate all of the teachers from various schools coming to check the test. Which also meant my office. We had to move all of our stuff down to an office on the second floor. The Junior 2 floor. The Junior 2 office. Mr. Horse's office. *Shudder* He brightly announced that I could share his desk, which was approved despite my protests. Great. Luckily, he was called in to help correct the tests, so I wouldn't have to share space, but I still didn't spend a lot of time around the vicinity for his frequent "check-ins".

Now, last weekend. I was supposed to meet some kids last Saturday at the Junior School. I was a little early so, I waited and helped some of the junior 1 kids get ready for their talent show. I didn't really think that many teachers would be at the school, outside of the Junior 1 teachers. Wrong. Yup. Mr. Horse. He cornered me and when I excused myself he always managed to find me again shortly after. Finally, he asked when I would be leaving Guyuan. So I told him. He then said that he wants to have a special goodbye dinner for his American friend. I told him that it was not necessary. But, sometimes, talking to the Chinese people that I have met here is really more like talking to a Chinese wall (hmmm... walls, something that the Chinese really excel at). So he continued. I continued to refuse. I tried the too busy, not enough time shtick on and on and on. Finally, he relented. I talked my way out of it! Whoo-hoo! Triumph!

I was able to watch my kids perform in peace. A side note: It was strange to look at the packed auditorium, filled with kids and think that I teach them all. That sea of people in front of me - I see each one every week.

Anyhow, back to the story.

Tuesday - I have been going to school during their open period to give my test to those who want to get it over with and, well, to play with the kids on the playground. Which I have found is quite the oddity to the guest teachers correcting exams. They are all puzzled by this "look like Chinese" foreigner, wearing strange clothing, big earrings and playing with kids. So, I am going to leave for the day when one of my fellow English teachers says, "oh you're leaving? I thought that we would walk to Mr. Horse's dinner together." Me, "WHAT!?!?!" She, "Mr. Horse says that we are having a dinner tonight". I tell her that I didn't know anything about it and that I was just too busy to possibly go.

Meanwhile at the bat cave...err...apartment...

Matt gets a call from one of the Senior English teachers who we like. We both know that he was planning some kind of farewell dinner for us and the other English teachers. So, Mr. King invites out to a goodbye dinner. Matt accepts, thinking that this is the dinner. He is told to meet Mr. King out by the Senior gate in about 10 minutes. So, as I am walking home, I meet Matt on the way. He tells me about the farewell dinner with Mr. King. I swear loudly, robustly and with feeling. This is Mr. Horse! This is the dinner that I told him that we were just too busy for. So, knowing that I am refusing, he goes around and pulls this shit. I am furious! I wind up going for only an hour because I needed to go and grade papers. I am so angry I won't even look at him the entire dinner. The next day my English teacher friend wanted to talk about a little to comment on how strange the whole thing was.

Alright, now today.

I am barely in the office, but today I happen to be in there for about a total of 15 minutes. I see Mr. Horse 7 times.

This afternoon. I am early, so I wait in the hall and talk to kids before the next class begins. Mr. Horse is lurking about. I retreat to a different floor. Then, when the bells rings, I go to class. Safe! So, I bring some students out into the hall to give my final. I am in the middle of giving a test and up comes Mr. Horse. He gives me a canned coffee drink and wants to talk. Geez! What is up with this dip shit? Excuse my language. I have seriously censored my usual usage of colorful language for the purposes of this blog, but I am seriously pissed off with this man and "dip shit" is truly the nicest set of words I can manage right now.

I get him to leave and finish up (for the most part) with the exam. I tell my class "goodbye" and leave. As I leave the room, I see Mr. Horse heading down the hall toward me. I run down the staircase and retreat to the playground.

Oh yes, today he reeked of alcohol.

The photo?

This is the gift his "class" gave to me on Teacher's Day. I think that it is an accurate representation of our relationship. One horse trying to run away from the one following it. Or at least that it how I see it.

Well, shit. I'm tired.

What are they doing?

What are they doing?

Watch the video

Just thought that I would capture one of the more entertaining things for me to watch on my Tuesdays (well, other than Sam dancing). Between my 3rd and 4th period classes, the kids have an extended passing time to clean the classrooms and do these "eye exercises".

I love watching them do this to no end. One time they showed me what to do so I could do it with them, but everyone was laughing so hard it wasn't very successful. Usually I just peek into the classroom while they are doing them and they will try to wave while rubbing the eye area, and yes, they do wind up poking themselves in the eyes.

The video is a little long and a little bumpy (I was walking around recording), so watch what you can - and follow along!

Yi...er...san...si...wu...liu...!

Entertainment?

Just a blickie (blog quickie) -

Today it was actually raining hard here, which is really needed as the region is in serious drought.

and...

...my umbrella was a source of entertainment for 20 minutes.

My kids have never used a push button operated umbrella before. They also played with it all the way home.

More pictures on flickr - soonish.

Hard Core English!

More testing today. I am really surprised that so many kids have been coming during their free period. I mean, when I was their age, taking a test would be the last thing that I would want to do when I don't have class. In the past two days, I have tested over 160 kids.

Some highlights from today's testing:

The English teachers have all been really impressed with the kids listening comprehension and speaking abilities. Today, one of the Junior 3 teachers said that her students were not able to answer similar oral questions as well as the kids that I have been working with.

Students have been passing along the information that the Timberwolves are my hometown basketball team, so some of the boys all wore Timberwolves jerseys and made a little English song about basketball, my team, me, and English.

Some of my Junior 3 girls came up to see me (it was their last day of school). We had a really excellent chat. It was good to see them again as I probably won't see them again.

A boy from my junior 1 class 3 (boy pictured above) came in with a bandaged head and a big 4 inch, bloody gash on his head. He was in the hospital or something and got his parents to bring him back to school just to take my English test at an optional test time. I told him to go home and I would test him during his class time next week. But he said that he wanted to see me so he came. So, part of the conversation was the question, "how's it going?" he pointed at his head and replied, "just so-so". I'd say! He said that he was hit with something.

Last, after I finished testing another student, I told him that he did a very good job and he threw his arms around me and I gave him a big hug. The other teachers started to laugh and applaud. He got embarrassed and ran out of the office. When I left, he was outside waiting for me and said, "thank you teacher!" before running down the stairs.

I guess that is all for today. Tomorrow morning I have a brunch with some of the kids from my class 5. They are really excited about it, they have been visiting me at school to remind me and emailing me about it. Then, in the afternoon, I am climbing the hill with some more kids from class 6 (wish me luck, I don't think that I will be able to race up like they will want to).

Nauseating Fun

So, I am finally getting around to writing about last weekend, now that this weekend is almost here. I have been busy giving my final exams. It has been going okay - the kids cheat like crazy though. But more on that later.

Last weekend...Matt and I went out for lunch with some of my students from my lovely class 6 (junior 1). We went to have hotpot and then went to a new arcade at the mall. After, we all went to the park. It was fun! We took out some paddle boats and the boys acted exactly as 12 year olds boys should act. Also, we took a ride in some bumper cars - Matt and my car quickly turned into the target car to hit. Then, well, the nausea. There was much discussion leading up to the event. The result? We all wound up boarding one of those ship rides that rocks back and forth and arcs higher and higher until you want to puke. I was never too keen on those kinds of rides in my youth - more of a twirling ride kinda gal than a fast drop ride kind of gal. So, you can only imagine how the ride went over in my 20+ year older self. Yeah, exactly. I think that my kids forget that I am more than twice their age.

Anyhow, it was fun to hang out with some of my favorite students and will do so again this coming weekend.

So the finals. They cheat. Bad. But I guess that it doesn't really matter as our grades don't really count anyhow. Which brings me back to: why am I giving an exam exactly?

I have been speaking to each student individually to get an idea of their conversation abilities. But, the kids are upset that I am leaving and some of the sessions have been full of tears (mostly theirs). It is getting really difficult as some of them have been pleading with me to stay. It will be a hard few weeks as I have inadvertently become the adoptive sister to about 700 kids give or take. Many of my girls have taken my first name as their English name and many of my boys have started to use my surname on papers (and not just on papers for my class).

What else...I have been encouraging my students to come to the English office to take their spoken test during their free period so we can have a fun class at the end. So about 60 students showed up today. It was fun! I got to weave in and out of J1 and J2 conversations and later one of the teachers told me that her J2 students (who I only see every other week) were envious of my J1 students (who I get to see every week) because the J1s could speak and comprehend at my (very close to) normal speaking rate and they could not. They were really, really shocked that the J1s speaking ability was so much higher than theirs. She then told me that she thought that my classes were the reason. Whoo-hoo! Yes, I'm telling you this to brag.

Hmmm...I brought my Polaroid camera to school (thanks, Jerry!). Man did that go over big! I was mobbed. Not exaggerating. I chose one student to man the camera and then took photos with tons of kids. One of the students then showed the picture with me to his head teacher (one of the English teachers). She said that he ran over to her after class and said "Teacher, teacher I want to show you a photo, please wait for me to get it!" Then he ran and pulled out the Polaroid and exclaimed, "This is me and Miss Molly! Look how happy my face is - I can't believe it!” :-) I just don't think that University students can even begin to compete with the cuteness. *sigh* I will miss my 800 kids.

Nail Biting

The National Exam is over!

I can hear the loud music and singing from the probable celebrations as I type this. This is the exam, the one that they all prepare for throughout their pre-university schooling. It's crazy!

The exam takes place over three days. All of the other senior students are excused from classes and are actually barred from entering the school grounds (unless they live in the dorms). The street in front of the school is blocked (so there is no traffic noise) with a police person standing watch to make sure no one sneaks through. The gate is locked except for when they let students in and out (or for the curious foreign teacher wandering around).

Parents take the testing days off and wait outside of the gate. There were small crowds of people all squatting on the sidewalk outside of the school, waiting for their child to finish the test. Everyone is tense. Just walking through the campus was eerie. No noise. None. At all.

Things were even quiet on the Junior campus - even they recognize the seriousness of The Test. The children were doing all of the things they generally do out on the playground, but not really making any noise. Spooky. Really spooky.

Anyhow, the test is now over and now they wait for the results - dwell on the test and over think what they did wrong. I hope there aren't any suicides. That would be horrible. I am worried about one of the students Matt and I had conversation practice with. These kids have so much stress - more than I ever had at their age. They prematurely go grey because of the stress. I am thinking about bringing up the idea of peer counseling to our waiban. When given the opportunity to talk about problems, they are startling open about what they are feeling and want to talk about whatever is on their minds, but they really do not have the opportunity to do so.

Anyhow, The Test is now done. The Junior 3 test to get into Senior School is coming up next (they only get one crack at that test).

Article about THE TEST

In China, students failing the stress test
Teenager’s suicide underscores concerns about student worry over exams

Associated Press
Updated: 7:46 p.m. ET June 7, 2006

SHANGHAI, China - A teenager’s suicide after being barred from a key high school exam for not tying back her hair underscores the intense pressure on millions of Chinese who began taking annual college entrance tests Wednesday.

Worries are rising about academic stress. There are 2.6 million places at China’s universities, but the competition is fierce — 9.5 million youths are taking the three-day exams that are widely viewed as crucial to career and financial success.
Although 16-year-old Wu Wenwen’s suicide occurred in January, during high school end-of-term tests, it is resonating during this week’s college exams.

According to her family and newspaper accounts, Wenwen drowned herself after she was stopped at the exam room door because her hair wasn’t tied back as her school required.
She returned in barrettes, but was told the exam had started and she was too late to take it. Wenwen phoned her mother in tears, and then disappeared. Her body was found that night in a nearby lake.

As in Japan and South Korea, schooling in China has become a nail-bitingly stressful ordeal for children and parents alike, one that experts say causes undue emotional distress.

“Pressure from study and exams is a top reason for psychological problems among Chinese youth,” said Jin Wuguan, director of the Youth Psychological Counseling Center at Shanghai’s Ruijin Hospital.

Parents even murdered
In China’s increasingly success-oriented cities, academic stress is seen as a rising cause of youth suicides and even murders of parents by children unhinged by overwhelming pressure to perform.

China doesn’t keep comprehensive statistics on student suicides, but Jin said health care professionals see the problem worsening, even among elementary students.
Most Chinese schools still lack counselors and teachers receive little training in spotting emotional distress, Jin said. Parents are little help, often piling on pressure while ignoring their children’s emotional development, he said.

“It’s a basic unwillingness or inability to recognize and deal with emotional problems,” Jin said.

Wang Yufeng, at Peking University’s Institute of Mental Health, estimates the rate of emotional disorders such as depression and paranoia among Chinese students under age 17 at up to 32 percent — a total of 30 million students.

Others say the figure may be as high as 50 percent. A survey last year by the government said nearly 58 percent of students felt highly stressed by academic pressures.

Chinese youth now enjoy greater material comfort and personal freedoms than their parents’ generation, but are more emotionally fragile, experts say.

Today's concerns: tests, work, relationships
Students educated before economic reforms began in the early 1980s were raised amid austerity and ideals of self-sacrifice. Under the job-assignment system prevailing until the early 1990s, graduates could expect the Communist Party to decide their futures.
Today’s Chinese teens are largely preoccupied with the same worries as their Western counterparts — exams, jobs and the opposite sex.

“Kids these days haven’t been through what we went through. Their hearts haven’t been toughened up and they’re distracted by all these other concerns,” Wenwen’s father, Wu Lijun, said in an interview.

Wu blames Wenwen’s school, the elite No. 7 Middle School in the eastern city of Wenzhou, for her suicide. He accuses the exam proctor of taking an overly harsh attitude and says school officials should have kept track of his daughter’s whereabouts.

Wu has sued the school and local education bureau over the death. A hearing was held in April, but no verdict has been announced.

School and bureau officials wouldn’t comment pending a ruling in the case. They refused to give their names because they weren’t authorized to speak to media.

Officials played down suicide
Wenwen’s case was front-page news in Wenzhou, sparking newspaper commentaries and heated discussion in online forums. But the coverage stopped after the lawsuit was filed — a likely sign that communist officials wanted to end talk about such a sensitive issue.

Students aren’t the only ones stressing over exams. Many parents take time off from work to help their children study, book them into hotels close to exam halls, and even petition to have traffic kept from near downtown schools to keep the area quiet during the tests.

Amid a budding debate over the wisdom of putting so much emphasis on the exams, counselors are reaching out through a medium most popular with teens: the Internet.

“This is such an important exam, it’s crucial to reduce anxiety to the lowest level possible,” Tsinghua University psychiatrist Li Yan said on the Web site “Emotional Navigation for Exam Takers,” hosted by the official People’s Daily newspaper.

“You need to lay down your burdens and just show them what you know,” Li said.

© 2006 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Dragon Boat Festival

So, what do you do for the dragon boat festival when there is no water source?

I don't have an answer. Not feeling too clever right now.

The dragon boat festival was interesting. My kids gave me bracelets made out of colored string and many shoved steamed rice cakes in my face. It was fun and sticky. One of the teachers gave me a little dragon because of the festival and because I am year of the dragon. When my kids found out that I was year of the dragon they started to applaud. Freaks. They get excited over this strangest things.

Also, there were many willow branches in doorways. I was told it was to keep the ghosts out. I think some of my kids got a little carried away with this - one of the classrooms had so many branches you couldn't open the door very well.

Anyhow, that was last week. I have just been too lazy to put this up. This week...ummm....I have been breaking the news to all of my kids about my departure. This has been met with a lot of tears and protests. Lots of "but why?" and "no, you don't go", "we don't want a new teacher", and the heartbreaking "but I love you, do you have to go?" At least my announcement has been met with this kind of reaction rather than applause.

What else...one of my students got into trouble today. Apparently he took a potted plant and dumped it out onto his desk and threw some of the dirt. He was sent to the headmaster's office and then his mother was called into school. None of the teachers could get him to say why he did it, so I am to try to talk to him sometime (the students told a teacher that I'm the only teacher he likes).

Anyhow, hopefully I will be able to finish some of the half completed posts I started earlier this week and post them later this weekend.

WHEEEEEE!!!!!

So, another week comes to a close. We are ever more suspicious about the level of monitoring going on in our home and my kids continue to provide me with material.

So, classes went pretty well this week, well, all but one. There was only five minutes left of class, but I just could not take it anymore. I walked out. I just couldn't babysit any longer. The kids in that class can do everything that I want them to do, they just chose not to do anything and to mock me instead. Yea, fun! I was fed up and left. Later two of my kids came to the English office to talk with me and their head teacher about class. One of the boys was really upset and was crying a little bit. It turns out that this boy thought that I was mad at him for his drawing on the black board (class activity). He thought that I left class because of him. He was really upset and teared up every time I looked at him. I tried to reassure them that they did not do anything wrong, I was not mad at him (he and his friend always do a good job in class) for his drawing, and that they did not need to apologize for anything. Eventually, they seemed to feel better and they left the office.

Later, both of the boys met me in the hallway while I waited for one of my Junior 2 classes to start. They wanted to make sure that everything was okay and that I wasn't angry with them. The little boy was starting to tear up again, so I asked him if he wanted a hug. He said "no", so I asked him again - "Are you sure you don't want a hug?" and held my arms open. Then the tears started to run down his cheeks and he nodded "yes" and ran into me with open arms.

Okay.

Class successes: Not too many. English cheerleader - Go! Verbs Go! (get it?) Anyhow, I'm a dork. So, in class I can be a bit of a spaz sometimes - but I want to get them animated because they sit stationary for long periods of time. I like to run around class and try to get people talking. I also like to work with the kids who don't really have people to work with. So, I have a little conversation practice with a girl and guy in the back of the classroom because they won't talk to each other. Everyone stopped talking to watch what I was doing - after getting them refocused on what the class should be doing, I went back to talk with the pair. The kids around me told me that they were both really shy. When I had the groups present, they didn't present together, but the boy volunteered at every single opportunity even though his English wasn't the best. At the end of class all of the students gave him a round of applause for his effort.

My oh my!

Okay next: Children's Day

Today is Children's Day. Some of my kids had exams today (junior 2) so their special day was, well, not. But I was invited to attend and chaperone movie afternoon for the Junior 1 students. Me, about 5 other adults and 500 hyper children. Interesting.

One of the other English teachers who I work with invited me to come along with her class - but I didn't know how to get to the theater, so she asked her kids who could meet me at the school and take a cab with me out to the movies, she told me that about 45 student hands shot up in the air all at once. She laughed as she has never been able to get that kind of response to a question before. She picked one kid who lived near the school, and then, she said, experienced one of the biggest groans from the disappointed students.

So, I met the student outside of the gate and we set out for the movie theater. He was talking to the cab driver about how I was his foreign teacher from America, but I how I am actually Korean. He played translator for us and I gave him praise for his English. When we got out of the cab, he held the door open for me and announced
very loudly, "After you Ms. Molly!" to get the attention of his classmates. He was so proud that he got to bring the foreign teacher - cute. This was greeted with a lot of applause.

So, all 600 students were standing outside of the theater in rank, waiting to be let in. Finally they are allowed in by class. I go with my class 5. Immediately, I am greeted with, "Teacher Molly, here!" "Teacher Molly, here!"

So, the movie. I didn't really get it. I mean, my favorite part was watching an old man suture a ceramic bowl (the conservation geek in me). Other than that, well, Zhang Zi Yi runs a lot.... Also the kids' response was entertaining. They applauded for, well, anything. They applauded when Zhang Zi Yi first showed up on screen, when her love interest showed up on screen (followed shortly by laughter), when she started running, when she fell down, when she started running, when she got water, when she started running, when she made him dinner, when he gave her a barrette, when she started running, when she fell down, when she fixed up the school room, when she put up paper cuts in the window, when she started running....

Anyhow, the movie was not too interesting, except for the bowl repair, but I loved being there with all of the kids and watching/listening to them. Far more entertaining. Also, I had a lap full of food and drink that the kids pushed on me which also kept me quite entertained.

I was also informed that I must attend a dinner tonight for all of the Junior 1 and Junior 2 teachers. It was okay. This time I went sans Matt. My first adult dinner without the white guy. The dinners are pretty boring, the English teachers try to include me, but it gets exhausting for them to constantly funnel conversation for me. So, I sit and look at the chicken feet on the lazy susan. Every now and then one of the other non-English teachers would shout out random English phrases for my benefit, but other than that, not too much in the way of excitement. Mr. Math was there. And, well, he didn't spend a whole lot of time in the room for Junior 2 teachers and, instead, spent a lot of time staring at me. A bit unnerving, y'know to be constantly stared at. It seemed to be making some of the other teachers a little uncomfortable too, but he didn't break gaze. So, staring, dice game - yup, you could say that I graciously took the first opportunity to jump ship and head home with my bag of pigeon (?) and chicken feet to give to Matt.

Anyhow, now I can officially start my long weekend!

English Humor

Hello again!

So, this week my senior students are learning about English humor. Matt and I looked through their book and determined that the lesson was, well, super lame. I mean we weren't familiar with the jokes, nor were they funny. So, we prepared some jokes, puns, tongue twister and riddles for the students.

The joke that my class like the best was:

A woman got on a bus, holding a baby.
The bus driver said, "That's the ugliest baby I've ever seen."
In a huff, the woman slammed her fare into the fare box and took an aisle seat near the rear of the bus.
The man seated next to her sensed that she was agitated and asked her what was wrong.
"The bus driver insulted me," she fumed.
The man sympathized and said, "Why, he's a public servant and shouldn't say things to insult passengers."
"You're right," she said. "I think I'll go back up there and give him a piece of my mind."
"That's a good idea," the man said. "Here, let me hold your monkey."

It was really funny to watch them "get" the joke. It was like a wave swept through he classroom and left in its wake a bunch of children laughing.

The other joke they really liked was:

One day a student was taking a very difficult exam. At the end of the exam, the teacher asked all the students to put their pencils down and immediately give him their tests. The young man kept writing furiously, although he was told that if he did not stop immediately he would fail. He ignored the warning, finished the test 10
minutes later, and went to hand the test to his teacher. The teacher told him he would not take the test.

The student asked, "Do you know who I am?"
The teacher said, "No and I don't care."
The student asked again, "Are you sure you don't know who I am?"

The teacher again said no. So the student walked over to the pile of tests, placed his in the middle, then threw the papers in the air.

"Good" the student said, and walked out. He passed.

I think they got a kick out of that one because they have exams coming up.

Anyhow, another short week for me as the junior school has exams. So, until next time, my dear readers.

Back in Business!

For all of you who were wondering, I just wanted to let you know that the "nook" is back in business in Guyuan!

So, drop trow and saddle up!

I feel really bad for the street sweepers.

Mmmmm...ripe!

Go Get Your Gris-Gris On!

Do you voodoo? Zhongguo says, "NO!"

Enjoy!

Curse of the Bureaucrats
Voodoo dolls are all the rage in China—especially now that the government has banned them.

Web Exclusive
By Quindlan Krovatin
Special to Newsweek
Updated: 6:45 p.m. ET May 24, 2006

May 24, 2006 - Not content with jailing subversive reporters and restricting access to prodemocracy Web sites, the Chinese government has turned its attentions to a new destabilizing influence: voodoo dolls. Central government authorities are so bothered by the political implications of the dolls that they banned them entirely from Beijing's retail stores in April.

The dolls have become increasingly popular among the Middle Kingdom's misanthropes and trend-conscious teens. Customers purchase a doll (pin included), attach a piece of paper bearing the name of their enemy to the doll and then stab away. Voodoo Dolls Online offers a wide range of dolls in assorted colors. "Do you want to make your enemy feel as if someone is always stalking him behind his back?" reads the caption next to a doll clad in black. " 'The Magic Shadow Killer' will thoroughly destroy his spirit." Another popular item is the "Little Angel," which purportedly brings good luck and helps its owner find true love.

Authorities at Beijing's Industrial and Commercial Management Department claim the dolls encourage superstition and "promote feudalism and feudal beliefs." When officials first cracked down on the import of dolls from Thailand two months ago, Chinese entrepreneurs filled the growing demand by making the toys themselves, wrapping colorful yarn around wire skeletons and adorning each with a crude felt heart. The toys were a marvel of marketing: told that one doll could not be used to harm multiple enemies, the youths who bought them kept coming back for new ones as their hit lists grew in length. Moreover, some stores offered protective dolls that could ward off attacks from other would-be witch doctors.

But now even these homegrown innovators are under attack. In April, after receiving complaints from concerned parents, the Beijing Industrial and Commercial Management Department confiscated all dolls still on sale in the city and issued strict warnings to toy vendors. "We have been told we will be fined and even imprisoned if we continue to sell voodoo dolls," says Huang Xiaoli, a saleswoman in a toy store in the Xidan Mingzhu Market. "The police are serious," she adds. "This is not like pirated DVDs, where the authorities say 'Do not sell these,' and then look the other way while people sell them. Policemen have visited me twice since the ban took effect in April. They really believe voodoo dolls can hurt children." Five separate toy merchants from various parts of Beijing confirmed the ban. A Ministry of Commerce official would not elaborate on its policy toward the dolls—a common practice when authorities are asked about politically sensitive decisions—but by way of explanation he directed a reporter to a law prohibiting the sale of items that foster what the government sees as feudal thought.

Voodoo dolls can still be purchased in cities outside of Beijing, such as Shenzhen and Guangzhou, where central-government policy can be slower to take hold, but already citizens across the country are calling for the Communist Party to enforce a nationwide ban. The Guangdong Provincial Communist Youth League Committee issued a public statement on May 4, the anniversary of China's liberation from imperial rule, calling for a boycott of voodoo dolls and labeling those who buy them "a disgrace to socialism for believing in feudal superstitions."

However, as is the case with all outlawed vices, the sale of voodoo dolls continues to flourish on the Internet. Web sites hawking the dolls have proliferated, customers can bid on dolls on auction Web sites such as eBay and China's Alibaba, and the phenomenon continues unabated in Korea and Japan, where their sale has never been restricted. Some critics feel that the government, by expending so much energy on the dolls, is only lending credence to the traditional Chinese belief in the power of curses and black magic. "Until a month ago, I was selling 10, maybe 11 voodoo dolls a day," says Chen, the owner of a toy store in southwestern Beijing who declined to give his full name when speaking ill of the government for fear of reprisal. "I think most of the kids bought them because they were popular, not because they wanted to hurt each other. The government looks foolish when it acts scared of some silly toys. These things only have power if you believe in them."

Since the initial crackdown, there have been no voodoo-doll-related arrests, although vendors who continue to sell the dolls run the risk of incurring a hefty fine per voodoo doll in their possession. Whether a nationwide ban will be instituted remains to be seen. Regardless, the Chinese government is once more confronting the problems that arise when a market economy and socialist ideology collide.

© 2006 Newsweek, Inc.

King Happy

So, just about to wrap up another week. This has been an interesting week in a lot of ways... let's just say that I was able to talk a little about the email and why I found it offensive, but I can't say that that really changed the preference for the melanin-challenged portion of the Western population.

Anyhow, classes were good this week. Eerily good this week. I think my kids are a little stressed about their exams next week. The first day of their three day exam will be on Children's Day - what a way to celebrate your special day, math test. So, I think I will play some sort of review game and get them all cheery with the dreaded Chicken Dance.

Usually I ask my class the "How's it going?" question to start off the period. I have been getting lots of "very, very, very terrible" responses this week. One of my students, who named himself, "Happy King" said that he was feeling very sad and slumped down in his seat. He is usually a very cheery student who is always smiling. A little later, while checking group conversations, I asked him where his smile went and he said that he was too sad to smile.

I finished up my rounds and hopped back up onto the platform at the front of the classroom only to hear, "Teacher! Teacher! Look!" There was Happy King with a big purple smile drawn across his face (almost as big as the real smile that was now on his face) with highlighting marker nicely accented with a bright green Fu Manchu moustache and beard. I starting laughing and couldn't stop. I just couldn't look at him without laughing and whenever we looked at each other we would both just start cracking up. So, the kingdom is once again in good spirits as King Happy is now again the happy King.

My Remarkable Makeover!

So, whaddaya think?

I have had some time to think about my last post, and I have decided, ya know what? They're right. I think it is way more impressive to be white. So, with the help of my husband and lots of "product" I would like to unveil my new truly more impressive and remarkable white self! I do think that now I will be able to provide the local people with the desired "effect" the administration was hoping for initially.