91% chinese

祥云

...My Chinese name, given to me on Thursday by Linda, the director of TESS, who is not technically my boss since I work in the International Section. It's pronounced Xiáng yún: she-ang, with the tongue against the back of the bottom teeth for the "sh" sound (if you get a hissing sound you're doing it right), rising tone; yoon, except to make the "u" sound you say "e" with your lips pursed, again rising tone. It means "auspicious/lucky cloud." I was pleased with my name, especially since Linda told me three times that she saved the "most beautiful name for the most beautiful girl." It does sound pretty cool in Chinese, too - just hoping I don't find it out it has some other secret connotation. (Andy liked his name too until he found it was a "very good name for girl.")

So now I have two Chinese bank cards, a Chinese cell phone, a Chinese apartment, a Chinese residence permit, and officially a Chinese name. About ready for dual citizenship, I'd say... Just in time to move to Africa.

normalcy

Now that I've settled into a routine - school feeling less stressful and China feeling less foreign - it seems that my everyday is becoming less and less blogworthy. So I will choose a particularly unblogworthy day, today, to illustrate the semblance of routine that now shapes my life.

My alarm went off this morning at 7:40. Normally I wake up at 7, but on Tuesdays and Wednesdays I am graced by having no first period class, so I get to sleep in. I made coffee by boiling water on my stove and pouring it over fresh grounds, which I biked about 3 hours to purchase at Starbucks on Monday afternoon. The sacrifices I make for decent coffee...

Anyway, I made a peanut butter and jelly sandwich, and ate that with an apple (which I washed using the Chinese water; I now brush my teeth and wash fruit with it, although I still would not consume it in large quantities) while I watched the news. The best news I can get, given my preferences and China's blockages, is TV5.org, a French news channel where I can stream in international news. I watched the coverage of the strikes at the Thai airport and felt lucky that my trip took place 2 weeks before the airports shut down completely. Granted, the coup was already in full swing while I was in Bangkok, but very little surfaced that would interfere with tourists - pretty wise in a country that sources so much of its income from the tourism industry.

After a shower and getting dressed, I headed off for school - a 10-15 minute walk from my apartment, depending on my pace. I passed at least four security guards on the way; they are ubiquitous in China, both in schools and apartment complexes, despite the low level of crime. I also stopped on the way up the hill to school and watched a bit of the "morning exercises" - although I'm getting used to them they are still pretty entertaining. The best part being when the students march out afterwards, legs stiff, arms swinging by their sides. C is for Cookie... And other things...

Students lined up for morning exercises at TESS

My first class, 10th/11th grade listening, begins at 9:25 am. In this class, I basically read from a book, both dialogues and dictations, and the students write and ask questions. I've changed the format a bit to spice things up - for example, I sometimes bring in song lyrics to Linkin Park or Avril Lavigne songs (they love semi-outdated, energetic American pop) with some words blanked out, and play the music video while they identify the missing words. This gets even my most sleepy student, Vincent, engaged - which is nice because I have been instructed not to wake him otherwise, since his rich Hong Kong parents have admitted they use the school only as a baby-sitting service. Today I gave them a test, which also wakes them up - at least until the test is over and they can return to their slumped positions. I have resorted to keeping small pieces of chalk on my desk that I throw at students when they don't wake up to their names being called. At least I haven't gone to Jaris's extremes yet and removed all the chairs from my classroom...

My second class, Year 5 POI, started immediately after. We are currently studying the universe, and have been focusing on the solar system for the past two weeks. Yesterday we were in the computer lab and each student researched one planet, so today they drew and wrote about it on a sheet of construction paper. This is easier said than done; the principal has outlawed both pencils and white-out, so a final draft often takes a few tries. Then for the last 10 minutes we played a game I invented, which the kids adore: I have eight sheets of paper, each with a planet name. On one end of our magnetic chalkboard, I draw a big sun. I mix up the planet names and the students come to the board one by one to see who can arrange the names in order the fastest, using magnets to pin them up. So far the record is 18.8 seconds, and almost all of the students broke 24 seconds, which was my time when they convinced me to take a turn.

Third period followed directly after the second: my 11th grade OSC (OverSeas Chinese - mostly Korean) students. I gave them back graded homework, did a dictation (write the word/phrase + use in a sentence), and discussed/wrote logical vs. illogical arguments. At the end of the period we played two truths and a lie, which was pretty entertaining. However I think the best part of the class was Harry, a student who failed to spell the word "rare," pointing to the moose logo on my shirt and saying "A-B-E-R-C-R-O-M-B-I-E." Jaslene chimed in, "Yes, Abercrombie! I have also!" These are the same students who have never heard of Vietnam, and can't find the United States on a world map...

Well, that brings me exactly to noon and I have already written an excessively long account of my day's activities, so I'll cut myself off. Sorry to rob you of afternoon tales of the gym, Chinese food, Ben and Coco, and lesson planning. Maybe tomorrow........?

thanksgiving & jackie chan

I got a few thoughtful emails wishing me a happy Thanksgiving despite the fact that the Chinese clearly do not celebrate the Native American/European harvest festival. But don't pity me too much; although it did turn out to be a pretty homesick day, I managed to get a very enjoyable and way-too-filling Thanksgiving meal despite my location.

Jaris invited Andy and I to a dinner in the expat district, where a friend of his had reserved a table at a Western restaurant. I was initially a bit skeptical about celebrating a traditionally family-centered holiday with a group of strangers, but the food alone made it worth the trip. There were about 25 of us, and we shared three turkeys, stuffing, cranberries, plate after plate of mashed potatoes, and even something resembling pie at the end.

One memorable moment from the dinner, for better or for worse: As everyone relaxed and chatted over wine and food, a stereotypical loud and overbearing American expat stood up and gave a toast. Well, actually two toasts. I had enough with the first one, when he prompted everyone to cheers to the phrase "Thanks the fuck up!" Then he stood back up a few minutes later and, much to my horror, asked everyone at the table to stand up and say something we were thankful for. It's not that I'm not thankful; I have a million things to be thankful for, both here and at home, that have only multiplied since coming to China. But at that point I would have rather wet my own pants than shared a personal thank you message with a group of total strangers at my Thanksgiving dinner. At least that would have been entertaining, and its memory would have induced a laugh rather than a severe cringe...

Onto my weekend in Guangzhou 广州, known for years in Western culture as Canton. Wikipedia puts Guangzhou's population just over 7 million, but including its surroundings it is even bigger and more cosmopolitan than its neighboring city, Shenzhen. It's also deeply rooted in Chinese history (although don't feel bad if you don't recognize the name, as I'm sure I couldn't have located it on a map a year ago), and has been a major hub of Chinese civilization since 214 BC.

Our entire group of teachers was there for a foreign teachers' celebration, and our hosts went all out accommodating 16,000 of us at a show filled with dancers, singers, and a few key celebrities. If you saw the opening ceremony to the Olympics, you have some sense of the level of this production. I was exhausted and crabby when I got there (side story: Jaris and I had to meet the rest of our group, since as ISS teachers we actually work on Fridays, unlike the LCers. However we couldn't find the group and ended up walking around for 2 hours and missing dinner. Oh yes and I sprained my ankle. Tai hao le! How excellent!) and yet even after sitting for three hours I could have watched more.

Anyway, midway through the show, a jumbo jet pulled out onto the stage and out walked... Jackie Chan! He sang "We Are Ready" which he apparently also performed at the Olympics. He wasn't the best act, by far, but seeing him perform there - as as singer, no less - after watching his kung fu moves in Rush Hour was extremely entertaining. Plus, I'm living in China, so I guess if I'm going to see a celebrity he's a pretty good option.

The rest of the Guangzhou trip, abbreviated version:

• On Saturday I went shopping at the market downtown, which was quite similar to the ones in Shenzhen but had a more organized feel and slightly better knock-off goods. I got two watches and a new pair of sunglasses, all of which I love - but I have to say the whole shopping experience was even cooler than my purchases.
• Saturday night ended up being an adventure involving a Chinese police officer, a man wearing a "political" armband, a Canadian expat raving about 911 being an "inside job," and a bunch of Liberians trying to sell us drugs. Yes, all of this and more, right on the steps of a 7/11 - a chain which incidentally seems to have captured the entire Asian market and is now conveniently located on every block.
• I spent Sunday morning in Yuexiu Park, which I could not fully enjoy because I started passing out before we left. I don't remember anything from that point until I got back to Shenzhen, but apparently I blacked out in the taxi and again on the bus. This has never happened to me before... For the record, I blame the pollution. (Seriously.)

Also, if you're disappointed by the lack of pictures, I lost my camera this weekend in Guangzhou. I'm planning to replace it in Hong Kong this weekend, but until then you'll just have to exercise your imagination.