Day 1 and Done!! :-)

Today marked the first official day of me at English First. I woke up this morning and had my traditional breakfast at the hotel before going back to my room to take a shower and prepare for the day. It's the first day that I had to wear my navy blue EF polo shirt and khaki bottoms. I chose a really cute a-line skirt (which looking back on all the walking I did, probably not the smartest idea) and my brown American Eagle flats that I can stand to walk in. Around 11:00, I walked to the Andingmen station and boarded Line 2 going east to Yonghegong. At the Yonghegong station, I transferred to Line 5 and rode it all the way to the Beiyuanlu North stop. I walked out of the subway, which means I walked down two flights of stairs and up one before exiting out onto the street. Line 5 is predominantly an above ground subway line so we get to see the buildings that are in the area. One that I saw yesterday while apartment shopping was a Honda building. Since I had some down time before I had to report to my center, I walked around the North Star Shopping Center. They had a grocery store on the basement level, so I wandered around that, bought a bottle of water and a can of Sprite, and continued on to my center. I arrived an hour or so early, but I needed to set up my payroll so that my checks (and my apartment loan) can be directly deposited into my ICBC account.
   At 1:00ish, my Director of Studies Laura, Center Director Becky, Senior Teacher Miles, and I walked across the street to an authentic Chinese restaurant. We ordered scrambled eggs with scallions, what looked like bokchoy (but the Chinese have a different name for it), a lamb soup, and a rib dish. Of course, we also had steamed white rice. All was absolutely delectable, and even Laura mentioned that I should avoid eating western food (i.e., McDonald's, KFC, and Pizza Hut) for the first month that I'm here because I'd probably start relying on it and I would lose the experience. I totally agree since I didn't eat much of that while I was in the States. :)
   My training today consisted of discovery sheets (finding information out about the curricula, the center itself, and the computer system) and observing two different Small Stars (SS) classes. The discovery sheets took forever because the computer had me logging in to another school's server. However, the two SS classes were the highlight of my evening. The first one was a group of 6-year-olds and the teacher had them sing a "Hello" song before getting into the lesson of articles of clothing. She brought out the puppets (Roddy, Kev, Mel, Ben, and Vic) and worked on saying hello, how are you?, I'm fine, how old are you?, and what's your name? The students really grasped onto the concept and she had a reward system in place so that if the student received three hearts on the Interactive WhiteBoard they would receive a sticker. It was wonderful to see how well they understood English even though they're so young.
   However, my second SS class was the polar opposite. If I could describe that class in one word it would be "bedlam". The four-year-old boys were everywhere and Miles (the teacher) had to constantly remind them to keep their hands on their knees. He implemented the same reward system (three apples to get a sticker) so that seemed to keep them occupied. After singing the "Hello" song and working with introductions (using the puppets), we worked on colors - red, yellow, green, blue, black, and white - before sending them to the tables to make color books. They had to trace their hands with the colored marker that matched the page and color their hand in. There were five adults in the room and only 8 children, so it was pretty much 1-on-1. I sat at the end of the table and worked with two boys just making sure that they stayed on task and colored their sheets instead of themselves or each other. Around 8:40 we cleaned up the area, passed out stickers to all 8 students, sent them on their way, and went home ourselves.
   Now, it's 10:30 and the latest I've stayed up since I've been in Beijing, so maybe I'm back on my normal sleep pattern. I'm exhausted, my ankles are swollen, and I'm ready for another day! I can already tell that this job will be rewarding at some times but difficult at others. I'll just have to weather the storm! I feel that I made the right decision and don't regret anything so far.


Blessings from Beijing!
Chantelle

Apartment hunting in Beijing!

Today was the day that we met with the real estate agent and started looking at apartments. Our appointment to meet with Sam was scheduled at 10, so we had a leisurely morning and ate breakfast at the hotel. One thing that throws me for a loop every single time is that they have hot dogs at breakfast!! I ate my normal meal of 2 pieces of toast (with butter and strawberry jam), bacon, a fried egg, a slice of hot dog, and a glass (or two) of orange juice. After we finished breakfast we went back to our rooms and finished preparing for the day. At 9:50 we started walking to the Andingmen subway station to meet with Sam, our real estate agent. 
  The first apartment we saw was off of Line 5 (I don't remember the exact station), so it was very convenient for both of our schools; however, it smelled and looked dirty and also didn't have a swimming pool or a gym (which were pretty much dealbreakers for us). Onward and upward, we didn't let that experience deter us from continuing to look. The second apartment was off of Lishuiqiao South (which is the station just north of the one I get off of to walk to work), and just like the first it smelled and looked dirty. The landlord at this location (each apartment is privately owned by different people) wouldn't even negotiate when we asked for the walls to be painted and newer furniture to be brought in. When we heard that (thank goodness for Sam who acted as our translator!), we said next and moved on to the next location. Finally, we saw apartment #3 (also at Lishuiqiao South). Walking through the gated community, Miranda and I looked around and noticed that the grounds were clean, there were stores, restaurants, etc. around, and the buildings looked well-kept. Finally, the four of us (Miranda, Sam, the landlady, and I) walked up to the second floor of building #4. Even the door of the apartment we were looking at looked nice, so we walked in and were automatically taken aback. Dark hardwood floors, 2 pretty nice sized bedrooms, 1 bathroom, matching leather furniture in the living room with a flat screen tv perched on top of beige cabinetry. The tenants hadn't quite moved out yet, so I couldn't take pictures, but when we move in, I definitely will have to post some. However, before signing the contract and putting down a deposit, we walked outside the gated community and entered the clubhouse (pool, gym, sauna, yoga and spinning classes). The pool and gym pretty much sold us on the fact that this was the apartment we were going to take. When the tour of the gym was over, we walked back to our unit, signed the lease agreement, and paid RMB1300 as a deposit. Rent is paid quarterly here, so I'll end up paying 3 months at a time. I can see pros and cons to that arrangement. 
    After signing the contract, the four of us walked back to Lishuiqiao South station and said goodbye to Sam and the landlord. I'm really excited for this apartment! :) Miranda and I rode the subway back to the hotel to relax a little (Skype with family or rest our feet) before we walked around Andingmen (in a different direction this time - west, I think) to find something to eat. Walking further down the street, we found a restaurant/tea house in which the waitress (fuwuyuan) spoke decent English. We dined on lamb, sweet and sour pork, steamed broccoli with garlic, and steamed rice. One day Miranda and I will learn to come to agreement on one main dish and share it, but by the time we got our food my stomach was rumbling so I ate almost my entire meal. Lunch was only RMB113, so it was very cheap. After lunch, we went north (window shopping mostly) until we ran into my former Senior Teacher Ryan (because he's moving to Miranda's school) and his fiance' Nina. It was such a small world feeling to see someone I knew while traipsing around west Andingmen. Stores and food vendors abound. :) 
   We walked around for awhile before walking into a couple of stores (me to buy a bigger purse - as if I needed any more purses and for Miranda to buy a belt). We found a grocery store (Wu Mart) and bought chopsticks before we came back to the hotel for the evening. All in all we spent about 4 hours walking around Andingmen. Now it's 9:15, so I'm going to bed because 1) my battery is about to die and I need to charge my computer and 2)I have to report to my school tomorrow for training so I need to be bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. 


Much love from this side of the world! 
Chantelle 

When it rains, it pours!! Blogspot finally works! :)

Friday, August 5, 2011

Aaaaaahhh! I can’t believe that this day has finally arrived! My nerves are a mix of excitement and terror because I don’t know what to expect while I’m over there. I’ve packed and repacked my two suitcases so many times that I’ve lost count. We had to leave Enid really early this morning because I couldn’t check-in online with American since I’m flying internationally and switching airlines. Oh well, I almost expected that. When we arrived in Oklahoma City it was about 3:30 in the morning, so my parents and I stopped at Whataburger and had breakfast (my dad and I had biscuits and gravy while my mom had a cheeseburger). At 4:00 we arrived at the airport and checked me in at the concourse. Even my bags cooperated as they were both under 50 pounds. Hooray!! At 4:30, I kissed my parents goodbye and walked through security. I forgot that I had my belt on so the alarm went off when I walked through the metal detector. Oops! J After taking my belt off and sending it through the x-ray machine, I walked through the metal detector for a second time and emerged through security unscathed. I sat at my gate (Gate 4) for almost 45 minutes before we started boarding the plane and charged my phone (it was almost dead since I didn’t charge it the night before – the only downside to prepacking all of my electronics and their chargers.) At 5:30 the gate attendants announced that our flight would be boarding shortly. My luck I’m seated at the back of the plane, so I boarded with Group 4, which was the last group to get onto the plane. We departed OKC and had a 35-minute flight to Dallas-Fort Worth. Uneventful and the flight attendants didn’t even have time to complete the beverage service. There were several service members on my flight that were either being deployed or coming home, either way I hope that they stay safe. Upon arriving in DFW I had to walk from one end of the C terminal to the other to make my connecting flight – thank goodness that I decided to wear tennis shoes and pack my flip-flops in my backpack. Two-hour stopover passed uneventfully, although there was a young man seated to my left that was reading a Bible study book in Chinese while the older woman on my right was very loudly talking in Mandarin into her mobile phone. I haven’t even left the States yet and I’m being immersed in the culture. So excited!! Boarded the plane, found my seat, and quickly fell asleep! I guess waking up at 12:45 this morning really hit me, especially since I didn’t sleep well the night before. Next stop: Seattle!! Upon arriving in Seattle I had to take a train from my arriving terminal to my departing terminal – again I’m thankful for comfy shoes and what I call people-movers (escalators)! When I finally got to the South Terminal (where my flight was going to depart from) I noticed that there was a food court attached. Another 2-hour stopover and I’m starving (remember, I hadn’t had anything to eat since 3:30 this morning and it’s now 2 o’clock in the afternoon in Oklahoma), so I found a grille restaurant and ordered a cheeseburger, fries, and a Sprite. My last American meal!! When my order was ready, I went to my gate, ate, and relaxed. While I was seated at my gate, I met a fellow English First teacher, Miranda, who I will be living with while I’m in Beijing. She’s older than I am, but we have a lot in common and complement each other very well. She’s loud while I’m more introverted and mellow.

            Around 2:30 we started boarding the plane (finally, I have an aisle seat and don’t have to worry about being cramped!!) It was when I boarded the plane and found my seat that another EF teacher, Charisma, and I met each other. She will be located in a different district than Miranda and I so we three can’t be roommates. Oh well! I tried to sleep several times on the plane, but I could never find a position that was comfortable enough and the little boy in front of me would rather play peek-a-boo with me instead of sitting in his seat. Oh well, he was adorable – except when he started crying because of the air pressure affecting his ears. Poor boy! Oh well, nothing eventful happened while I was on the plane other than when we were about to arrive at Beijing Capital Airport. The flight attendants came through the plane and sprayed a disinfectant in the aisles. It was just enough to knock me off of my feet. We arrived at Beijing on Saturday, August 6^th, at 4:45 – 45 minutes later than when we were supposed to arrive.

Saturday, August 6, 2011

I’m finally in Beijing!! Laura, my Director of Studies (kinda like the superintendent/principal in an American school) picked Charisma, Miranda, and I up from the airport and drove us to the Beijing Courtel hotel. To say that the van ride was crazy is a vast understatement! The Chinese people have no idea of lanes, so when a person is driving, you hear a lot of horns honking at each other. Sometimes drivers use their blinkers but not all of the time. When we arrived at the hotel, we checked in and deposited our bags into our rooms. We each have 2 twin size beds in our rooms and a bathroom; however, the bathroom is more different than I have ever encountered before. The Chinese call the bathroom the “wet room” because there isn’t a separate area for one’s shower. The drain is in the middle of the bathroom floor, so when you take a shower everything in your bathroom gets wet! It took some getting used to, but I think I like the concept. The night was ours to wander around, so we found a grocery store and bought some items. It was great to see Oreos! Comfort food!! J

Sunday, August 7, 2011

Today Charisma, Miranda, and I took the opportunity to take in Tian’anmen Square! Oh my goodness! The experience was amazing, but because of the humidity I was sweaty and sticky by the end of it. When we entered the square, we saw this little room situated next to where we bought our tickets. Inside this room was artwork that had been painted by students at the university and they were selling it. We had our names printed on a piece of rice paper and while we waited for it to dry, we looked around the center and found some pieces that we just had to buy. I bought a silk-framed piece that had pink flowers on it – it’s absolutely beautiful! Walking everywhere will allow me to lose a lot of weight, so that’s one thing that I’m most looking forward to. For lunch, we stopped at a nice restaurant inside the square. We ordered sweet and sour pork, twice cooked pork with vegetables, and fried rice. I’m getting pretty good at using chopsticks! J Chinese food here isn’t as different as what we would see back home. It’s just as tasty!

            The subway system here in Beijing is so easy to navigate, but people are pushy – bumping into each other without the common decency to say, “Excuse me.” When we got home, I had planned on taking just a 2-hour nap before going out for the evening and finding something to eat; however, the nap turned into an all-night affair! Yikes! J

Monday, August 8, 2011

My first official day as arrived! We took to the subway to Guomao because we had to be at the EF Regional Center (hereby noted as EFRC) by 10 am. We made it to the area with plenty of time, so we stopped at the Starbucks (yes, they are everywhere!!) before continuing on our way to the EFRC.  Upon arriving at the EFRC we immediately went into training, signing contracts, and receiving our uniform shirts. We met with Lee, the production manager, after we signed our contracts and tried to set up our employment and payroll. Around 12:30 we met up with Stephanie (Charisma’s DOS) and Melissa (Miranda’s DOS) and went to lunch. The restaurant we ate at was wonderful. There was a quaint waterwheel outside with koi, and our room we ate in was on the second floor. Everyone ordered something and we shared plates that were situated on a rotating Lazy Susan. Charisma is vegetarian so she ordered 2 different dishes (lotus roots and eggplant). Both were absolutely delectable. After lunch, Miranda, Charisma, Emily (the visa officer), and I went to the bank and set up our ICBC accounts. Oh, so much fun. Afterwards, we went back to the EFRC and split up (each of us went to our centers!)

            Laura picked me up from the EFRC and we took a taxi from the EFRC to my center; however, the experience was definitely a little bit more painful (it easily took longer than 20 minutes to catch a taxi!) My fears, however, were set aside when we got to my center and I met everyone! They are so much fun, quirky and loud but also very fun! The first thing Laura handed me was a scavenger hunt that I had 20 minutes to complete. Ray, my cultural mentor, and I sat down and we went over a lot of the questions. It will be quite entertaining to get to know her! After meeting everyone, finishing and going over the scavenger hunt, and going through a slide show presentation of the school and what will be expected of me, I felt a little overwhelmed – I know that the learning curve for me since I have no previous ESL experience will be pretty steep. When Laura let me go, I logged on to a computer and set up my work e-mail and tried to set up my employment and payroll system (so that I can get paid every month!) Apparently since the office in Shanghai is moving, the E&P system seldom works. Yikes! After fussing with that for a while and seeing some of the parents and students I will potentially be working with, I walked back to the subway station and came back to the hotel to wait for either Miranda or Charisma to arrive home. Miranda and I walked down the street and ate at a Japanese restaurant really close to our hotel. She ordered a sushi platter and I ordered some sautéed pepper chicken. I thought the chicken dish would be safe; however, it wasn’t shortly after that I felt sick to my stomach. Miranda and I both agreed that we probably wouldn’t eat there again. After dinner, we came back to the hotel and crashed. Jet lag has officially hit all of us!!

Tuesday, August 9, 2011

Emily met us this morning at the Xi’erqi station in far northwest Beijing so that we could get our medical checks completed. After greeting us, she quickly obtained a taxi for us to go to the hospital. She makes it look so much easier than Laura did yesterday. Upon arriving at the hospital, we checked in and at our leisure went to the ENT, EKG, phlebotomy, ultrasound, and x-ray rooms before Emily released us so that we could have the afternoon for ourselves. During my blood work, the phlebotomist had to draw my blood from my hand because the veins in my arms are too deep for them to draw from. Ugh! Miranda had seen a coffee shop (SPR Coffee) while we were walking around before meeting Emily, so we went there to have coffee. Miranda had a cappuccino; I had a fruit and ice cream concoction (one ice cream flavor was purple yam and I didn’t care much for it!) Charisma had a banana smoothie!  I was able to use my Chinese a little when I ordered ice water. At 12:30, Charisma had an appointment with a realtor to look at some apartments, so we dropped her off at the Wudaokou station and Miranda and I went to the zoo!

            I was getting a bit cranky because of the humidity and the amount of walking we had done so far, so when we couldn’t find the zoo, I lost it! We tried asking for directions, but no one could understand us! Finally after walking around for what seemed like forever and picking up a bottle of ice water J we found the zoo! We purchased our tickets for RMB 130 and started walking around – looking at llamas, tapirs, cassowaries, emus, lions, tigers, and other animals. Our main goal was to find the aquarium so that we could see the live fish and be indoors where it was air-conditioned. I have to say that it was the best aquarium I have ever been to! I will have to go again once it’s a little cooler now that I know where it is! J We finished the aquarium and on our way out we saw the elephants, giraffes, and some monkeys, but we never did find the pandas. Map signs at the zoo leave something to be desired because we couldn’t read them (not because they weren’t in English – because they were- but because the arrows pointed in directions that we couldn’t go!) Finally, around 4:00ish we walked back to the Beijing Zoo station and came home. I took a shower (the second one of the day!) and relaxed a little before Miranda came knocking on my door because it was raining outside. Usually it doesn’t rain in Beijing since we’re close to the desert, so we don’t know if this is actual rain or if it’s government-controlled rain (silver nitrate-produced rain)! Either way it’s a welcome sight because it cleanses the city.

For dinner we walked down the block and turned right (instead of the left that we take to get to the subway station) and found this quaint restaurant with red light globes hanging outside. We ordered fried rice with vegetables, a large bottle of Coke, and this wrap thing that had noodles(?- I’m guessing) inside. The rice was really good and really filling, so I only had one of the wraps. I didn’t like it so much, but at least I tried it. (I’m trying a lot of new things –eggplant, sushi, lotus roots, etc.) After dinner, Miranda and I stopped at this dessert shoppe and picked up dessert  (2 cream puffs and a spiral cream-filled item) for RMB 1.30! We walked back to the hotel and sat on the corner in the gazebo while watching the rain and the cars go by! I’m still surprised that there aren’t more accidents between the buses, cars, motorcyclists, bicyclists, and pedestrians. Finally around 8:15-8:20, the rain started picking up again, so we came back to our hotel and relaxed. Tomorrow is a full day as we meet with our real estate agent and look for apartments, so I must say good night now!

The Final Countdown...

So, I only have a week until I leave, and there's so much I still have to do when it comes to packing. Trying to pack a year's worth of clothes into a 34" inch duffel bag is like stuffing an elephant into a needle. You just can't do it!! Looks like mom and dad will be shipping some of my clothes to me once I get my new address.  :) 
In the month since my last post, I've received my teaching assignment, met a young lady from California that's arriving in Beijing on the same flight I am and working for an EF centre close to mine (so there's the possibility we may be roomies), and started the process of looking at apartments (thank goodness for a social network of solely EF teachers that are free in their advice giving when it comes to agents to work with!). I'll be teaching at Beijing Centre 3, which is located in the Chaoyang District - home to the embassies, shopping malls, the art scene, etc., so I will have a lot of fun on my days off!! Whoo-hoo!! 

IT HAS ARRIVED!!!

 It has arrived!! Today I received my visa via FedEx Next Day Service. I'm not so much having the love-hate relationship I had with them when I was sending my paperwork to Houston. I have to enter China before Sept. 22nd, which will be no problem since technically I start at my language training center on the 3rd of September, after 2 weeks of training. :) 


I'm getting more and more excited as the time progresses. I've started buying things that I know I won't be able to get while I'm over there (like tampons, shampoo, conditioner, deodorant with antiperspirant). Yeah, I know, you would think Chinese women have the same issues we do when it comes to hygiene, but apparently that is one custom Americans have come to depend on. 


We move my things from Norman on July 9th, so we only have 2 weeks to get my parents' house ready for 73 boxes and the furniture. Add in 6th grade camp, and I have a busy month of July trying to get everything settled before the big jump across the pond. Counting down the days and wishing for cooler weather... 


Be blessed and be a blessing... 

Visa Papers on Route to Houston For Processing

Yesterday I mailed off my visa papers, passport, and visa picture to Visa Express in Houston. They will be the ones to hand-deliver my application to the Chinese Consulate and request them to issue me a visa. As the time quickly approaches for me to depart American soil and step onto Chinese soil for the first time, I get antsy, nervous almost... I am excited for this part of my life's journey, and can't wait to see where I'll be teaching and to meet my fellow teachers and students. I'm especially excited to see my classroom. I know that it will be completely different than anything I've ever done before, and that includes the two weeks I spent doing mission work in South Africa in May 2009. 


I also spent most of yesterday afternoon with my mom in my apartment in Norman finishing things up and looking for specific documents that I had already packed that needed to be unpacked and filed away in my lockbox. (Could you follow that?) When I have 73 boxes to look through, I could only imagine which box these documents could be in. Of course, I was smart enough to write on each box a limited description of what was in the box (i.e., teaching documents, classroom materials, novels, tax documents, etc.). Finally, after moving several boxes, I found what I was looking for in the last box! Typical... Also, this afternoon, my mom and I got into one of the biggest fights we've ever had. I think it's her trying to push me away, so that it won't hurt as much when I leave in August, but still, it stung. Oh well, that's water under the bridge now, we've mended fences and apologized. 


Everything else seems mundane now. Apartment is packed, visa sent off for, and now I'm just waiting for the next word from Jaimee, my recruiter from English First. I'll either be arriving in Beijing on the 6th or the 20th of August, depending on when I receive my visa and when flights are available.  For now, it's just hurry up and wait. :) 

Next stop... Houston!!

While I was at lunch with Jordan, one of my former youth group girls that recently graduated from high school, at Applebee's today, my mom texted me and said that she had a present for me when I got home. I could only assume that the "present" she meant was my visa documentation since it's the only package that I was waiting (if somewhat impatiently) on. When I got home, my mom handed the bright orange mailer to me and to say I ripped it open is an understatement. I was so excited that my paperwork had come in that I couldn't handle carefully opening the envelope. I pulled it open, and read the sheets that were inside. One was my working permit and the other was my letter of invitation. I couldn't read it completely because it was mostly in Mandarin, but that's just another reason why I need to learn the language quickly. Now I need to fill out the visa application, get my passport from my lockbox in Norman, and send everything to Houston. That's the nearest Chinese consulate that has jurisdiction over Oklahoma. I will have to use a proxy agent since I can't directly mail my documents to the consulate; it has to be hand-delivered either by myself or by a proxy. 

Later on this afternoon, I got to thinking about what needed to happen in my life for this opportunity to arise and me to be able to take this step. Five years ago, I was a senior at OU, majoring in English Education with plans to teach high school English here in Oklahoma, engaged to my high school sweetheart who was looking for meteorology jobs in the surrounding states, and pretty happy with my life. Fast forward two years and I was a recent college graduate moving back home with my parents, searching for my first teaching position, and recently single (for the first time in 8 years!). I thought that I had hit rock bottom, literally. At the end of that year, my principal told me that I was better suited for middle school (at the time I didn't realize how right she was - I was just embittered that she hadn't renewed my contract or signed off on my resident year). I applied for China after my first year, but the company I was going to go with wasn't as supportive financially and technically as EF has been. Eventually things fell through and I couldn't afford to go then. The next year I taught at Little Axe Middle and High Schools, making sure that students that hadn't passed their OCCT (Oklahoma Core Curriculum Tests) exams had the necessary skills to pass it the next time. Because I was on federal grant money and a tornado wiped out a good chunk of the school campus, I was let go because the money simply ran out. Before I could think about applying for a position in China again, I was hired to teach middle school math at Crutcho. At first I was terrified, the demographics of the students made me nervous because I had never taught in a situation like that, heck, I student taught Pre-AP English at Putnam City North! As the year moved on, I fell in love with my job, the kids, and my coworkers. When my principal told me that I wasn't going to be able to be retained, I was crushed, but I knew that this time I could go to China and thrive there. It was my time!! So, for those of you, my loving readers, that wanted to know why I chose China and why I'm deciding now to go, there's your answer, if not a little long-winded. :) Blessings!