Realized my room doesn't have a smoke detector. Turns out none of the rooms in my 5 story building do. Kind of humorous. More on this later though...
Sunday, August 11, 2013
native nights...And realizing that not one room in the 5 floor building you live in has a fire detector
Walked to old street area tonight...and took pictures all along the way. Pictures with better light were taken close to where I live/work, the others were taken in old street area, my favorite part of this town. This town really comes to life at night. I imagine that's due to 2 things. One, that that's when a lot of people work to earn their living (selling food, jewelry and mostly items indigenous to their native province), and also because its just so freaking hot here during the day. Like a lot of places, Hangzhou and Shanghai have recently been hitting all time high's in terms of temperature. People hangout in the malls and subway systems all day just to escape the heat. So when the sun finally goes down it really starts to feel like this city has a pulse. I love it!
This little girl was dying for me to take her picture, it was really cute! But she wouldn't stay still in her poses and after 5 attempts this was the final shot.
This guy's making 'pao mo.' It's like 'chinese pie bread,' good stuff.
Realized my room doesn't have a smoke detector. Turns out none of the rooms in my 5 story building do. Kind of humorous. More on this later though...
Chicken feet. No, I haven't gone there yet. Not yet, its too soon.
Realized my room doesn't have a smoke detector. Turns out none of the rooms in my 5 story building do. Kind of humorous. More on this later though...
American Amenities and first dates...
Yesterday was a great day. I had an iced vanilla soy latte at Starbucks, ate a 6" sub at subway, discovered a SEPHORA and introduced Widespread Panic to 2 of my Chinese friends. I also spent exactly 14 hours with Alfred. Alfred, the 24 yr old electrical engineer who befriended me on 'QQ.' (QQ is Chinese version of Facebook.) I agree to meet Alfred, face to face, for the first time yesterday. In my mind, its nothing more than meeting some locals, them getting to practice their English, me getting to practice my Chinese and socializing over some authentic Chinese food. However, in Alfred's mind, I'm pretty sure he thought it was a first date. Bless his heart. How do you tell someone that you are in no way, shape or form attracted to them, never will be and want nothing more than a platonic friendship? I suppose by continuously dropping subtle hints...like the one I just now dropped on QQ telling him that I didn't want to send him the link to my blog because its very private, like a diary and that I only let my family read it. Yes, maybe I'm going to hell for telling him that, but come on? It would be a major hindrance to my writing and writing style. I'm very straightforward and aware that sometimes my writing might sound unethical and lacking in diplomacy. I write from the heart more so than the head. He also just instant messaged me that he tried to set up a Facebook account just now but that for whatever reason (China) didn't let him. Thank God, is all I have to say about that. Boundaries are essential and I have my reasons for not wanting my Chinese social networks to ever intersect with my American ones. Ok, so back to yesterday with Alfred. He told me that I am his new idol. Very sweet. A bit creepy, too. What's more interesting? Him telling me the first day we meet that his dream in life is, "...to marry a blonde American girl and have family and live in China." And just to clarify, I was absolutely NOT giving out ANY kind of vibe or signal that would make him think I am interested in him like that. I swear the only thing I am guilty of is being kind to him. Being myself, nothing more, nothing less. He told me last night when he left my school ( I live at my school for now) that the security guard yelled at him for being here since 'its a girls dormitory,' and told him that next time he will not let him in and we can just talk 'through the gate.' Although that is completely ridiculous, at the same time I'm almost grateful for the 'curfew/locked gate' thing. Otherwise, Alfred might very well set up camp outside my door. I am not and will not lead the poor man on. If he continues at this pace I will absolutely tell him, sometime this week, that I just want a friendship with him.
Thursday, August 8, 2013
Wednesday, August 7, 2013
I got the job, pay is way better than last school, got an abode and got peace of mind~
Tons of typos, grammatical and spelling errors. i wrote this on my tiny android phone, in my tiny room, at my hostel..more to come, justgot VPN working today
where in the heck do i even begin? I have not written in my blog for almost 2
2 weeks. and while sooo very much has happened, i really haven't the
faintest clue as to where I should begin speaking about it all. i am at a hostel in
hangzhou, zhejiang province, china. I have been homeless for about a week (they have become extended family at this point). because I have lost my American bank (ATM) card, I am sleeping on the couch at the hostel, free of charge. i am safe, i am not hungry, i have friends, i am poor, but i am happy. (happiness and positivity; must consciously excercise; it's ridiculously hard.) And as i have found through experience, at the end of the day, being happy (or alive) is truly the only thing that matters to me. i hate to complain, and i will really try not to. but for sake of
storytelling its only fair that i voice some of the many hiccups i continuously encounter on a day to day basis here. the phrase "if it ain't one thing its another," at this point, in month 2 of my excursion, i feel that i could have been the individual to coin this phrase. seriously. so, i leave my last city Taizhou and travel with my friend John, to
Shanghai. while in shanghai, i commence looking for another teaching job
because i loathed the one i had in taizhou. not to mention i got
fired *because I loathed the job. i hated my boss and safe to say the feeling was mutual.
i hated the way they treated education. there WAS no education. rather,
they herded them, the students, like sheep through the gates of our school
all the while only caring about the student 'clients' checkbook and how much money they could contribute to our school via registering for classes.
bottom line, education not important, money very important. it disgusted
me. and when i found out how our chinese male boss spoke about us foreign teachers to the other chinese staff it nearly made me sick. i couldn't fake
working for a man like that. i had to get out and boy i sure did.
Which brings me to Shanghai w/ John the Brit...
Shanghai was a comedy of errors if ever there was one. ipod stolen by cab
driver, computer screen broke (by yours truly), effed my bad knee from
ski injury AGAIN, and was recruited for the so called 'kindergarten' job
that brought me to where i am right now, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China...
all the promises of a fruitful kindergarten. recruiter told me about job. wild and unwise i jumped at the opportunity and before long, i found myself with a one way first class ticket to Hangzhou. at station in Hangzhou, after realizing i have lost my bank card and now officially BROKE, i phone my head teacher at kindergarten, actually thinking that i am going to get a slice of sympathy from her. i was wrong. the kind woman texts to me, and i quote, "you can just stay the night at the Mcdonald's by the school." I shit you not, the woman actually had the audacity to text that to me. really?! i get to the school Tuesday morning. this is after attempting to get there Monday morning but throwing up in the middle of the street after trying to hail a damn taxi for half an hour. i literally puked, all over the place in the middle of the street, from heat exhaustion. (inside scoop...the Chinese are perhaps the most racist race i have EVER encountered in my 33 years of life. i don't say that out of any kind of
resentment either. and not ALL fit this label, just most.) its totally normal to be waiting for a taxi and for a taxi driver to pass me up as if I'm invisible and move on to pick up the next Chinese that is also waiting patiently for a cab. so i get to the kindergarten, i get the tour, i get
what i believe to be all the necessary details. in my best american form, i
save asking salary details for last. because like we say in the states, you
never want to appear too money hungry, you always want to appear as if the
job itself is of more value to you than the pay. turns out that the witch, caroline (mcdonalds suggestion beeatch) also believes in this theory. she tells me that we will discuss pay last. ok, i think to myself, whatever she wants. we get to pay and i am satisfied. i am also satisfied with the other foreign teachers. another texan, a mexican girl and her husband, a french, an italian and tami, my now great friend from zimbabwe. i meet tami on day two at the kindergarten, where she proceeds to tell me that my start date would not be until september 1st. what?! really?! im broke and staying in a youth hostel...I NEED MONEY! ..and i dont need to wait until october 1st to get it.
--today i went to church with tami and paloma, the mexican girl. god (no pun intended), it felt good to be in a room filled with other westerners (the police come through, unannounced, almost weekly in order to check passports and make sure that no Chinese nationals are in a 'Christian' church. If they are, they are sent to jail). I actually broke down in tears at least 4 times during the 2 hour service. i dont know what it was...the loneliness, helplessness, struggle, despair, love, longing..who knows. but whatever it was, it was heavy and it was real. so it was at this service today, that tami and paloma both began to tell me what an asshole caroline, witch lady, is and how she could give 2 shits about any of our welfare. being that i am homeless and running on empty, as far as funds are
concerned, getting an abode of my own is of upmost importance. there is a
room at the school with a private bathroom that no one lives in. if the
school does not agree to let me stay here, i will find another school. Its principle. This country is insane.
2 weeks. and while sooo very much has happened, i really haven't the
faintest clue as to where I should begin speaking about it all. i am at a hostel in
hangzhou, zhejiang province, china. I have been homeless for about a week (they have become extended family at this point). because I have lost my American bank (ATM) card, I am sleeping on the couch at the hostel, free of charge. i am safe, i am not hungry, i have friends, i am poor, but i am happy. (happiness and positivity; must consciously excercise; it's ridiculously hard.) And as i have found through experience, at the end of the day, being happy (or alive) is truly the only thing that matters to me. i hate to complain, and i will really try not to. but for sake of
storytelling its only fair that i voice some of the many hiccups i continuously encounter on a day to day basis here. the phrase "if it ain't one thing its another," at this point, in month 2 of my excursion, i feel that i could have been the individual to coin this phrase. seriously. so, i leave my last city Taizhou and travel with my friend John, to
Shanghai. while in shanghai, i commence looking for another teaching job
because i loathed the one i had in taizhou. not to mention i got
fired *because I loathed the job. i hated my boss and safe to say the feeling was mutual.
i hated the way they treated education. there WAS no education. rather,
they herded them, the students, like sheep through the gates of our school
all the while only caring about the student 'clients' checkbook and how much money they could contribute to our school via registering for classes.
bottom line, education not important, money very important. it disgusted
me. and when i found out how our chinese male boss spoke about us foreign teachers to the other chinese staff it nearly made me sick. i couldn't fake
working for a man like that. i had to get out and boy i sure did.
Which brings me to Shanghai w/ John the Brit...
Shanghai was a comedy of errors if ever there was one. ipod stolen by cab
driver, computer screen broke (by yours truly), effed my bad knee from
ski injury AGAIN, and was recruited for the so called 'kindergarten' job
that brought me to where i am right now, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.
Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China...
all the promises of a fruitful kindergarten. recruiter told me about job. wild and unwise i jumped at the opportunity and before long, i found myself with a one way first class ticket to Hangzhou. at station in Hangzhou, after realizing i have lost my bank card and now officially BROKE, i phone my head teacher at kindergarten, actually thinking that i am going to get a slice of sympathy from her. i was wrong. the kind woman texts to me, and i quote, "you can just stay the night at the Mcdonald's by the school." I shit you not, the woman actually had the audacity to text that to me. really?! i get to the school Tuesday morning. this is after attempting to get there Monday morning but throwing up in the middle of the street after trying to hail a damn taxi for half an hour. i literally puked, all over the place in the middle of the street, from heat exhaustion. (inside scoop...the Chinese are perhaps the most racist race i have EVER encountered in my 33 years of life. i don't say that out of any kind of
resentment either. and not ALL fit this label, just most.) its totally normal to be waiting for a taxi and for a taxi driver to pass me up as if I'm invisible and move on to pick up the next Chinese that is also waiting patiently for a cab. so i get to the kindergarten, i get the tour, i get
what i believe to be all the necessary details. in my best american form, i
save asking salary details for last. because like we say in the states, you
never want to appear too money hungry, you always want to appear as if the
job itself is of more value to you than the pay. turns out that the witch, caroline (mcdonalds suggestion beeatch) also believes in this theory. she tells me that we will discuss pay last. ok, i think to myself, whatever she wants. we get to pay and i am satisfied. i am also satisfied with the other foreign teachers. another texan, a mexican girl and her husband, a french, an italian and tami, my now great friend from zimbabwe. i meet tami on day two at the kindergarten, where she proceeds to tell me that my start date would not be until september 1st. what?! really?! im broke and staying in a youth hostel...I NEED MONEY! ..and i dont need to wait until october 1st to get it.
--today i went to church with tami and paloma, the mexican girl. god (no pun intended), it felt good to be in a room filled with other westerners (the police come through, unannounced, almost weekly in order to check passports and make sure that no Chinese nationals are in a 'Christian' church. If they are, they are sent to jail). I actually broke down in tears at least 4 times during the 2 hour service. i dont know what it was...the loneliness, helplessness, struggle, despair, love, longing..who knows. but whatever it was, it was heavy and it was real. so it was at this service today, that tami and paloma both began to tell me what an asshole caroline, witch lady, is and how she could give 2 shits about any of our welfare. being that i am homeless and running on empty, as far as funds are
concerned, getting an abode of my own is of upmost importance. there is a
room at the school with a private bathroom that no one lives in. if the
school does not agree to let me stay here, i will find another school. Its principle. This country is insane.
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