Spring in Shanghai

Spring rain in Shanghai

Tourist season has begun in earnest. The weather is pretty nice most days although it does rain every few days. It is much more common to see foreigners everywhere you go in Shanghai. I am assuming this is just a preview for summer when more people take vacations. Although I have been warned it does get pretty humid here in the summer months. Good thing I lived in Georgia for two summers so the mugginess will not be a complete shock!

Every teacher always has a couple kids in class that are behavior problems and that continue to challenge you. We did have training for Behavior Management a couple weeks ago and that was helpful, but I do have a couple boys in two of my classes that are disruptive in every class. The other kids are active but not defiant and if Teacher Heather sets a boundary they will obey it. These two boys are definitely a challenge and I am still searching for a way to engage them in a positive way without punishment. What would life be without a few challenges, right? 

I am officially certified to teach English as a foreign language to children. Now if I could just figure out how to do that...

My AT Coco hard at work.

Transportation is proving quite fascinating to me especially since I have never lived in such a metropolis of a city. I have discovered a definite hierarchy when it comes to transportation in Shanghai. Buses stop for no one. They are the top of the transportation pyramid and will run you over with no regrets. Taxis might stop if you force them to even when the pedestrian has the green walking signal that says they have the right to be crossing the street. Bikes will run you over but somehow always seem to avoid it at the last moment. I really don't know how there are not more accidents. Bikes also compete with pedestrians for space on the sidewalk. Other pedestrians will move around you most of the time. Though I have been shoved a number of times in a crowded area. All in all, it is an adventure every time I go somewhere.

It constantly amazes me how well a native English speaker can get around Shanghai knowing only a handful of Mandarin phrases. That's not to say that I shouldn't learn as much as I can but it is a relief to know that it is not vital to my existence that I be fluent because this is not an easy language to learn by any means. It is so far removed from English that there are very few similarities. I am trying my best, though, and use what I do know as much as possible.

My roommate Liz and I visited the Shanghai Zoo and the Aquarium recently. They were not the best I have been to but definitely worth a visit. I did see a real live panda in China which was pretty cool, and the Aquarium had the longest underwater tunnels in the world that you can walk through which was the best part of that visit.

Had first observation by LLD of one of my classes. So nerve wracking to have someone sitting there poker faced and writing down every move you make. According to my supervisor, I did better than I thought, but I'm always harder on myself. There are definite areas for improvement, but I am moving in the right direction. Yay!

A colleague told me this week that I live in the largest/most populated city in the world. This makes it difficult for an introvert to find some alone time. There are times I miss driving by myself in my car just to have some peace while traveling. Sometimes I miss the routine and comfortable. I love change and the new/undiscovered but sometimes I do not want to experience a dozen new things everyday! Calling for wait staff at a restaurant is a different custom. There is no tipping and therefore no motivation for a server to go above and beyond when it comes to service. Communal toilet paper and no paper towels is also something to get used to when using public restrooms. Fortunately these are mostly minor inconveniences that you simply have to get used to when living in a different place.

Movie night with my roommate might become a regular thing. We invited some friends but they had to cancel at last minute. Since I had cleaned the apartment and gone to the grocery store to prepare for the evening while she was at work, my wonderful roommate Liz bought me Coldstone ice cream as a thank you. We had a great night just the two of us so we have decided to do it again when our schedules line up accordingly. It's the little things in life, ya know?

Movie night is about to commense!

The ice that kept the Coldstone ice cream cold on its journey to our home turned out to be dry ice. Kinda cool surprise!

Celebrated Earth Day at work with some games and a song as part of our teaching content. Not sure how much the kids really understood about the purpose of the holiday, but I hope they understood that everyone can help by at least picking up trash and keeping our planet clean. So thankful that my parents are carrying on my recycling efforts back in Georgia. I do the best I can here, but there's really no sure way for me to know if the recycling I put in the bins actually are recycled. Ah well, I do what I can. I also help by either walking or taking public transportation everywhere, and I try to always carry a reusable shopping bag with me. We don't have a clothes dryer so we hang everything to dry which saves electricity too. Like I said, I do what I can even when I'm living in a foreign country. Such a tree hugging hippy, I know :)

Cutie riding the Metro

This guy's job is to wave that green flag when the train is all clear to leave the station.  Everyone has a job here no matter how menial or trivial it may seem.