Teaching in Asia

When Frodo, Sam, Merry and Pippin arrived in Bree on their journey to Rivendell, they needed a hero. The ringwraiths were on their trail, and Gandalf was not there as promised. To their relief, Strider showed up.

Well, I have a hero now in my journey. I wrote yesterday that I was put in a preschool teaching position. But my new friend Ashlee felt it in her heart that she needed to trade with me. She loves the young ones and assured me that she would enjoy it and be happy either way. I talked to the principal, and it’s a done deal. I’m so happy! 1st grade still isn’t my strength, but at least I’ve worked as an instructional assistant in 1st grade classrooms. I haven’t worked with preschool age children in probably 17 years.

Ashlee is a beautiful young woman, inside and out. So are the gals in the rest of my team (those 9 of us at the preschool-2nd grade school). My roommate is another gem: she always lifts me up when I’m down. We are going to be a close knit group this year. Like the Fellowship of the Ring (the 4 hobbits, 2 men, a dwarf, an elf, and a wizard), we all have our strengths and weaknesses. We will laugh together and cry together. And help each other through this journey.

So here’s to the Fellowship of the Nanshan girls. And here’s to my Strider: my new friend Ashlee.

Flying into Hong Kong

I made it! A lot has been happening here with my job and getting settled (including testing the local eateries, of course!), and I didn’t have internet hooked up, so I haven’t been online. But now I’m connected and will do my best to keep you all updated!

The flight was fine. The best part was visiting with my coworkers and flying over Hong Kong.

I’m living in the Nanshan district of Shenzhen. It’s very Westernized, but nice. There is a lovely park across the street. Our apartment (my roommate Jada and me) is right next to the school. There are several shopping malls all around us.

We drove by Shenzhen Bay yesterday on our way to the new campus for orientation. We could see the bridge that connects Nanshan (the peninsula part) to Hong Kong. Pretty cool!

My job situation isn’t what I expected (I just found out that I’m teaching preschool, and I have to admit that I’m not very happy about that) but I like my coworkers and surroundings. So it will hopefully still be a great year, even if it stretches me in a way I wasn’t expecting.

It’s finally here: the day I leave for China! I’m in the Portland airport, waiting for my flight to San Francisco. From there I’ll fly to Hong Kong with many of my future coworkers.

I’ve met several of them already, and gotten to know others through Facebook, so my traveling companions are already friends of mine. I’m thankful for that.

Now that I’m here (and all my preparations are done), I can freely look forward to this exciting journey. I can’t wait to discover what China really looks like. When I went to Germany several years ago, I was excited to see what it really looked like in comparison with my preconceived notions. It was beautiful there, but was more than that. It felt real finally. So I can’t wait to see China and let it feel real. All of it. The sights, sounds, smells (especially food!) and most of all, the people.

I’m excited to get to know my coworkers more, and make local friends, too. I can’t wait to meet my students!

I’m looking forward to seeing real pagodas, temples, and other ancient structures. The mountains, oceans, bays, and rivers (and the Pearl River Delta! I’ve never seen a delta). The restaurants and food carts. The shops, markets, and skyscrapers (okay, not so excited about skyscrapers!). And yes, even the theme parks. I have to admit, I love cheesy theme parks. I think it started with my family’s tradition of going to the Enchanted Forest. Shenzhen is supposed to have several fun theme parks. And when I say theme, I mean theme! Here I come, scale models of world landmarks!

Here I come, world!