Here is an update on what life has been like in Huangshi the past couple of months. Like I said in the last blog post, I'm trying to catch everyone up since I was a complete slacker and dropped off the face of the blogging world. This is the start of the catch up...another post coming soon!
Camille and I spent a rainy Saturday afternoon with two wonderful students, Cherish Missy and Kristen, making cookies. We went to a DIY (do it yourself) shop where they let you go in the back and teach you how to make the batter yourself. This was really exciting for our students because baking cookies is not a common past-time like it is in America. Chinese people typically do not like sweet things the way we do in America.
After preparing the batter, you could create your own cookies any way you wanted. I wrote my initials!
I should be a professional :)
Camille, Kristen, and Cherish Missy making cookies...
Our tray ready to be baked!
We decided to take some photos while the cookies were baking. This is Kristen on the left and Cherish Missy on the right. Their English is really good and they are the sweetest kids you will ever meet! Today, Cherish Missy, helped me to practice my Chinese. She told me that I am so "clever" because I have improved so much since moving here! Believe me when I say that she is being generous in her compliment! But it was really cute!
Do it yourself cake shop! You can also make cakes and chocolates.
The cookies are done! yay!
We also had two other students over to our house for lunch. This is Loura and CC Smith. CC used to be my student and Loura used to be Camille's student. But in March, the students took a placement exam and chose a major. They could choose to study Science or History for the remainder of high school. They will still take all of the other subjects like Chinese, English, Math, etc. but now only have to take one or the other of Science or History. This was difficult for Camille and I because we each teach half of Grade 1. I had 8 classes of Grade 1 and Camille had 7. After the exam, all of the students were moved around based on the major they chose and the score they received on the exam. Soooo after 7 months of attempting to learn 500 names, all of the students changed!!!! It was a difficult adjustment because we had to say goodbye to some of our favorite students as they ended up in one of the other's classes. All this is to say that now Loura is my student and CC Smith is Camille's. They are good friends and we really enjoyed having them over for lunch.
They wanted to eat an American meal, so Camille made grilled chicken, mashed potatoes, and green beans! It was great! Our school has two and a half hours for lunch, so we spent the entire lunch break with them listening to English and Chinese music and watching videos.
EASTER CELEBRATION
On Good Friday, we celebrated at Paul and Erin's house by dying Easter eggs together with some of our Chinese friends. Erin's mom had mailed her a kit from America. Camille and I are playing the Easter memory game that came with Erin's kit! I had been wanting to play for days since Erin's package had gotten to Huangshi. I was beyond happy to finally get to play!
Watermelon came from Wuhan to visit for the weekend! I was so excited! She is one of our closest and funniest friends, but works in Wuhan now, so we barely get to see her! We also played memory together.
Some of the girls working on their eggs!
Camille and Erin!
OUR FIRST MOVIE IN CHINA!!
Our good friends Wang Hao (our hip hop teacher), Wu Xia (hip hop teacher's wife), and their friend Ya Be took us to see a movie. It felt just like America....first dinner, then a movie with popcorn. Totally normal life for a change (until the actual movie part that is). We went to see John Carter, which we had never heard of, watched in 3D, ALL in Chinese! It was pretty funny because none of us were sure wether it would be in English or Chinese, but it was definitely dubbed over with Chinese voices. Camille and I understood maybe 5 or 6 words throughout the 2 and a half hour experience. We got really excited when knew a word! Mostly we kew that they were saying "we have....something" or we want....something", only we will never know what the somethings are! Oh well! It was fun!
TITANIC
Titanic also rereleased in China for the anniversary and that movie is a bid deal here. Most Chinese people LOVE this movie. We have students named Jack and Rose because of this movie. The girls were really excited to see it because a few of the features were going to be shown in English! Score! The first time we tried to go, the English showing had been sold out hours in advance. Go figure since I know there aren't that many people who can speak English in Huangshi!
We got to see it though! Waiting outside to be let in the theater...
And yes it was also in 3D!
We were so excited before it started. But none of realized how incredibly sad the movie is. I remember watching it when it first came out in 1997, which astounded my students, and made me feel incredibly old. I remember the love story, obviously, but this time I was struck more by the tragedy and how scary it must have been. Funny how your perspective changes as you get older.
SCHOOL LIFE
Camille and I decided to visit some of our fellow Zhong team members' classes just to see what a regular day is like for them. Kevin and Aaron teach middle school. Their students are adorable, but I don't know if I could do it....very vivacious and very limited English!
Kevin's class. He got us to play the games with his students.
Aaron's class.
One of Kevin's students drew this cartoon of Camille and I in about 10 minutes while were in their class. I was so impressed by it and she let me keep it! I'm the one with the long hair!
Camille's class. I go to some of her classes all the time, but I happen to take pictures this time!
Sleeping kid.... This is a regular occasion in our classes. There are too many students in every class to keep them all attentive so we have gotten used to this. But the rest of the students saw me taking this picture and got them all laughing. The laughing and the flash from the picture woke him up and he was very embarrassed. Needless to say, he did not fall back asleep!
Then we visited Erin's classes. We went to two classes with her and played 20 questions with them. Erin asked her students if they wanted to ask us anything. Basically every Chinese person asks us the following..."where are you from? how old are you? why did you come to China?" Then after they get brave, they ask, "do you have a boyfriend?" And when we say no, 10 out of 10 times the next question is "do you want a Chinese boyfriend?" Haha since this happens every time, Camille and I have a rehearsed answer....he would have to speak English and be taller than us and be a Chr!stian. That eliminates most people in Huangshi. Everyone thinks the English part is funny, but they do understand that not many people our age speak English!
Paul's class
He got his students to lift their arms to look like they were amazed by him. I snapped the picture a little early though....
Ok, well thats all the update I can write about right now! But much more to come soon....
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