Adventures in Asia

If you can read this, you probably need a visa. After several friends and family members visited me this year, I thought I’d share some basic tips for those who are curious about life in China or plan to visit this amazing country someday soon! PART I: TIME & MONEY Although China is a huge country, the whole thing runs on Beijing time. There are no other time zones. Money in China is called RMB (which stands for renminbi), yuan, or kuai. You may be able to use your card at an ATM in China to withdraw cash, but it probably won’t work in restaurants and shops. It’s always best to exchange money in a bank (back home or in China), though the airport will do the job too. No need to tip. You can often haggle for a lower price in smaller shops and markets. Start really low and don’t feel bad if the seller acts insulted. Pretend to lose interest and leave the store if they won’t come down – they will once they realize they might lose the sa...

对不起，我中文不好。什么意思？ Duìbùqǐ , w ǒ z hōngwén b ù hǎo . Sh é nme y ì si? Sorry, my Chinese is bad. What do you mean? I’ve been living in China for over 3.5 years and my husband is Chinese. It’s only natural that curious friends and strangers ask: “Do you speak Chinese?” 中国梦 The Chinese Dream This really isn’t a fair question, as grammatically I should answer yes or no, though the complex process of learning a language is not so clear-cut. What people usually mean is, “Can you speak Chinese fluently?” so I usually answer with, “No.” Many people believe immersion is the best method for learning a language, and I do agree that living in China provides motivation for me to acquire simple sentences. From buying food and clothes to traveling and getting around on public transportation, I need and am able to use some basic Chinese. However, I can easily maintain my career and social life completely in English, so immersion motivation is limited in my context. (Side...

Over a year and a half ago, when I immigrated to the opposite side the planet to live and work in a new country, I really didn’t know much about my new home or what was socially acceptable. Which caused some mishaps and, ah, adventures – haha. Anyways, here are 8 things I wish I’d known before attempting to make Chinese friends (because 8 is lucky!). 1. They’re going to find it awkward to say “no” or to refuse you. This is sometimes called “being indirect,” or “saving face,” or whatever. The point is, Chinese people value your friendship and mutual good feelings above all else (as opposed to Americans who value an honest or direct answer). So be wary of a “maybe,” and sensitive to your friends’ discomfort – they might be trying to say “no.” 2. You don’t need to tell others your plans, and if you do, they might interpret your story as an invitation to join. When refusing an invitation, it’s okay to say, “I can’t, I have a thing” without explaining the thing. 3. You don’...

Even though my particular teaching placement right now isn’t ideal (Ha! That’s an understatement), I’ve come to realize I love this thing called teaching a foreign language in a foreign country. Here are some of the reasons why. Teaching is so satisfying. There are many helping professions where you don’t get to see the results of your efforts, where you put in countless hours on faith and hope that it’s worth it and someone, somewhere, has a better life because of your sweat and tears. Though we probably don’t truly realize the full repercussions of our good deeds in general, at least as a teacher I get to see some of the results of my investment. At the end of a unit / term / year, I watch my students use more language than before. On top of learning stuff, students write me notes, draw me pictures, give me gifts, and smile when I walk in the room. Teaching is fulfilling.   The best part of this job: the students. As a teacher, I get to plan, organize and be creati...

Vacation is here! School’s out for summer, school’s out forever! Woohoo! A few weeks of no class means I’m States-side for the first time in nine months. The following is a list of things I keep having to remind myself now that I’m home in midwest America and not in northern China. 1. Strangers are going to talk to you. A lot. And it’s going to feel weird, because (a) they can speak fluent English (what the heck?), and (b) it’s a lot of small talk that you aren’t used to. In Asia, conversation at the checkout or with a waiter is brief. In America, strangers are friendly and will talk to you more. And you’ll probably accidentally end up telling them you just returned from China. (How does that even happen?) 2. Public restrooms will have western toilets (not squatty potties), furnished with tp and soap. You no longer have to keep your bag stocked with tissue and hand sanitizer. Isn’t it great? 3. Clean up after yourself at Starbucks, McDonalds, Panera, Moe’s, and al...

Moving from Midwest America to Northern China, experiencing my first year out of college and teaching English as a foreign language, I’m learning a lot. Lately I’ve been thinking about how there are two sides to everything. I just finished my first semester of real teaching, and I quickly realized there are two sides to this job. One side is what happens in the classroom, the teaching part. Lessons, students, tests, games, classroom management. I came in somewhat prepared for that side. Then there’s the second side, outside of the classroom. Working relationships, politics, contracts, parents. The side I’m trying to navigate. There are two sides to everything. There are two sides to travelling/living abroad. There’s the side you post about online: the fun, the yummy, the glamorous, the lucky, the bragging-worthy. On the other side of being abroad are the difficulties: culture shock, confusion, getting lost, being taken advantage of, miscommun...