Category: Life Abroad
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Foreign Teacher Accommodation
Translation: the dorms First moving to China was one of those “in your face” expectation meets reality moments. On the one hand, I knew what the contract said, and I knew that it wasn’t going to be how I imagined, but when I arrived and had to start actually living it out, there were problems…
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Initial Impressions of Jishou
My first day here felt like I was moving into college again except everything felt much more uncertain. This week was a battle with unexpected circumstances and a lot of adjustment with the way things work in a small city in China, but I’ve tried my best to stay positive despite it all. The first…
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First Week Teaching at Yasi
Carrying on with the theme of having no expectations, I was thrown in the deep end with no training, orientation of students’ levels, textbooks, or other preparation for the 50 to 65 students I would have in each class. 4000 students and not a clue where to begin. The school told our liaisons, Cindy and Lisa, that the timetable…
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To the Land of My Descendants, China
“how many descendants do you have in China?” -liaison from the school I don’t have any descendants, but my contact in China asked me if I had any descendants in China, to which I responded, “Yes I have a few descendants from China, my grandfather and grandmother on my dad’s side, and my grandfather on my…
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New Year Reflections on Studying Abroad
As someone who is awful at keeping up with social media and updating others, I have made one of my New Years Goals to be consistent about filling this blog with random anecdotes and observations of the rest of my time here (1 more “semester”-or Lent and Summer Term). It’s hard to believe that 2016…
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Life in West Central
A new city with a temperature shift from 108F to 60F highs. The weather has been splendid and I know I can’t be spoiled for too long. I had to buy a raincoat; I didn’t even own one prior to moving here. I love the coats, scarves, and boots, but it takes more effort than slipping on sandals and flip…
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Films, Plays, and Red Carpets in London
13 October, 2015 | Noel Coward Theatre I knew that West End was the heart of all these plays, which I love, but is it simply the Hollywood in me that piques my interest? PHOTOGRAPH 51 I had never heard of this title before, I admit, but it would be a waste to miss out on…
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Arrival in London
I had flown internationally by myself before, so I was not nervous about that. The plane was nice and new-very high tech-but the seats and leg space were smaller than other airlines I’ve flown. If you choose to fly Norweigan Air, you must purchase any snack or drink you wish to consume, and even…
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ZION ORPHANAGE
On Sunday July 10, Jia Sheng drove David, Stella, Scarlet, and I to Maejo, a suburb across town to visit an orphanage called, Home of Zion. Director Ni oversees this place, which houses about 50 to 60 children ranging from ages 5 up to 11. Slowly the younger kids walked towards us as they awakened…
MELODY TIENYUN 