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hanging in tongli
Chilling out in the garden Hello and Ni Hao
Well....there is certainly something magical about living in Suzhou. My wishes continue to be granted and I think I'm kind of in love with the place! There is most definitely another stint here in the foreseeable future. It is the hands down the best city I've ever lived in! I think I actually heart China more than Japan, and as we all know that's a pretty big statement coming from me!
In recent weeks I voiced two desires. The first was I said out loud that I wished I was teaching kindergarten. (low and behold there is one type of teaching I like but shhhh) I was prompted to make this comment after listening to some friends of mine babble on about their kindy teaching jobs and the amazing energy and vibe you get of little people. I was reminiscing about the days when I worked in childcare, having a job I didn't despise and blah blah blah. So I said out loud something along the lines of 'it's not fair, I so want to teach kindergarten'About a week later I was lamenting the fact I don't have a better paying job here. I was
thinking that if I just had a little extra cash coming in I could continue to party hard till I leave without disturbing my travel fund.In usual (well what I've come to expect anyway) Suzhou fashion I was approached by my supervisor on Friday and asked if I would mind helping out a friend of hers. A kindergarten owner, no less whose foreign teacher has had to return to England for personal reasons. Quite straightforward she assured me. I would be collected from our school every Wednesday morning and delivered back in time to teach my afternoon classes here. Just as I was wondering about the ethics of one school whoring me out to another, she added that I would be paid for my trouble. So basically the question boils down to this: Would you mind spending your mornings singing and dancing round the room with adorable Chinese babies, being feed a delicious lunch, being driven to and from by a personal driver oh and getting paid for your troubles. Would this be something I would consider. Fuck yes!
So as I write this entry I have just returned from my first kindy session. Had a great time singing
boats eye view
cruising down the canal songs with the 4 and 5 year olds and the 2-3 year olds, well they are just too cute! Apparently they loved me as much as I loved them. I'm so happy right now I actually feel gratitude towards the three witches that prompted me to throw in towel back home in the first place. If last year had been merely mediocre rather than unbearable between the hours of 8:15 - 4:00 Monday to Friday I might still be in Melbourne and not doing this at all. Anyway, am looking forward to next Wednesday indeed! Wednesday now has kiddy fun in the morning and bookworm shenanigans of an evening! How can you not love life when hump day is the best day?Can you believe the real adventure is yet to begin? I really really can't. I still wake up some mornings and have trouble believing this is my life. That I'm 'that girl'
Anyway in other news I almost became famous on Friday afternoon- Not. I received a text from my friend about lunch time asking if I was free to be involved in a tourism film that afternoon. They had specific cast requirements and one of them was 'white girl' Unfortunately the Chinese gene is not strong x amount of 'white girls' down the line, so unfortunately I fit that category. (and great grandmother maternal be damned for breeding with a ranga) So I rocked up to this film meeting and in usual China factor fashion the director decided that we would film on Saturday. Problem: half the cast including yours truly, not available Saturday. So after taking our pics and deliberating for about 40 minutes they decided that they would be in touch sometime over the weekend. They then canceled the entire thing the next day. China factor, china factor or maybe it was because I didn't actually wish to star in a tourism video! On the upside my friend Ben was there. Another request they had was French guy and Ben is French Canadian, so close, sort of. We had both planned to go to a restuarant opening of a mutual friend that evening but now had a few hours to kill in between so he invited me round to a friends place for some drinks and WII gaming. It was fun. I had actually forgotten how much I love hanging out with boys, in boy houses. You know the ones, boys that let you be one of the boy kind of boys. I used to hang out with those kind of boys all the time and forgot how fun it is. Needless to say I met some more nice boys and have more new beer drinking buddies. So all in all, Friday night turnd out great, as they often do in Suzhou.
Saturday I went to the river town of Tongli with the other Aussie teachers. The place was tranquil and totally chilled. Shopping was good too and cheaper than in Suzhou, so picked up a few nifty bits and pieces. Oh and finally I got to ride on one of those swanky canal boats which was a blast. Also in Tongli is the Sexual Culture Museum. This was a scream and totally worth the 20 quay admission charge.
That's about all folks, oh except on the subject of dating here I'd just like to add that just because Chinese men smell better, have better personal hygiene, have skin like silk, call when they say they will and are not completely emotionally retarded it doesn't make them any easier to figure out than the other kind! But god they're pretty! and that almost makes up for it.
On that note I love and leave thee. So until next time Zaijian.
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