Visa troubles, the school and running

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China, China, China. I'm not even there yet I'm being thwarted by the bureaucracy!

VISA

The problems are to do with my visa. Although as a family we've been to China about a dozen times and my brother now lives there, we've never applied for a working (Z) visa before. By the time Taz applied to work there he'd been resident for a while so he had a different procedure to follow.

When applying for a visa in China the embassy website tells you clear, simple, straightforward instructions on how to apply for a visa and what the considerations/restrictions are. The problem is that no-one in China seems to have read the embassy website! Each province has it's own rules and procedures and these aren't always strictly followed. So we could do everything right and I might still get my visa rejected. For this reason I haven't booked my flights yet and won't until the visa comes back. The application is in several parts. Firstly I had to send my future employer various documents including my degree transcript and a medical form (had to be couriered at the grand total of £37 because Royal Mail can't guarantee or track mail once it leaves the UK) and Taz now has to take that to the relevant authorities in Hangzhou to get me a permit, which he will send back along with a letter of invitation from the school to me. I can then send these documents to the Chinese embassy here and hopefully be issued with a visa. There are additional problems because Tarik's school is foreign owned and it's going through a change of classification from consultancy to school but we hope - hope - that I should get the visa in 3-4 weeks and I can then book my flights 😊
Once I get to China we have to apply to transfer the Z visa into a residents visa, but I've heard that isn't so complicated (famous last words I know, but at least I will be over there and working by then)

SCHOOL AND STAFFING

I really can't wait to get over there now. Taz and I have been having lots of discussions about the future of the school and how we are going to expand it in the short and long term.

The staffing changes are really exciting and will be our key strength I think. We have three enthusiatic young people coming over in the summer to be involved in the summer school and my friend Rachael will be joining us from July this year until Autumn next. It will make a huge difference having her on board as she's been teaching for three years, including teaching Gaelic, so has bags of relevant experience. On a personal level it will also make a huge difference to have one of my best friends there with me. We've both booked on a TEFL course in a couple of weeks so it does all really feel like it's happening

HALF MARATHON

Although I don't have a leave date yet, I do think I will be away before my half marathon at the end of May unfortuantely. However, on the bright side, there is a half marathon in Hangzhou (about an hour away from where we live) in November (once the weather cools) which Rach and I will sign up for so I will restart my fundraising again nearer the time.

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