Always look on the bright side of life Work So after beers with the FT crew on Monday 13th I had one more day of work before my weekend started. Now since just after I arrived I’ve been covering Casey’s lessons and then last Sunday when Casey managed to make it back I covered Rebecca’s classes that day as she’s been really ill. They have been a great experience and although somewhat chaotic because everyone has their own routines but it was great teaching kids, learning new lessons and generally having fun with the students and the content of the lessons. I don’t think I’ll every come home from a day of work not singing one of the songs from that day. Having only heard one song twice so far I already know it word for ... read more

This is a very back dated blog that will probably jump around alot and maybe repeat some stuff I've already said but its been a crazy week or so and I just haven't had the time. Anyway lets get start.... 1. Mae's Birthday in Shanghai So it was Mae's birthday on the 18th December and we hadn't really seen much of each other since the previous friday as we were sent to seperate centres to continue our training. Her's not that far away on the tube and mine 2 different lines and an epic walk from the station. However I'll get back to that. Mae wanted to do something special for her birthday so we decided to check out the nearest international catholic church go to mass and then do something in the evening. Of course ... read more

Shanghai Zoo So after a great day exploring People’s Park and The Bund the previous day and a lovely dinner with Phillip and Mae they were both up for another day of exploring and asked what I had planned next on my list. Since the weather is quite nice at the moment (well for me, bless them Phillip and Mae are not used to this weather) it just had to be Shanghai Zoo. A few stops on 2 metro lines away from the hotel. Anyone who knows me know that I love any excuse to go into teacher mode and this is basically what happened today as Phillip and Mae had never seen let alone heard of 90% of the animals that were present, so all my useless knowledge about Racoons being vermin in the US ... read more

I've had to back date this little entry but I'm sure you won't mind as you know I've been very busy getting ready for the big move. The party I would just like to thank all my friends and family who made the night of the 30th November the best send off anyone could ever ask for espicially the very embarassing slide show that some of them put together. I couldn't ask for better support and encouragement from all my friends, and it was great to see all my different little groups come together. I will never forget getting into bed with the room spinning quite so fast :-) Time to fly Such an emotional day but I'm so glad I had my family there to send me off, I managed to keep it togethere until ... read more