Today I had the privilege of visiting 2 kindergartens as part of my work here. Qilu University Shandong China has partnered with Southbank Institute of Technology Queensland Australia to deliver a Diploma of Child Studies to students. Chinese and Australian teachers are training the students to work as kindergarten assistants. As part of this training the students must do work experience at a kindergarten and they do this in blocks of 2 weeks. There they volunteer, and work alongside the paid staff working with the children in the rooms. Each kindergarten caters for children from 3-6years and this is non-compulsory but seen as highly valuable, so many children attend. The two I visited today had enrolments of 500 and the other 600, with 40 children in the junior rooms and 50 in the senior rooms, with ... read more

At Black Tiger Spring park every Sunday morning, a group of people meet to practise their English. Any English speaking person is welcome to come along and just chat. So any westerners are especially welcome. You just stand there or lean against something or perch and people surround you and want to talk about anything and everything. I was quite of interest being new and people just wanted to hear my accent and ask questions and compare life for us to them, ask why I was in China, what I thought of China etc. Clayton and his partner Julia who is a Chinese lady and speaks flawless English, took me there, we took the bus. I met Geoff from the USA, he and his wife. They have retired here after her teaching job finished here. Rose ... read more

No alarm to wake up to at 5-50am, a lazy start with a cup of tea on the balcony, breakfast at my leisure and time to think and breath. After planning my program for the week, a canteen lunch of rice, meat and veges and meeting one of the music students who wanted to befriend me. I headed off for another walking tour. Going in the opposite direction to Daming Lake on Huayuan Lu I walked until I got to RT Mart and Maccas. This certainly is not the pretty area of town, its life without the silver lining, lots of variety, with shoe menders plying their trade on the street corners amongst some of the street businesses. A latte and cheese cake reward in a very hot upstairs section of Maccas, it almost feels decadent ... read more

Qilo Normal University is located right in the centre of the city on Lishan Lu very near the intersection of Huayuan Lu Today the sun was shining, the skies were blue, I finished teaching at 10-10am so time to explore my surroundings. So after lunch, laundry and vacuuming, I stepped out and went east along Lishan Lu. I suspect the more east I went the more expensive things got, streets immaculate and swept, gardens manicured and clipped and expensive looking shops and restaurants. Some of the more expensive places have flower gardens outside the entrance, hundreds of plants pots all neatly displayed and flowering to perfection. There are contrasts though with a gritty street seller on one corner and on the other a boutique. Most buildings, the streets, cars really everything is covered with a fine ... read more

Here is a look at my apartment, I've moved things around a little and made it more liveable for me. 5 rooms, feel quite indulged liviing here when i know that 6 students squeeze into a room and a family of five would live here.... read more