For their exam topic, my students needed to interview a married couple and tell their love story using past tense. Keep in mind that my students' parents and aunts and uncles would have all met in the mid-1980's -- mid 1990's. A student decided to talk about a celebrity actor and actress. When I asked how she interviewed them, she replied that she found the information on the internet. I explained that since she didnt' follow the instructions, I would take off a few points. She replied that she had misunderstood me. I pointed out that it was clearly written in her book as part of the questions they were assigned. She looked sad and sat down. The next pair of students stood before the class. One gave a brief introduction (less than a minute) that ... read more

My favorite week of the term! Student groups write plays, not for themselves, but for another group in the class. The next week they practice and perform. Here are my favorites of the term: One group did a quick rewrite to include a student who'd been absent last week. They decided he was Garlic (the vegetable) and was responsible for all the problems two couples were having (where one half of each liked garlic and the other thought it was smelly). Then in the end he pleaded with them to not eat him because he wanted to live.A pair of crossed lovers made more interested because the actors ... read more

I awoke feeling refreshed, ready for my last day in Hong Kong. My bus back to the mainland wasn't until 3pm, so that left me with plenty of time. I took the MTR to Mong Kok. Usually a bustling part of the city, I was surprised by how peaceful it is when it's still waking up. Streets are nearly empty, shops are starting to open, people are out running morning errands and getting breakfast before the day begins. It's surprisingly quiet. As the hours went by, the city came to life, full of energy and rhythm and ritual. I wandered, and got lost, and found myself near one subway stop, then another. I'm not even sure where I wandered to, but I savored it all. As the hours passed, the city awoke and came to life, ... read more

Another special day! I made it to my favorite breakfast place just before it started to pour. While I was dining (and wanting to lick my plate) my friend messaged me. We originally were going to spend the afternoon having drinks atop a hotel roof overlooking the harbor. But with the rain and the severe weather forecast, she suggested changing our plan. I agreed. At 2pm we met at TST and walked over to The Peninsula Hotel. Everyday from 2-6pm they serve proper afternoon tea. I've been wanting to do this for years, but due to the cost and my friends' work schedules never quite got to it. We waited in line for about two hours for a table and were seated just after 4pm. Two hours is a lot of time for anticipation to grow! ... read more

I arrived Tuesday night on the last bus from Guangzhou, had dinner, and then went to bed early. Today, I awoke early, feeling refreshed. I got an early start out the door to run a few errands before meeting my friend for lunch at noon. We went up to the mid-levels to my favorite taco restaurant. We looked at the sky, decided it looked like rain, and went to the movies and hated it. It's rare that I hate a movie, but this was one of those times. The only reason we didn't walk out was because we kept hoping there'd be some character or plot development and the whole thing would come together in a genius way at the end. No luck. We took the trolleys, or "ting tings" as they're called locally for a ... read more