just some reflecting...goodbye, formosa!

I can't believe our time in Taiwan is really over! I remember getting off the airplane on the first day and seeing the modern skyscrapers nearby and thinking, "I will be fine!" Then, as we neared Qizhang, where Alaina and I live, it began to sink in that it really would be very different, and I started to wonder, "Can I really make it for seven weeks?" Then, arriving at Harriet's house and thinking, "These people are so nice! We will be fine!" Then later going to school and wondering, "How will I survive?" Clearly, I was experiencing some intense culture shock during those first few days, and this scenario is only one example of the ups and downs we faced throughout our time here.

I think one of the hardest things about coming home will be trying to explain the reality of this experience. Some people will say, "Oh, that sounds horrible! Aren't you glad to be back?" Others will comment, "Wow! What a wonderful trip! You saw some great things!" But neither one of these reactions can accurately reflect my time in Taiwan.  I think I was disappointed at first because so often, study abroad is glorified and made out to be this wonderful, fantastical vacation where the student spends a few hours a day in class and the rest of the time is spent having life-altering experiences. So, when that wasn't my experience, at least at first, I couldn't help but be disappointed. However, as time went on, the value of the experience became clearer in other ways. I can't even begin to explain how much I have grown personally and professionally from my time in Taiwan.

To name a few, personally, I have learned what it feels like to be completely in the minority, unable to communicate, and of both the  scrutiny and fame that come with it. I now know what it feels like to be completely stripped of cultural identity, and the need to rely on nothing but  yourself and your own personality and skill set. I have had to build on my strengths and strengthen my weaknesses in order to "make it" and leave a good impression with the people we have met here.

I have gained professionally in several ways. First of all, I can share my experiences with my students, and hopefully help them gain a more global perspective. Our principal has made us feel valued and welcome by saying, "feel free to come back anytime. You are always welcome to apply." I am fairly positive I will not return to Asia to be a teacher again, it's just not for me, for long-term. However, I was able to take part in an entirely different education system and evaluate it first hand. I saw different cultural values and how they play into the schooling here. I saw good, and I saw bad, just like I would see in the United States as an outsider looking in. It's hard to separate my cultural values and experiences from my opinions, so I can never be totally free of cultural bias, something I have struggled with the whole time. But, I have gained a unique perspective that will hopefully stay with me into my teaching career. I feel like my educational philosophy is much clearer to me now, as is my teaching style. I had to abandon many strategies that I love while acquiring habits that I would normally find to be negative practices. Again, without my culture to lean on, I could see very clearly what defined me as a teacher, and what worked and what didn't. I feel so much more confident in terms of classroom management and differentiation, and these are just two areas where what I have learned will filter back into my teaching in the United States.

So, while the teaching was often VERY challenging, as were certain aspects of the culture, I am one hundred percent satisfied with the experience. While I definitely did some wonderful things and saw amazing sites, as you all know from following the blog and seeing a few pictures here or there, that really is only the surface. I think more people need to realize that isn't all that study abroad is about. If I could advise the next person to come and teach here, or travel anywhere really, I would make sure to tell them that while the sightseeing and experiences are important, the growing and learning is just as valuable.

I have been trying to reflect the entire time I've been in Taiwan, but I am sure there is still much to process. I have grown to really love some of the people here and will miss them...and miss many things about Taiwan, really! Just to name a few:

1. fresh fruit from the market stands on our way home from school, always reasonably priced and from local farmers
2. juice that tastes so fresh and natural-apple, peach, orange mmmmm......
3. homemade dumplings from the shop near where we live
4. serene bus rides up and down the mountain to and from school, each morning and afternoon
5. the anonymity of the city as I travel the crowded sidewalks and busy MRT stations of Taipei
6. the sound of the garbage truck playing Fur Elise and watching all of my neighbors gather for their weekly gossip session 
7. the suspense of wondering what our little host dog, Deng Deng, has gotten into durning the school day
8. the millionaire sensation I get when I slap a thousand dollars down on the counter to pay for some green tea, and get $980 back
9. the freedom I feel knowing I can travel across the country without a car; the ease and convenience of public transportation
10. friendly hellos from strangers on the street, eager to practice their English skills
11. pearl milk tea, obtained on our weekly trips to the Carrefour department store
12. sharing a hot pot and good conversation around the table
13. the satisfaction of purchasing a $150 NT pair of shoes, to realize I spent $5 US
14. freshly baked croissants from the corner bakery as we await the school bus
15. the sound of the rain on the rooftop that lulls me to sleep every night, and is still present each morning

Who knows, maybe some day I will come back and experience them again!

For now, our flight leaves Thursday morning at 9:25 am Taiwan time (Wednesday night 8:25 pm USA) and gets in Thursday at 2:40 pm USA time. We will be flying Taipei to Japan, Japan to Detroit, Detroit to Cleveland. I am SO eager to get home for the holidays that the already-long flight might feel like an eternity, but I"ll hope for the best.

Lastly, thank you all so much for your support during my time in Taiwan! Whether it was just reading my blog, emailing, or sending a card, I sincerely appreciated it and could not have done it on my own. So many times I felt pretty down only to find some inspiring words of encouragement in my inbox or mailbox. So thank you for helping me stay on top of things and eventually beat the culture shock! I am so thankful for a wonderful and supporting network of family and friends and cannot wait to share my pictures and stories and finally catch up with many of you face-to-face!

Last Weekend in Taipei, Apple Pies & Goodbyes!

So I'm really down to the last few days now! On Saturday, Alaina and I visited the National Palace Museum. It is located in Taipei, so we rode the metro. We first went through the "Garden of Peace and Benevolence," and we were feeling PRETTY peaceful knowing we didn't have any work left. Slowly, we were slipping into vacation mode and since we've seen almost all the "must sees" we could go at a leisurely pace, and so we stopped inside a little cafe to have some coffee and a snack before heading to the museum. The museum is huge and the building itself is beautiful. There are two main exhibits that visitors can see at any given time, and you pay to enter separately. Alaina and I decided to see the Song Dynasty exhibit since that was more culturally relevant than the Ancient Greece exhibit. It was interesting for me to see all the jade and bronze and the progression of years in terms of dynasties because I JUST taught Ancient China to my seventh graders in Ohio before coming to Taiwan. I really wanted to take some pictures for them, but was unable to.

After the Palace Museum, we met Harriet at the Shilin night market. We had been once before, but we were not brave enough to try anything, and that was unacceptable to Harriet. So, off we went, winding through the crowds until we had obtained a pig's blood cake on a stick and an oyster omelet. We sat down to share, and I really liked the pig's blood cake! I had thought it was so-so mixed into soup, but this time it was on a stick (pig's blood and rice mixture) then coated with peanuts and fresh cilantro. Maybe it was the cilantro that I loved so much, but I liked it! The oyster omelet was pretty good, too. Only later did we find out that some foreign teachers have never tried the pig's blood! And here we are trying everything, lining up because we think it's some mandatory right of passage! We still haven't tried the stinky tofu, but supposedly tonight is the time for that. Then, we did a little shopping, this time bargaining much more than we had on previous trips.

Sunday morning, we decided to check out our local day market, something we had been meaning to do for quite awhile but hadn't done yet. So, off we went and found great deals and were quite amused. Somewhat reminded me of the West Side Market in Cleveland...only Taiwanese style, of course! Alaina and I both bought some leggings for $1 each, and they were good quality, too! The best sale items in terms of clothes, etc. are scarves, shoes, and leggings. They are extremely popular and you can get them dirt cheap everywhere.

After the market, we met our friend from Switzerland at the MRT on Sunday to go to Danshui, the old fishing village that our professor strongly recommended. Again, not at all what we pictured! We expected a serene little town, but even these old streets have been turned into somewhat of a night market scene. Food stands, games, and activities lined the sidewalks as we made our way through swarms of people. One funny little incident that occurred was a little elderly Taiwanese lady came up behind Alaina while we were walking and hit her in the back, then jabbed her in the side, pretty hard, then kept speed walking, turning around and glaring at us, even after she was a good twenty or thirty feet ahead. We are still unsure what we did to offend her....very strange! Anyways, we ended up taking a boat ride across the river to the old fisherman's wharf. Again, crowded with people, although less populated than before. We walked around for quite awhile just enjoying the nice night and I feeling REALLY in vacation mode, I had a grape champagne ice cream cone, the first real ice cream (non-soft serve) we have had in Taiwan, so delicious as we walked the boardwalk! Then, we took our places among all the others to watch the sunset, when rather quickly a giant cloud came out of nowhere and blocked the whole sky! We had heard so much about the Danshui sunset but ended up not seeing any of it, completely blocked!! Kind of a bummer, but we asked Iris to go back and take pictures for us sometime! She's here until June.

We had the day off school on Monday, so we traveled to Yanmingshan Mountain. It was quite the journey. We should have learned by now that even what we anticipate being quick always turns into a larger ordeal. We rode the MRT, then connected to a city bus, which we took to the top of the mountain. Then, we needed to wait for another bus, a shuttle, to take us around the mountain. Of course, the schedule was only printed in Chinese and we had to wait awhile until a nice Chinese couple came along and was able to help us find the destinations we were interested in seeing. However, just as with Taroko Gorge, the maps were well marked by the destinations were not. We had no idea when we were supposed to get off the shuttle, so when some people hopped off, so did we! Not where we wanted to end up, and the trail we were intersted in was blocked by 4 vicious dogs who kept barking at us and chasing us. I wasn't about to get bit in the middle of nowhere on top of an isolated mountain! There are stray dogs EVERYWHERE, but we have never seen them bark or be aggressive before, very uncharacteristic so it freaked us out! We walked a bit then found another trail going down into the mountains. It was a lovely hike, deep down into the mountainside. We felt like we were in the jungle surrounded by all the sounds and greenery. It was funny because there was some fall foliage, which is not common in Taiwan, so it was marked on the trail as a point of interest! We wound through natural growing bamboo, which was very neat, since our last bamboo trail was rather disappointing. I was terrified of getting eaten alive by some monkeys, but Alaina didn't seem too concerned. Anyhow, we survived, and finally found a bus again and hopped on. We ended up riding up, around, and finally down the mountain. It turned out to be a blessing because there was so much to see!

Our farewell dinner at the school was on Monday night. The principal, teachers, our supervisor, and several administrators gathered at a fancy Chinese restaurant for dinner. We shared several courses that were on a rotating disk in the middle of the table. I liked almost everything, so either the meal was excellent, or the food is growing on me?! What a lovely way to end our internship, but it wasn't over yet....

Today we are at school for a final day! Last Friday, we had given our "bus lady" a small gift to show our appreciation. She rides the bus, accompanying students to and from school. She doesn't speak English, so we wrote out a thank you card and then had Harriet translate the message. She was so appreciative, and today, when we got on the bus, she had a gift for us! She said, "for you!" and gave us some Taiwanese cookies. So very nice of her! It was just so neat because I feel like we've grown to know her on the long rides up and down the mountain each day, although we have had zero verbal communication. I just think that is really neat.

 Alaina and I spent the morning baking apple pie from scratch in the home economics room. The home ec teacher helped us find the necessary utensils, and we had luckily been able to purchase all of the necessary ingredients. We made three pies to share with teachers and staff as a "thank you." We served the Principal and Superintendant and their staff members, our entire office, and many of our teacher friends. They LOVED the pie, and many people came back for seconds. Harriet had picked up some vanilla ice cream, which made it even better!

My favorite part of the whole day was when my mentor teacher handed me a stack of cards and notes from my grade eight students! It turned out that they had asked her to take some time to write me a note to say thank you and goodbye, and they were really sad about it yesterday! Wow, I did not expect that! Their notes were adorable; several students drew a giant blue eye and wrote, "Your eyes are so beautiful!" haha...that really left an impression on them! But it made me feel good to know that they appreciated my efforts of trying to plan enjoyable yet meaningful learning activities, or at least that they enjoyed my teaching. A very nice ending to my time here. Many students also asked for my email address today to correspond....so different than in America!

Only a couple hours left then our time here at KCBS is done! Tonight, we will go to Carrefour, the department store, to have pearl milk tea one last time and pick up a few things to bring home with us. Tomorrow, we will pack, shop, and maybe squeeze one last little adventure in before taking off. We have dinner reservations for Wednesday night with Harriet at our favorite little hot pot restaurant. So delicious!

My Birthday in Taiwan & Last Day Teaching

What an eventful birthday! Definitely unique and one that I will remember forever! It started off with a lovely Skype conversation with the family, then heading to school for my LAST DAY of teaching! In retrospect, I cannot believe it is over already! It seemed so tedious but now it's just a blur! Anyways, I had my final observation first period. I was very worried because this is the final day of assessment week for the students in their Chinese courses. In other words, working hard for me on my last day here when they were already burned out would be a challenge, so I was worried! However, needlessly so! My students were wonderful and participated and asked great questions.

When I told the students it was my last day here, three of my four blocks were very sad and told me they would miss me, etc....the "challenging" class, however, had less nice things to say. I am sort of glad I couldn't make out the Chinese. Sort of a dissapointment, but I can only do so much if they are not willing to meet me halfway. Anyhow, I took pictures of each of my classes at the end of the period. Whereas this would be a big deal in the US and require a plethora of paperwork, taking pictures of students and classrooms is ok in Taiwan. Also, many students asked for my email address and facebook information. In the US, I would never, EVER consider being facebook friends with a student, it's a big "no no" for teachers, in my opinion. However, in Taiwan it is culturally acceptable and all of my collegues are friends with the students on facebook. So I ended up giving my contact information to a few students who wanted to send me emails, etc...good English practice for them, at least!

At lunchtime, someone came to my desk and said, "The principal wants to see you!" So Alaina and I were escorted downstairs, where we were met by many people saying "Happy Birthday!" Everyone was speaking in Chinese and I was SO confused...I didn't even know half the people and thought it was strange they would be having a birthday celebration of this calibur for me. Finally, I spotted the cake with a "65" candle and realized it was also the superintendant's birthday!  Before long, I was being coaxed iutno a picture with the superintendant and also another teacher whose birthday was today! They had these very, VERY long Taiwanese noodles and pig's feet in bowls. It is a traditional Taiwanese birthday meal, and the noodles represent longevity, so you're not allowed to bite them. Since my chopstick skills are still very bad, I was once again embarassed to eat a difficult meal in front of twenty plus people. But I'm getting used to it now! A very fun celebration!

After finishing up our teaching day, my mentor teacher told me she needed to meet with me in the teacher's lounge, so down we went, and sat there for about ten minutes until another teacher came and told us we were wanted in my supervisor's office. My mentor's mistake...she had the wrong location! So up we went and there were many of the teachers with a BEAUTIFUL birthday cake! I will definitely miss the sweets in Taiwan, because they are much LESS sweet, but have more different pieces and parts, which I enjoy.

Then, tonight, Harriet and Alaina planned a lovely birthday dinner at Grazie Cafe, a nice italian restaurant down the street! Several teachers and administrators from the school joined us, and it was so much fun! Harriet brought Dan-Dan, the dog...and another lady brought her two adorable toddlers. Between the three of them, we were easily entertained for a few hours!


All in all, it was a wonderful birthday! I am reminded once again of the wonderful people I have met while in Taiwan, and even though I am SO ready to come home, I will miss them!

Hump Day of the Last Week of Teaching

Well, only two more days of teaching left now! Today was an "easy day" since my mentor wanted me to show a movie to my grade eight students since they are mid-exam week. They watched "Mean Girls" since it semi-relates to bullying. It's so funny because I would NEVER want to (or be allowed to) show that movie to even a high school class in the United States. It made me feel a little funny, but the rules as far as that type of thing goes are much less strict. Similarly, teachers can take pictures of the students here without any questions asked. When I had to tape a lesson in the US, each student needed to fill out a form and have it signed by their parents, then I needed to rearrange the classroom to assure that those students were not in the video. Also, I had a student ask if we could be facebook friends yesterday. That freaked me out, because I would NEVER think of "friending" one of my students from the USA. I deliberated and tried to avoid it, telling him, "Maybe once I'm back in America," even though it made me feel SO uncomfortable. Very different, as many teachers here are "friends" with their students. I never really realized how ingrained within me the American standards of professionalism had become until now! Showing the video was somewhat comical, though, to see how the students' reactions were so different than in America. They laughed at totally different things than American students would find humorous, and their reactions were hilarious!

Also, I forgot to mention that I got a package in the mail at the beginning of this week!  My mentor teacher from home sent me "Happy Thanksgiving" cards made by each of my students from home! It was such a nice surprise and very inspiring after a lonnng and difficult few days. Some of them were hilarious, giving me advice on how to deal with my students here, Thankgiving jokes/stories...others were just sweet, and some students drew me a Thanksgiving meal or a big, juicy hamburger, haha, little do they know that WAS our Thanksgiving feast! The perfect way to start the week! And I will say, opening them here I was able to see the huge contrast between my groups of students here and in the US. The differences in maturity level, student-teacher rapport, and artistic ability were pretty noticeable!

I will teach tomorrow and Friday as well. Alaina and I just updated our Bucket List to see what we have left to do, and there are still several things! Since we are already well over our 60 days and our role at the school is winding down, our supervisor agreed to let us take off one or two days next week to do some last minute sightseeing, such as go to the Flora Expo, National Palace Museum, visit a mountain with hot springs, etc....So, our only school obligation for  next week is to bake the teachers some heavily-requested apple pies in the home-ec room!

The Weekend in "Gorge"ous Taiwan

This weekend was definitely a time of excitement, adventure, new surroundings, and trying new foods. On Friday, Harriet met Alaina and I at a famous hot pot restaurant after school. We had mentioned that we wanted to learn how to make hot pots since they're one of the foods we really enjoy, so Harriet suggest we try this place, since they make the food right in front of you and you add the ingredients yourself.

The hot pot eating was an experience in itself! It is a very social meal that can linger for hours as you add more ingredients. I really want to learn how to make them at home and have friends over to try, but the vegetables we use here are very different. First, they heat a soup broth mixed with salt and garlic, very basic, on a hot burner. We chose whether we wanted rice or noodles, and we chose rice, so that comes in a bowl on the side. Then, they bring a giant bowl of vegetables, etc to gradually add to the soup mixture. We had cabbage, several kinds of chinese mushrooms, pumpkin, melons, and probably more. Then, we selected our meats. We ordered seafood and beef. Alaina and I freaked out when they brought the raw beef rolls, but learned quickly that when you add them to the hot liquid they cook right up and are quite delicious. We tried some shrimp and various fish cakes, which are thinly sliced and have colorful designs. They are smooth, and might have a flower or other picture on the side. I am not a huge fan of the seafood, or as Alaina and I always say, "I can eat it, but it's nothing I would choose to eat." Anyhow, I love the concept of sharing the main bowl and gradually adding what you want to eat as you want to eat it, then transferring it to your own small bowl! Oh, also, big news: We tried the PIG'S BLOOD CAKE  (blood coated rice)! I wanted to wait until my birthday, but seized the opportunity when it came along. It was kind of anti-climactic because it was not a strong taste at all, just basically, it tasted like rice. Alright, I will move on before I need to create a separate blog just for food!

And then the adventures began....

Alaina and I traveled first by MRT and then by train to Hualien, Taiwan early Saturday morning. We would be staying at the "Crossing the Rainbow Bridge Bed and Breakfast" right inside the Taroko Gorge National park. We weren't sure exactly how long the train ride would be, or when we should get off. Then, after a couple hours, a man approached Alaina and told her she was in his seat. We then realized that it was the stop we were supposed to get off at, and he was taking over her spot. So, we jumped up and headed quickly towards the exit. We deliberated whether or not to get off....it is so hard to determine since our ticket was mostly in Chinese, and the stop was not called "Hualien" as we had anticipated. A man near the exit explained we should get off, and we got out just in time; my right foot was still in the train as it began moving!

Once at the train station, we were picked up by the owner of our bed & breakfast and her daughter. It turns out that the daughter is going to grad school in St. Louis, and is considering transferring to Case Western...."Have you ever heard much about Cleveland?" was her first question, and so of course, conversation took off from there as I told her all about my city and she reciprocated by telling us about Hualien and their hometown. These were the NICEST people ever! The bed & breakfast was absolutely adorable, and it was located at the entrance to Taroko National Park, where we would be spending most of our time, so we felt right at home but quickly headed out to do some exploring.

 We took a shuttle bus through the gorge, winding up and around the mountains. It was SO beautiful! Having never really explored the natural wonders of the west, I was even more amazed by the breathtaking views and wondrous rock formations. Although our map was well marked, the stops were not. So, when we felt we should hop off of the bus at a semi-populated spot, we did! Alaina and I enjoyed a lovely hike and took lots of pictures along the scenic trail. After a couple of hours of following our map on the hiking trail, we passed through a very dark road tunnel. And then another, and another. We realized something just wasn't right as the traffic was zooming past and we were inching our way through the darkness. After several tunnels, we didn't know what to do. Without any phone reception or any clue how much longer our tunneling would last, we needed to decide if we should just turn back. We were both a little panicked as we envisioned ourselves getting pummeled by oncoming traffic, but we decided of two not-so-great options, we should turn around. So, back we went, the way we came, and we still don't know where we went wrong. But we survived!

Once we got back to our starting point, we were still puzzled as to when the bus would come/where it would be. It was all very confusing. Then, we ran into two familiar faces from the earlier shuttle ride. The two guys were also confused and their hike didn't seem to follow either, so it really must be bad marking. One was from LA and the other guy was from Australia, both backpacking across Asia. They were so interesting and we had a lot of fun and ended up heading to another trail to hike with them.

Together we visited a bamboo grove trail, which was cool but very short. And then we ran into someone we knew! Yes, in Taiwan! All of a sudden, I heard "Teacher! Teacher!" Sure enough, we were passing the entire group of Singapore students that our school had housed two weeks earlier. They were out east continuing their tour of Taiwan. We know maybe fifteen people in this country....WHAT IS THE CHANCE THAT WE RUN INTO A GROUP OF STUDENTS THREE HOURS FROM WHERE WE MET THEM ON A SMALL, UNPOPULAR TRAIL? So funny, and they asked Alain, "Teacher, do you have the essays we wrote? Can we have them?" She had to say, "No, sorry, I don't have them with me?" Too funny.

After a long day of hiking, the owner of our bed & breakfast asked Alaina and I if we would like to join him for dinner at a local restaurant. So, we said sure and went along. The owners are indigenous Taroko people, as are most residents of the area. So, we had soup and dumplings, and he of course commented on my poor chopstick skills, which was embarrassing but I'm getting used to it! He introduced us to all the locals. It was kind of funny because we felt like celebrities there at times. It also felt strange because there were other guests at the b&b and they were not getting special treatment....

Sunday morning, we decided to wake up EARLY for the sunrise. If we walked outside of our door and across the Rainbow Bridge, we would have the perfect view. So, off we went only to find the sunrise was completely blocked by a gigantic cloud...how disappointing!

Later, we borrowed the bikes from the B&B and rode to another trail that was highly recommended by several people. I thought we were going to DIE...nobody told us we would be winding up and down and through the steep mountains. No wonder Dr. Myers laughed at us when I mentioned we planned to "bike through the gorge..." we barely made it to the trail! But we survived, and it was an awesome hike! The sign at the entrance read: Beware of Killer Bees and Poisonous Snakes....eeek! But we didn't see any. However, once a little bit along the trail I saw the biggest spider of my entire life, blocking the way. I mean, it must have been four inches in diameter! It was jump into the river or cross the spider, so I did what I had to do! As we traveled onward, we passed several aboriginal villages. I was kind of surprised that the aboriginal people were permitted to live inside the national park, but I guess there were several areas set aside as reservations. And by villages, I mean two or three little campsites clustered together with a couple animals....very primitive, but so interesting! The view of the river was lovely, and the water was the clearest, prettiest blue I have ever seen! Ironically, we ran into our hiking friends from the day before on this trail, too!

After a weekend that was both relaxing and long, we were exhausted. The break from the city was nice, but we were ready to get back and still had lesson planning to do. We arrived in Taipei around 7:30 pm. Again, I was so amazed by the kindness and generosity of the people at the Taroko Gorge, and it is always nice to see different areas of Taiwan.

This week will be my last full week of teaching. Today I gave my eighth graders a "speaking test," which is required by the school but the format is up to me. I chose to do interview questions, both personal and content based. I was SO glad to have done this activity because it gave students a chance to practice their speaking and allowed me a change to interact with them one-on-one, and get to know them better. I would say it went really well and was very worthwhile!

School Today

Alright, so today was a MUCH better school day! My grade seven and eight students all had their "Reading Assessment" today, covering the novel, vocabulary, and short stories I have been teaching/reviewing with them. I was SO nervous that they wouldn't do well, but I was pretty happy with their scores! Almost all students seemed to put forth effort, and many even did better than I had anticipated.

Also, the behavior was much better in general today as well. I think it may have to do with the students knowing the expectations on a test day, since there are so many examinations at school. They were even good during the period one lesson, before the exam. So, both my eighth grade classes earned their reward for next week. While the system wasn't perfect, I think it worked overall. Oh, and I even had a few students saying hello and making conversation in the halls when I said hi to them and asking questions about the material before and after class without me pulling it out of them. So, a good day!

Alaina and I want to learn to make hot pots before we come home. It is one of the few foods we really enjoy, basically a broth base with noodles and various vegetables. Like soup. So, Harriet made reservations at this very famous hot pot restaurant tonight where they cook them right in front of us. We'll do that, and then it's off to Hualien on the east coast EARLY in the morning! I am SO looking forward to the weekend and escaping the city once again, especially because the weather hasn't been too bad the past couple of days.

Noticing the Simple Things

It is so funny how when you're having a reallllly bad day, the smallest things can turn it around. This morning was AWFUL. My grade seven students have their reading exam tomorrow, and so I planned several review activities for today. During  first period, we began to play review jeopardy to review the three short stories, novel, and vocabulary words that they will be tested over. This is the class that is largest (24 students compared the the 16 or so in other classes), and their Chinese chatter was out of control! Finally, I had to stop the game and have them return to their seats to read quietly. The second part of the period I told them that they had a choice: Either they could remain on task and work in small groups to create and present posters based on review questions for each story, or simply answer the questions by themselves at their desks. Of course, they chose the posters, but after about ten minutes I could clearly see that was not going to work out. So, back to their seats and I was frustrated...I raised my voice more than I ever have during teaching, and they became silent. Then, I made them record the answers silently in their notebooks and I checked it all before they left. I felt miserable by the end, counting down the minutes. I hate to use these threats and always be hounding them about the Chinese, etc....but I don't know what else to do! My mentor said that it is cultural, and that's just how it is here because that is how all the Chinese teachers operate. Threats and yelling until it yields results....so NOT how I want to be acting in the ideal situation. So, I decided that maybe I am taking the wrong approach. I am going to try and do much more whole-class activities from now on, because I don't think they are used to doing any group work. It has taken me a couple weeks, but I think that they really do need the scaffolding and reinforcement of whole-class learning. Maybe, when I put them in groups, even though I assign roles and give them specific questions to look for, I am setting them up for failure because they're not used to it?

Anyhow, I marched into my last period class expecting to repeat the experience with my challenging grade 8 class. However, I am SO pleasantly surprised to report that they were WONDERFUL! During Jeopardy, they were dead silent, completely engaged and enthusiastic about the review. Then, they had a different set of projects to present and did wonderfully, and the audience was very attentive. During our last activity, they were again participating and engaged. At the end of class, they asked "Do we get our point for today?" (They need two more points to get a reward next week)....and they were interacting with me after class and willing to make conversation...oh how I needed that! It's really hard to build rapport here. Whereas in the halls of Mapleton kids would flock to the doorway to make morning conversation, it is very difficult to get even a hello in the halls here, probably because the student-teacher relationship is very different and they do not think of teachers as someone to help answer questions or confide in, at least that's how it seems from what I've observed.

The thing with teaching is that those small positive "deposits" are so necessary to keep going. It could be the slightest thing, and yet it means so much. Whether it's a student asking a good question, performing well on a test, or saying hello in the hallway, those things all count for something and they are so valuable. I think it's important, especially in this environment, when my day was going not well at all, to embrace the small blessings. They're easy to lose track of, but while it's important to learn and grow from the negative, searching for the good is crucial as well and is the fuel a teacher needs to keep going!

Also, today is Thanksgiving. Alaina and I didn't find a way to get our hands on some turkey, so we'll just need to celebrate when we get back to the USA. Still, I will say that being halfway around the world on this day is helping me to see the ways in which I am blessed much more clearly than if they were right in front of me. It's a very different perspective and I hope I don't ever forget the feeling of gratitude for my wonderful friends, family, and country that I have right now.

Tough Teaching Times

Well, I can hardly believe it but this is my second-to-last week of teaching already! I am teaching both seventh and eigth graders full time now and it's exhausting! While lesson planning is easier in a way (I don't need to prepare as many activities per day because the pacing is different), monitoring 3 to 4 classes for a double period each day is draining, especially since most of the classes are not well behaved, so I feel like I am constantly "policing."

This is probably my hardest week of teaching so far. I am frustrated when the students continually speak Chinese in the classroom. This is a problem that all teachers face, but it seems especially bad this week. My mentor says it is probably because the students are under a lot of pressure with testing. I hate the feeling of almost being powerless when they converse in Chinese, because I have no way of knowing whether they are on tastk. On monday, some students asked to shorten my name, and later, I found out they were laughing and laughing because their nickname meant something negative in Chinese. I have tried implementing a points system, verbal warnings, taking away participation ponits, and replacing group activities with individual assignments. NOTHING seems to work....I am at a loss of what else to do, so I just will try to monitor it the best that I can for the next two weeks. It makes me feel both better and worse that noone else at the school has seemed to figure it out yet, either, since it is an ongoing problem.

This week I am also having many issues with the students' maturity level. It is SO different than in the USA, and while I try to keep that in mind, it makes lesson planning difficult. I like to get students up and moving, doing fun activities, but this almost always ends in disaster because the students often cannot handle it. For example, today they were doing a jigsaw activity and creating posters when two boys stood up and started doing cartwheels. Simultaneously, another group of students were drawing all over themselves with the pastels. Similarly, three students drew VERY inappropriate pictures on assignments that they handed in. Whereas in the US there are set steps I could take to deal with these issues and students, the school here does not have any discipline system in place. So, I feel like I am always using empty threats, etc....not the kind of teacher I want to be at all!

While I don't think I am learning concrete techniques that I would want to use in the classroom, or even practicing teaching in the same way (lots of things that are necessary to do here are against my philosophy of education that I would want to have back home), I am grateful to be developing a skill set that will benefit me back home. I would mention what that entails here, but I am not quite sure yet...its still a work in progress! I definitely feel stronger from the experience, and while I'm not necessarily enjoying the teaching aspect of things as much as I had hoped, I am growing in ways I hadn't necessarily expected, both personally and professionally.

A Day at Wulai

Today, we traveled to a nearby nature and hotsprings area called Wulai with Harriet, Jessica, her husband, and eight month old baby! Just as a reminder, Harriet is the teacher supervisor (not ours) at school, who we live with. And Jessica is the school secretary, who picked us up from the airport and has helped us book a lot of our excursions. When they asked us if we would like to go hiking, I pictured the Cleveland Metroparks and anticipated full-nature immersion. I should have known better than to get what I expected!

Wulai is famous for its hot springs, so there are many, many resorts and spas lining the roads. While it was beautiful and natural, we did not do any hiking. And, being Taiwan, of course there were food stands that lined the roads along the way! So, it was a day of walking, AND eating...and we were feeling pretty adventurous! Jessica insisted that we try a grilled sausage on a stick with a special sauce, her favorite food. They were DELICIOUS!

We took a train up through the mountains that dropped us off near a beautiful waterfall. There were restaurants nearby, and we sampled some more native foods. First, we had sticky rice in bamboo shoots. I really liked it, and the bamboo flavor soaks into the rice, too. Then, they ordered a couple dishes for us all to share. The first was pork with peppers, carrots, and onions. It was good, but the texture of the meat here still kind of freaks me out! Second was a plate of a green vegetable in a sauce. I tried it and said "Mmm, good!" Harriet said, "well, you didn't get any of the little fish!" Alaina and I looked back at the plate again and realized there were the little fish mixed in we had been so afraid of when we saw them on the streets previously. I am pretty sure they are like minnoes, or similar to them. But, we knew what we had to do.  So down went my chopsticks and I snatched up a little fish, skin and all.....chewed, and swallowed. Nothing I would choose to eat, but I survived. I was really worried about Alaina, though, since she was more freaked out than I was. She put the little fish up to her mouth then froze. Before I knew it, Harriet was nudging her chopsticks and shoved it in her mouth! She sure does push us to try new foods. She was pretty grossed out by it but thankfully managed to swallow.

We walked around that area and looked at the natural stuff and some little shops, then made our way back up the mountain. They wanted Alaina and I to pay to put our fingers in this fish water where the fish clean your skin, very famous....but there was a long wait. I have never heard of such a thing! We also tried a couple other foods, including one of the hardboiled eggs that always look so scary to me. Tasted pretty much like a normal egg, though. We were so full already, but we still had plans to go to Jessica's mom's house for dinner.

We had such a nice time at Jessica's mom's house! They have an apartment not too far from where we live. It was really neat to see another house, and the layout. It had two floors and you could take stairs from outside to the second floor. Jessica's mom lives there with her younger brother and sister, who were also there. Her brother hopes to study in the United States, so he was eager to practice his English with us. Jessica's mom didn't speak English, but I wish I could've communicated with her because I would tell she was very nice and funny, too. She said something to Jessica, who spit out her rice and laughed in embarassment, then said, "My mom wants me to tell you that you both have pretty eyes and you look like Barbie Dolls." Hahaha.....we laughed out loud, that was a first!

The meal was a traditional Taiwanese meal, and it was delicious! We were so nervous to try it since we hadn't found too many appealing meals on the streets thus far, but it was not at all like other foods we had seen! The Taiwanese style meant that we each had a dish of rice, then her mom placed four different dishes on the table. Everyone just takes a little bit of this or that and adds it to the rice, then grabs a little of something else, and after that is gone, another bite of the first thing, etc....so everyone is sharing the same four dishes the entire meal. I thought it was a really good idea and rather enjoyed it. Except for the fact that I am still HORRIBLE at chopsticks. They all laughed at me and tried to fix my chopstick skills once again, but I think it might be hopeless. I am still trying, though, and refused to eat with a fork and spoon!

After dinner, we took a big picture with Jessica's whole family and then headed to the night market down the street with Harriet, where we picked up some soybean and pearl dessert to bring home. I had tried the same dessert when we arrived, but didn't like it. This time, I thought it was good! It just shows that I am getting more and more adjusted to the foods, smells, sights, and sounds of Taipei. I can safely say that my "culture shock" is finally gone. It may have lasted three weeks, but this past week I have finally begun to embrace the culture and have a running list of everything I will miss once I go home. It's really funny how that starts to change, and don't get me wrong, I will still be happy to be home, but at the same time, there are pieces of this culture that I am beginning to enjoy!

Bamboo Sticky Rice

Our Traditional Homecooked Meal!

Us with Jessica's Family

When In Doubt, Ask!

On Saturday, Alaina and I decided to return to Dasi, a small town that we had passed through on the school cycling trip. We were unaware of the extent of the adventure we were about to embark on! To get back to Dasi, we needed to travel by MRT to a train, then finally, take a bus on the last leg of our journey. Once at the train station, we realized we had NO idea what to do, since our tickets this time were printed in Chinese. We asked a nice couple at the train station to help us out, and it turned out they were confused too, but still helpful since they spoke the language! So, we boarded the train together and went off to Tauyuan, where we needed to catch the bus. Of course, it could not be that simple and we had to ask directions from two more people before we could find the bus. It was MUCH farther than we had remembered, and about two hours later, we finally arrived!

Dasi has an "old street" which has very nice shopping for traditional items....that was what drew us back. We also tried some foods while we were there, including BBQ grilled corn on the cop. Alaina was disgusted by it and went on an on about how horrible it tasted, and in the meantime I had eaten all of mine and was thinking , "It is just an ear of corn. What is her problem?" Finally, I let Alaina try my piece and she said, "Well, this is normal!! Try MINE!" and her ear was horrible and raw. So funny that we were trying two completely different foods after talking about it for a good five minutes or so! We also had some rice dough coated in peanut butter topping, and some rice balls filled with red bean. These are very typical for that area and also Wulai, where we went on Sunday.

Well, the journey went well, except for it was getting dark and we realized that once we climbed up to the mountain village, we had no ideao how to get back! After winding up and down some streets and trying to figure it out on our own, we realized that would be impossible since the buses only had chinese writing in that area. We returned to a shop where we had made a rather large purchase, and the girl, probably high school age, told us she would show us where to catch a bus. She walked us ALL THE WAY to the bus station, at least a half mile away down winding roads. We never would have found it! She was sooo nice to do that! Among the others that helped us along the way, we met a woman who tried a little charades to explain, a bus driver who wrote the amount on his hand, another man who drew the departure time in the air with his finger, a clerk at 7-11 who drew us a map.....after a couple hours, we were safely home! Yesterday was a day when the language barrier REALLY got to us, though! Again, I was so amazed at how kind and helpful people were though. When I was in France, people never went out of their way to help us to the extent that these people are willing to go. Even when we are lost and feel pretty dumb for not knowing exactly how to get home, I am usually not nervous because it is so populated and you pass someone every two feet who is more than eager to conversate and speak English, and help us. So, back to the lesson we learned on Day 1, after plugging our power strip into the 220 voltage outlet.....When in Doubt, Ask.

As of Late

Well, I haven't written since the weekend, so it's probably time for some updates.

School this week is going SO much better. I played "vocabulary bingo" with my eighth graders, and they really enjoyed it. Even the "bad" class was participating, and even the sleepers were awake. I am going to try and do many more review games as we prepare for the exams next week.

*****break.....go to class and try partner "Speed Interviewing"****

WOAH....nevermind, that class cannot handle so much freedom after all! It amazes me how different my two eighth grade classes are! Just got back from total mass chaos, and the students were not taking the activity seriously or staying on task at all. However, I will still try again tomorrow because that class is usually much more mature and offers more potential. The behavioral issues here still astound me compared to the United States. I wouldn't even say there are more discipline problems, they are just SO different. Many issues of immaturity with the students here that we often don't see in the states. I'm not quite sure how to explain it, but I need to be attentive at all times but looking for different things.

As the 14 weeks comes to a close, all teachers must give their students reading, writing, and speaking assessments. These exams count as a large portion of the students' grades. I can now evaluate high-stakes testing pressure first hand and comment on the tendency to "teach to the test."

The writing assessment for all students is a persuasive essay this time around. I have bent over backwards trying to think of creative and engaging activities to teach the students the format of a persuasive essay. Test day was Wednesday, and I was WORRIED. I felt like I had done everything in my power, and it was up to them. However, I have just finished grading and most students did really well! It's just such a different approach here, though, you really need to scaffold because of the language barrier. I allowed students to use a prewriting graphic organizer for one period and review the requirements before writing. It was funny even to grade their tests, because lots of words I would normally use to leave comments would be unknown to them, and therefore, must be left out of mix.

Yesterday, the grade seven students had "health examinations." I went along just to see what it was like and it was quite the experience! The students had a full-body exam, including testing for nutrition and seeing a dentist! Far more thorough than in the United States, and quite entertaining to see the students running around chaotically and comparing health reports, speeding down the hall with urine sample in hand!

Some funny things from the domestic angle as well! Last night, before Harriet got home, someone rang the bell. I went to answer the door, expecting it was probably someone I wouldn't be able to understand, and sure enough it was a Taiwanese woman who had a booklet of pink papers. She kept trying to tell me something and I simply repeated, "I don't know, Sorry!" in chinese...some of the few words I know! Then she pulled out $100 and was trying to signal, I thought that the pink card cost $100, so I said "I'm not interested (English) Sorry! (Chinese)!" With that, I closed the door. Only later did I find out it was the building services cleaning lady coming around to collect the $100 payment that was due!! I thought it was hilarious and felt horrible at the same time....Harriet says, she will be back though!

Also, I got my hair cut last night! Harriet met me at the salon to explain how I wanted it, rather than trying to tell the girl over the phone. So, I sat down and the hairdresser started looking at my head and asking some questions in chinese, which Harriet translated: When did you shower last? What time do you go to bed? Do you drink a lot of water? I was a little freaked out wondering what their analyzing woulc conclude, and finally Harriet explained that the hairdresser thought my head indicated that I was dehydrated! Well, maybe true, better news that I thought I would hear after the interrogation! Again, I had the funny-miserable-amused feeling that comes with being a foreigner who doesn't speak the language. Anyways, the haircut was great, and only cost $250!!!! What a deal, right? Actually, that is about $9 American and no tipping necessary...I like this place!

Tomorrow is my first observation at school by my supervisor, so I have some adjusting to do, after my not-so-functional activity today. I am going to go out on a limb and try it, still, though, because this is the time to try things and see what works!!

A Weekend Down South

This weekend, Alaina and I decided to take a trip to Kenting in southern Taiwan and spend the weekend at the beach. We left Saturday morning and traveled via the high speed train. After our two hour train ride, we planned to take a taxi the extra two hours to the beach. The train ride was no problem, but when we arrived at the station, a strange man came running up to us and said, "Kenting? Kenting?" and motioned for us to follow him. The whole thing seemed sketchy, and he didn't speak any English. He was getting really angry that we wouldn't go with him so went and found another man to translate. Still, he was unable to tell us the name of our hotel, where he was taking us, the phone number, or name of the lady who had contacted him for us! After about twenty minutes of debate, we finally called the lady at our accomodation and she confirmed that this was the guy. He was angry, but the whole situation was weird so I am still glad we were hesitant.

Once at the beach, we immediately realized the different pacing in southern Taiwan. It was MUCH slower, and people lingered and talked and just seemed to hang out a lot more. The place where we stayed was supposed to be "exotic" and that it was....just not in all the ways we had pictured! It was down an alley off of the main road, so a pretty good location. Our room was very simple but looked clean enough. It was painted crazy colors, kind of bohemian style. We couldn't find the bathroom at first then opened the door leading outside and there it was! Yes, the toilet and shower were definitely outside in the middle of a little garden out back!

After dropping off our stuff we headed to the beach. We finally found the "beach" that our hotel owner suggested and it was a VERY tiny cove. Within the first ten minutes, it started to POUR and rained the entire night. It turns out it's off season, so there weren't many people there. We couldn't really stay at the beach for long, so after dinner we wandered the night market. With nothing else to do, we decided to be a little adventurous and tried several night market foods, including squid on a stick! It turned out to be pretty good.

After many let-downs and thinking about all we went through to get down there, we went to bed pretty discouraged.

But then we awoke to SUNSHINE! So, we decided to give the beach another try. It turned out to be a beautiful day and we really enjoyed it. SO relaxing and much needed since the sun rarely shines here.

So in the end, it was a good weekend, it just didn't go exactly as planned, but at least we can say it was quite the experience and we had a good adventure!

School Cycling Trip

Wow, what a fun Thursday at school! After the cycling trip, I feel like I could definitely handle the laid back style of the school field trips at KC!!

We went to school on the bus, but as soon as we got to the top of the mountain we turned around and got on another bus to travel to our cycling location. There were several KC students, maybe 8 or so, and then a group of about 10 students from the visiting school in Singapore. In addition to a couple of teachers, our principal came along as well.

We rode the bus to the bike station, where we were able to choose the bike we wanted to ride on the trip. It was an interesting day for us because EVERYTHING was in Chinese, so our principal put forth a lot of effort to translate for us. He was definitely watching out for us, asking "Do you have your sunglasses? How about the sunscreen? Did you wear sporty clothes?" Very personable, accomodating and helpful, and giving us lots of suggestions of what to do. So different from the image of the too-busy, distanced adminstrators we had expected.

The cycling trip was such an awesome experience! We rode about seven miles in total to our final destination, a small village in the mountains. The trail was diverse and we rode alongside a beautiful river, through some more wooded areas, by several larger sized temples, and even passed by an aboriginal village! When we reached the destination, we dropped our bikes and hiked up the mountain where we could do lunch and shopping. The students from Singapore were very interested in spending time with us, and a group of girls invited us to do some shopping with them and have lunch. There were many nice shops there with very authentic handcrafted items such as bamboo chests and clay teapots.

Afterwards, we learned that we would leave our bikes below and board a bus instead. So, we got on and Alaina and I both fell asleep. Next thing we knew, 45 minutes had passed and we opened our eyes and had no idea where we were. Before we knew it, we were getting off the bus and walking down this beautiful street lined with palms. Everyone was talking Chinese, so we just followed along, not sure where we were going. We thought the field trip ended with the bike ride?! Before long, we entered a ceramic museum, and we were led to seats in the back room with paints all set up. Soon, it became pretty clear that we were all going to paint a cup and then make our own piece of pottery on a potter wheel, but his directions, about 20 minutes long, were again entirely in Chinese! It was kind of fun to try and figure out what we were supposed to be from his body language and examples, without knowing the various steps. Our Singapore friends helped translate, and we were able to catch on pretty quickly.

Eventually, we got back on our buses and headed to the school, arriving at about 5:20 pm. Length alone made this a very different type of trip than an American school would take. Also, students were granted much more freedom. I am finding that these schools are looser than American schools in many ways, and the chaperoning of the field trip was no exception.

All in all, it was a lovely day and such a nice break from the lonnnnng school hours mid-week, and a great opportunity to spend time with students in a more informal yet still school-related setting.

  A bridge we crossed along our journey...

View from the cycling path...

 The principal getting all the students lined up and ready to go!



School Days-The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly of Teaching in Taipei

Well, I suppose it is time to give a school update. I am getting more used to the school environment here, but it is still a difficult adjustment in many ways. I am learning how to structure my lessons to meet the needs of the English language learners and am getting better at pacing. However, the students' behavior is still so different that it is hard to know how to react.

I am still unsure of when class is supposed to start every day. I mean, I do have a bell schedule, but there are never any students in my classroom by the time the bell rings, or usually for a good five to ten minutes afterwards. This is the way it seems to be in most classes, so teachers begin locking the doors as an incentive to get students to come rushing to class. This would NEVER fly in the US, and I'm sure it's illegal. I did fill out some "pink slips" last week for late students, which seemed to make them angry enough to improve their attendance. Still, there doesn't seem to be any set discipline plan that is used school wide. These students are just sent to the office to confer with administration. It's hard to find ways to make students be attentive when there is no fall-back, such as detentions or staying after class, or missing out on this or that, etc. However, I cannot stand the constant chatter so I always wait for all students to be quiet. I do not think the students are used to this, but they seem to be adapting to my expectations fairly well and are behaving better than I anticipated based on my initial observations.

It's Week 11, and assessment starts Weeks 12 and 13. We were told they try really hard not to teach to the test. But, when you have an overwhelming amount of content and limited time, I am starting to see how it is easy to fall into that patter. I have written out my lesson plans for the next two weeks at least 3 or 4 different times, making drastic changes each draft because I am still getting used to the students' needs and learning pace. By the time I have the "essentials" such as reading stories and mandatory quizzes in their slots, the time left over for creativity is really limited. I try to make these activities engaging, but with limited time there are only so many activities that will fit.

I am also learning the pressure that comes with assessment as I prepare my students for their writing assessment. I am teaching persuasive essays, which is extremely difficult. Working with this group of students, I need to make sure they understand all the words and concepts before I even delve into teaching the writing process. I am trying a variety of activities, some effective and some not-so-effective, so it is interesting to experiment and see what works. Still, I am extremely apprehensive for the test as the school will view it as a reflection of the teacher's competency. I am constantly fighting the urge to push the writing more and more.

I am still trying to figure out my students' cognitive abilities as well. This is very difficult, because it seems they really struggle with literal level questions. I can only ask very surface level questions at first in order to built to a greater understanding, which they sometimes don't get, even with all the scaffolding. I have two theories about this. At first, I thought it had to do with the students' education not providing them with activities to think creatively, problem solve, etc. Now, I am wondering if maybe it has more to do with the fact that English IS a second language for these students, and as learners, maybe they are unable to process on a higher level in English but excel in their Chinese courses? I will need more time to decide!

Another huge difference in the school culture became apparent when there was a small fight between two students earlier this week. One student was hurt, while the other stormed off in an angry rage to some unknown location in the school. The administration's response was, "Oh, (the student) will come back eventually once ready." Well, again, this would NEVER fly in the US. What a liability! But they were right; the student returned within fifteen minutes, after cooling down.

This week, there is a high school visiting from Singapore. When Alaina showed me some essays these guest ninth graders wrote, I was astonished! What a work ethic, and they did so well, too! We spoke to our supervisor about this, because we were curious about their academic background. She explained that they were from a very conservative school and culture, where they studied 24/7 and competed avidly to get into the top high schools. She said that although we were seeing some of the "best of the best," it was still a good snapshot of what she would call a utopia. She thinks the exchange program is good for our students to be amazed by the academic motivation of these students and for their students to see a gimpse at real life. On Thursday, we will be going on a day trip with these students to do a riverside bike ride. I am really excited!!

It's just interesting because I am shocked by the school in so many ways, but not in those that I had expected. For example, I anticipated picture-perfect students and nothing but cut-and-dry lecture, and that is not what I get at all. Still, the logistical details of school such as the scheduling, curriculum, policies and procedures are vastly different.

To end on a light note, I had the funniest experience today! I was helping a girl with an assignment and the boy sitting next to her kept staring at me intently. I could tell he was staring, and wasn't quite sure why. Finally, when I was done explaining to the female student, the boy said, "I have to ask you a question. When you look out of your green eyes, is everything you see green?" It took me a second to realize he was not accustomed to seeing eyes the color of mine, so I laughed and told him no, and then asked him, "Does everything look only brown through your eyes?" It was cute, and it seemed like his curiosity was sincere.

As I get to know the students more, it IS getting easier. I don't feel like so much of an intruder not that they know what my role is in the school, and it is refreshing to see students in the halls and on the bus and be able to wave and say hi. While it is challenging, it is moments like the above that make me remember why I'm there!

Sometimes, a Vague Plan is the Best Plan

Alaina and I had a fabulous weekend in Taipei and checked lots of activities off our must see/do list....but also did some extras that we hadn't planned for.

Friday night, we went to Shilin Night Market. EVERYONE has told us "You must get to Shilin," ever since we've arrived. it is the largest night market in Taipei. We took the metro and when we arrived, we were amused/surpised at what we found. The night market is best described as county fair meets clearance shopping meets flea market meets mass chaos. The first section we meandered through was in a big warehouse type building. There were numerous food stands, mostly with desserts and fried foods, but sit-down restaurants too. Also, there were game booths (carnival style) and shopping stall upton stall. Some little shops were selling touristy items, while others were very specialized. There were pet stores! shoe stores! book stores! ....everything and anything seemed to be sold there. However, after winding through all of the maze of stalls, it seemed like that just couldn't be it after all the hype the night market had gotten. So, we left the building and went out to the street and, realized how ridiculous we were to think it was all over, because there was literally ally upon ally of shopping and food available.
So we continued for a few more hours. Surprisingly, we didn't buy anything even though we really wanted to practice our bargaining in chinese. But I did try green tea shaved ice, which was very tasty!

Saturday, I slept in for the second time in 8 or 9 weeks. It was WONDERFUL....once Alaina and I got ready, we headed out on an adventure to the MRT stop where we had show tickets for later that night. Once again, we were surprised to find the environment completely different. It looked very Savannah, with the iron gates and trees down the middle of the roads. Big buildings with high-end shopping and hotels occupied most of the main stretch, though. These areas are comforting to me and help ease homesickness, so we enjoyed the walk. Then, we came to a small tea shop, where the owner invited us in to sample a cup of tea. We sat down at the table with him and he boiled some water and showed us how to make REAL tea. We loved it, sooo delicious! He was clearly enjoying his chance to practice his English, so we chatted for quite awhile. It was a hilarious conversation and probably my favorite part of the whole day, so then I bought some tea from him! He sad, "come back any time to drink tea with me!"

So, we decided to find a place for dinner. We walked along until we came to a restaurant that looked pretty good. It was called "Mr. Onion." We went inside and were led upstairs to a quaint loft overlooking the lit city streets. Sooo nice. And, we decided if we weren't going to be adventurous with Taiwanese foods on the streets we'd be adventurous in other ways. So, we decided to have a seven course meal! I had:
-Green Salad with Japanese Vinaigrette
-Escargots in garlic butter sauce and grilled mushrooms in cream sauce (We shared)
-Garlic Break
-French Onion Soup and Creamed Pumpkin Soup (We shared these, too)
-Spicy Clam Pasta with Bacon in Cream Sauce
-Tiramisu
-Ice Tangerine and Plum Juice Lemonade

This was our first time trying both clams and escargots. I liked both, surprisingly. This was also our first sit-down dinner, so it was verrrry nice for a change. Not bad either, only $350 each........................
Taiwanese. In American, it was only $12!! Can't beat that =)

After dinner we headed to TaipeiEYE, the show we had reserved tickets for the day before. It was a cultural experience that included Taiwanese puppets, singing, dance, and instrumental music. Not at all what we expected.....but still very interesting. It was supposed to have opera in it, but "opera" has a different meaning here than what we're used to. It wasn't as much singing as it was dancing and acrobatic moves, etc....still very cool!! We even got to try on some costumes...

Sunday, after we slept in again! we took the MRT to Taipei 101, the second tallest building in the world. Clearly, too foggy to pay to go all the way to the top (see below) since the view would be ruined by all the fog. It has floor upon floor of high end shopping with all the big designers all over the world represented. Wayyyy out of our price range but fun to look. Again, made me feel like I was in America. Then, we went to the SOGO Department Store, which was a similar experience. Expensive shopping, but not quite as much so. I'm a little over shopping for awhile, if that is even possible, but glad we went to see them, at least.

Now it's time for another school week! It's getting busier and busier as I pick up classes. I am teaching all 8th grade classes again this week. Getting my pacing down has really been a challenge. I tend to include wayyy too many activities for the time period. I am used to having eight billion different things going on in the American classroom, and these ELL just can't handle that. So, that makes lesson planning harder in a sense, but also easier, because I need to come up with fewer activities for the kids to do. I'm feeling less like an alien walking the halls now that some of the kids know who we are and why we're there, and I can say hello to them. Still working on names, but getting most of hem. It's funny because they can either choose their own American name, or their parents choose for them. It's very clear who chooses their own (Strawberry, Dora) verse having their parents select one for them.

Well, still have some planning left so I better get going on that!

Take a Peak at our City Streets

Alaina and I videotaped our walk to school from our apartment to the bus stop, and at the end of the video, a short clip of our school. It's a HUGE file, though, so we just posted it to her blog. Click the link below and then the video is in her most recent post. Enjoy! Let me know if it's what you've been picturing or different!

alaina-love.blogspot.com

Weekend Highlights

Feeling a little bit homesick after our first week at school, Alaina and I knew that it would be best for us to keep busy this weekend. Friday night we took the MRT (metro) to the Tai Power area, which is situated between two major universities. It was definitely a different scene than back by our house. Small family-owned businesses were replaced by larger, more modern establishments, and the cracked cement turned into much nicer stone walkways. It was nice to get away for awhile, and we had dinner at a burger place since there are supposedly more western restaurants out that way. Also, we did some major shopping and happened upon our first night market! Although small, it was interesting nonetheless. The foot stands, clothing stalls, and people are endless as you wind through all the little alleys. We were also surprised that more people in this area seemed to speak English. We also saw many halloween celebrators in costume, and it was refreshing to see the kids trick-or-treating to nearby stores.

One of the the things that amazes me the most about Taiwan so far is that every MRT station has its own entirely unique culture. Every time we stop somewhere new, we can sense the cultural shift and the changing atmosphere, yet we haven't left the city!

Saturday was culture day. The teachers in our department each set up a country booth with posers, foods, models and information. All attendees received some paper money to spend, and high school students sold food in their homerooms. Each homeroom was assigned a different country, and the kids got really into it. So, basically, parents and students could browse the food and cultural information at their leisure into the early afternoon. Students got really into the food selling, trying to barter with us, walking around with advertisements and portable samples, etc...it was pretty cute. And the food was good! We got a kick out of the American booth: peanut butter sandwiches, brownies, chips and salsa. Yep, that's America?! Also, there was an intersting mix of students dressed up for Halloween and also for various cultures. We were so surprised and amused to see many people dressed as "Americans" in cowboy hats!! My principal was wearing an American flag bandana with a cowboy hat, so Alaina and I were sure to capture that on camera.

Alaina and I met our friend from Switzerland to go to the zoo on Sunday. She speaks Chinese fairly well, so that was pretty awesome since we are always struggling to communicate with everyone! We met at the metro station, and rode it all the way to the Taipei zoo station (almost an hour by MRT!) where we hopped on the gondolas to take the scenic route the rest of the way. It was SO refreshing to get out of the city for a change!! We zoomed over plush green mountains, and had the perfect view of Taipei 101 (the highest building) in the distance. We had fun at the zoo. I am ignorant, but I forgot how many new species I'd be seeing so we took lots of pictures of the "exotic" birds. Then, we decided to continue the adventure and take the gondola higher into the mountains, to the farthest stop, a small village of Maokong.

When we got off of the gondola, we realized just how remote of an area we had traveled to. There were a lot of tourists, otherwise I probably would have been a little scared because we were truly in the middle of nowhere. Immediately, a man approached us and asked us : "Are you American? WELCOME TO TAIWAN!" A greeting that has becoming extremely familiar to me over the past few days., Everyone is always so friendly, or else just curious about us. Several other villagers made a point to say hello and try out their English skills. we wound down some roads then found the visitor's path that is paved yet winds down the mountain, so we could literally go right through the gardens and small mountain homes. It was just beautiful and a very different life than I have ever seen!

So, I would say it was a very good weekend and much needed. Alaina and I both had been getting sick of being immersed in the city bustle constantly. I will post some pictures (below) since words really can't describe the diverse sights we've seen! Also, we are working on videoing our walk to school each day. Hopefully, in the next couple of days, we will be able to get it uploaded so everyone can see the stroll down our alley, into the lane, and up into the busy Taipei city.

Also, I found out my school placement today. I will be teaching grades 7 and 8, two classes of each. All the classes are "advanced," which is the middle level of proficieny. I am clueless as to how to pace my lessons and alter my teaching style, but I'm trying it out tomorrow, so we'll just see how it goes!




On Culture Day at school with our principal in his American attire =)



On top of the mountain at Maokong

Langshan Temple visit

Gondola ride!

Sun setting on the gondola ride home

Maokong village

Learning Chinese, Fast Food, and False Assumptions

Last night was our first Chinese lesson! Harriet has graciously agreed to spend a half hour each night after school teaching us basic Chinese. Yesterday we learned counting numbers, quantities, and how to order a drink from a restaurant. I felt really slow, but already I am hearing some of the basic phrases we practiced around the school. I need to get my numbers memorized by tonight because we will play BINGO with Harriet to practice....eek! It will be really helpful to get the basics down though, because when I ordered coffee the other morning it was ridiculous.

Also, things are looking up in terms of food...for now. Alaina and I cooked spaghetti at home last night and let me tell you, it was delicous. Also, we found some grapes which tasted heavenly. They always tell us how students' basic needs must be met before their secondary needs can be addressed. Well, I can testify first hand because I was one happy girl after I ate those noodles, finally a good meal. Also, today, our principal ordered pizza and chicken for all of the teachers, sort of like a staff appreciation day. So, another good meal! We will be more adventurous for dinner, I promise. It was really nice though because we got to mingle with a lot of the staff, who are very interesting because everyone is from somewhere different, and has a different story to tell.

Almost done with our first week of school, and I still feel like I am riding a roller coaster! One minute I seem to be adjusting alright, and then the next, I am "shocked" again. However, school is becoming more and more comfortable. Alaina and I did more observing of various classes yesterday and today. We are getting to see all levels (proficiency and grade wise) before we make a choice with which we would be most comfortable taking over. Tonight we will choose a mentor and then begin with our teaching duties next week. I could go on and on with EVERY detail about our school day because I find it fascinating and extremely different. However, probably only one or two other people would be interested so I'll keep it to the minimum and spare you all!  Here are a couple of things that are surprising me so far about the school culture:

Students here are always talking in class. I mean, always. Even if the teacher is speaking that doesn't matter. All of the teachers we have observed thus far try and talk over the students but to no avail. I keep thinking, "When I get in there, I'm going to demand their attention and wait until they are quit." However, I am probably naive in thinking it is that easy. We approached our supervisor about this yeterday and she agreed that it was shocking to her at first too, but it's a cultural habit, so I am very curious to see what happens when I'm up in front of the room.

Most teachers here are at least tri-lingual. Yes, at least half of the teachers are foreign, so they speak their native language and then typically both Chinese and English on top of that. I just keep thinking how difficult it would be to learn English for these students when every one of their teachers has a slightly different English accent? And now throw our plain midwestern English in there.....

Student expectations are very different overall. In the hallways, the students run, push, jump, scream. In America, the teacher usually will stand in the hallway to monitor behaviors, but not here. It's OUT OF CONTROL in the halls. Additionally, each day the school lunch is placed in containers throughout the hallway and it's the students' job to serve their food to their peers, then clean it up and clean their classrooms as well. More responsibility, more misbehavior....although I'm sure if allowed American students would act the same.

We're learning so much, and one thing I have learned is that I am very ignorant in a lot of ways and so many of our assumptions about food, people, school, and culture in general have been very off. I cannot to come to more realizations; I am keeping a list and it keeps on growing!