宁波

Today, I'm leaving for an adventure with Rachel and one of my students, Arlene.

Arlene is taking us to her hometown, Ningbo, which is one of the largest cities (besides Hangzhou) in Zhejiang province. She has planned a lovely 4-day trip for us, including fruit-picking, sightseeing, and (my favorite part): beaches!

So tomorrow, we'll be going to pick a fruit that's native to this region of China called Yangmei (i杨梅) (English names: Waxberry or Chinese Bayberry). This fruit is juicy, sweet and delicious, but it only grows for about 10 days during June - very seasonal! And it doesn't seem to exist outside of this part of China, so unfortunately, you probably won't get a chance to try it yourself unless you come here during June/July. This is really a shame for you, because it's one of the most delicious fruits I've ever eaten. This woman's blog gives a great description of its taste! 

Then we'll be spending two days around the beach (fingers crossed for good weather - I need some sun on this skin!) and finally doing some sightseeing around Ningbo. Of course, I'm sure our trip will also be full of delicious food and lots of laughs. My camera is fully charged, so expect lots of pictures!

And once I get back, it'll be only two more days until Mom and Sammy come - I can't even describe how excited I am!! 

Happy Summer, everyone :)

自由

It's official:

The grades are submitted.
The paperwork is complete.
The folders are stamped and the exams are signed.

What does all of this mean?

My first year as a teacher at HNU is OVER! It feels unreal. But I'm definitely looking forward to this summer vacation, and, surprisingly enough, I'm already looking forward to next year's classes.

To celebrate the end of the year, I went out to dinner with Rachel and Dave to enjoy delicious Mexican cuisine (Yes, we have a legitimate Mexican restaurant here - it's called Pancho's. It's awesome.)

I'll only have one day to relax and get myself together, and then the travelling begins! And I can't wait to tell y'all all about it :)

我是一个电视名人

Today I received an e-mail from one of my Chinese friends, Lucky, who is a student at HNU:

Dear Olivia!!!I am so excited now! I saw you on TV! It is my favorite TV program. You and Rachel were singing. The man who translated for you is a very famous country singer in China!!You are so lucky!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   You speak great Chinese. I can sing 'guang yin de gu shi', too!!I checked the Weibo of that TV show, and found your picture. Just send it to you!   Is that Rachel's mom?

That's right, everyone. I appeared on a famous Chinese TV show. I expect to be swarmed by crazy fans and paparazzi tomorrow morning when I leave my apartment... because that's just what happens to celebrities. I suppose I'll have to get used to it...


Okay, okay, I might be exaggerating a little. But I really did appear on TV! A few months ago (March, I believe), Rachel and I went to KTV (in case you couldn't tell from previous posts, we are pretty regular KTV-ers these days). This time, however, we brought Rachel's mom who was visiting from Syracuse. About an hour into our karaoke time, a Chinese woman burst into our room and began speaking rapid Chinese at us. Obviously, we didn't understand a thing she was saying, but she appeared to be telling us something important. After looking at her with that "deer-in-headlights" expression for a few minutes, she finally realized that we couldn't understand a word she was saying. So, because what she wanted to tell us was so important, she called a friend of hers who spoke English to serve as our interpreter. I got on the phone with the friend (Ann) who explained to me that we (Me, Rachel & her mom) were being asked to participate in a Chinese game show, during which we'd have to compete against a famous Chinese folk singer. After brief deliberation, we decided "What the heck? Let's do it!" I mean, you're (probably) only in China once, right? 


So, about 15 minutes later, we were joined in our KTV room by a camera crew, an energetic host and a famous Chinese folk singer. Before we knew it, they began recording, and *holy crap* the host was speaking Chinese. Fast Chinese. We still have no idea what he was saying. Fortunately, before we could look too panicked, the famous folk singer explained what was going on in English, and continued to serve as translator during the rest of our time on camera. After a brief introduction, we received instructions: sing yell into the microphone as loud as possible. Goal? To sing louder than the folk singer (and for those of you who haven't heard Chinese folk music, those singers can get LOUD). They gave us a special microphone that measured sound decibels for an accurate reading. 
Great. 
I won't lie, I did not expect us to beat this guy. For those of you who know me (and if you knew Rachel), you would probably peg both of us as fairly quiet people. The only person I've ever yelled at is my sister, and I've never heard Rachel yell at anyone (although she also has a younger sister whom I'm fairly certain she's yelled at). Like I said, not a lot of hope here.


So, the folk singer went first. He pretty much blew my mind (especially because I'm pretty sure he only got about half as loud as he's actually capable of doing) and then he handed me the mike. Ha. Nevertheless, I reminded myself "you're only in China once" and I yelled. And I was loud... but not loud enough. I failed. But I didn't let that get me down, because  my PIC, Rachel, still had a chance. And Rachel took that chance, looked it in the eye like a champ, and kicked its butt. That's right, y'all, she beat the folk singer (who knew she could yell like that?). And then we won a 12-pack of Chinese beer and some facial products (which, to this day, remain a mystery - they're Chinese, and the only English on the packaging makes absolutely no sense). And then everyone said goodbye and it was back to "normal" life again. 


When we didn't hear anything about our TV appearance, we figured it never aired and forgot about it. Until tonight. I replied to Lucky asking about a picture and this is what she said:

http://weibo.com/ztvkalaok          Look carefully for it!!!~~
The video will soon be online, maybe after 2 weeks!   I will tell you then, and send you the link! That is the most popular TV show in Zhejiang!!!

Most popular show in the province - exciting, right? But finding the picture is difficult, so I have saved you the trouble and downloaded it myself. Here you go: 

Becky, Rachel, Me and Abo (the folk singer)

I'll be signing autographs all next week - let me know if you're interested. 

Happy singing everyone!

闪闪发光熊猫

Today, while I was exercising at the gym, I saw a man wearing a black shirt.
A black shirt with a picture of a panda on it.
But this wasn't just any panda.
It was a bedazzled panda made completely of sparkly, silver crystals.
Only in China, my friends...

It's times like this I really wish I had a camera phone for taking covert photography.

In other news, today I exercised my legs and I set new PR's (Personal Records) for 6 out of 8 exercises! Sometimes I find myself getting a little discouraged about exercising, and it's days like today that remind me how much progress I'm making. So, for any of you out there also trying to live a healthier lifestyle, don't lose hope! Keep going! And for those of you currently happy with your lifestyles, then keep on enjoying :)

Peace out!

大河之舞

Ni Men Hao Everyone!

So this week has been a busy week... Mostly because I partook in two pretty big performance events at HNU.   On Wednesday, I choreographed/performed in the opening dance of an English talent show. Then, on Sunday, I was a judge for the school's biggest English singing competition (that means singing English songs, by the way). Needless to say, this has probably been one of the most entertaining weeks of my time here in China.

So, about three weeks ago I was approached by two of my students who asked me to choreograph/participate in this opening dance number. They told me I could do whatever kind of dance I wanted, and that I could choose as many students to participate as I wanted... pretty much their only requirements for me were that (1) the dance was entertaining and (2) it lasted about 5 minutes long (which is actually pretty long, by the way). Of course, I agreed to do it!

And so, I decided since this was for a big talent show showcasing English language and culture, that we should perform some sort of English dance... or better yet: Irish Dance! So, I pulled out the few Irish dance steps I remember, chose an awesome song from River Dance and rounded up 16 Chinese "dancers" and choreographed a semi-traditional (but mostly not, because most of the dance came from my own mind)  céilí dance. We had a lot of fun learning and practicing the dance.


As the performance date approached, a few of the leading teachers asked me about appropriate costume (since the school would arrange it). So, I told them that ideally just some plain, maybe colored dresses with LONG SLEEVES and short skirts would do. And also, black tights and black dance shoes. I even showed them pictures on the internet - multiple pictures. I felt pretty safe assuming that they'd be able to find something similar. 


Little did I know...


So, Wednesday (performance day) comes along and I head backstage to see our costumes for the first time.  I walk into a room full of my dancers (girls) wearing bright red, fully sequined, spaghetti-strap dresses with fringe at the bottom... fringe! They looked like little flapper girls. Not to mention these dresses were made for toothpicks - they were so short that they didn't even cover some of the girls' bottoms! I'm not sure when "plain, long-sleeved dresses" turned into "red, glittery, burlesque outfits," but at least everyone had black tights on. 

So then it was time to see my dress. The teachers had wanted me to wear something different ("You are the star of the show!") so I assumed I would just get a different color or something... I was wrong again! They present me with a strapless, sequined, silver and gold dress with a poofy, black, ruffled skirt. STRAPLESS! Have you ever seen Irish dancing?!? It's all jumping! NOTHING STRAPLESS WOULD HAVE A CHANCE AT STAYING UP! However, I am a genius and I brought a black, long-sleeved shirt for just this kind of emergency! So, I gave in and wore the strapless beast, but with my black, long sleeves underneath. 

And we are ready to perform...

Haha, just kidding. Did you really think the wardrobe mess would end so soon? You clearly have not been to China... nothing here is simple. 


As I mentioned before, I had 16 student dancers. Only 15 of them were girls, which left one boy: Mitch. Mitch was MIA during the above wardrobe incidents, but never fear, I found him. And do you know what they had him wearing? Don't worry - he wasn't wearing the same things as the girls... And by that I mean, he wasn't wearing a red sequined, spaghetti-strap flapper dress. No, he was wearing a GOLD sequined, spaghetti-strap flapper dress. Oh, AND black tights. YES, dear readers, someone decided it was okay for there to be a cross-dresser as a part of the performance. (And I am so sorry I didn't get a picture)

Thank goodness I had enough time to find him a white, button-up shirt and black pants instead... I could handle the flapper costumes; I could handle the strapless dress; but I could not handle a drag queen as part of our dance (not that I have anything against drag queens - I love them! But, there is definitely a time and a place). 

So, after getting past the shock and horror of the costumes, we managed to put on a pretty good show. In fact, there was a poll on the school's website asking the audience which performance they liked best, and our Irish dance won! How exciting, right!?!? 

Yeah, it was a lot of fun. I would totally do it again... except next time, I'll be there when they order the costumes. 


I'll be sure to tell you about the singing competition soon! But now, I've got to do some grading.


Happy dancing everyone!


Olivia


PS. Look at that last picture... notice anything else wrong with the costumes?

最后课

Ni Hao Friends!

I can't believe it's June already and I only have two more weeks of school left! And this week is my last actual teaching week - the following week is just exams. Where has the time gone?

So for the next few weeks I'll be particularly busy with paperwork... unimaginable amounts of paperwork. Seriously, guys, paperwork in China is no joke. Submitting all my students' final grades and marks is possibly the most tedious part of the semester. I'll try to take pictures of all the stuff we have to fill out to submit final grades... it may or may not blow your mind.

Fortunately, one of my classes (my Thursday night class) ended early this semester (only a 14-week long class as opposed to the typical 17-week long class) and so it's been finished for a few weeks now. A normal person would probably be happy about this (who doesn't want more time off?). However, my Thursday night students were (am I allowed to say this?) probably my favorite. They were always so enthusiastic and ready to participate - and they smiled all the time! Seriously, I couldn't ask for more. Every week I enjoyed going to that class - we always had a great time.

The class was simply called, "Oral English" and the students were English minors. We did a variety of different activities in class, usually involving skits or other opportunities for the students to speak. Their final exam was a lot of fun! The class (35 students total) divided into groups of 5 people. Each group was assigned a traditional fairy tale (like "The Emperor's New Clothes" and "The Frog Prince") and, then, a different movie genre (like "Horror" or "Action"). The group was then responsible for re-writing the fairy tale to fit into whichever genre they had been given (for example, one group had to create a "Sci-Fi" version of the "The Three Little Pigs" - which involved time-travelling, outrageous inventions and even an action scene). Once the group adapted the story, they then had to create a 10-minute script/play and perform it for me and their classmates on the last day of class. The students had a lot of fun with it and they really got to stretch their creativity (which, I have found, they don't get to do very often in schools here). It was definitely a fun final exam.

After the performances, I wanted to get pictures of/with my students, so here are some of my favorites:

The whole class!

Emma, Amanda, Maleah, Me, Tinna & Julie

Julianna, Me, Jessica & Cookie

Sylvia, Amelia, Me, Jennifer & Daisy

Delia, Me, Louisa, Nicole and Casey

Siren, Me, Angelina, Apple & Orange

George & I - he was one of only two boys in class!

Although it's nice to have some extra time off - I do find myself missing this class. They always re-energized me and made me laugh. I can only hope I'll be lucky enough to have another group like this one next year!