Some of my S5 students shared this with me today. Fast forward to 1:30 for some quality edutainment.
Dicky and Katrina succinctly described the video, saying, "The man makes funny faces and the dancing is stupid."
Byeeeeeeeeeeee
Wednesday, December 16, 2009
Tuesday, December 15, 2009
Know Your Audience (Let's Debate)
Our form 5 students (approx. 10th grade) had an interclass English debate today. The motion was, "The Inclusive Education Policy in Hong Kong Should Be Abolished From Normal Schools." Inclusive education, for those of you who are not familiar, refers to the integration of special needs students into "normal" schools and/or classes.
Naturally, the Captain* of the Negative Side likened abolishing inclusive education to the Holocaust. "The Germans didn't want the Jews to live where they lived," Chuen argued. He continued, "So they killed them." Extending the analogy, Cheun pointed out that, "Jews are the smartest and most clever people in the World. For example, Albert Einstein."
In making this statement, Chuen took a big risk. Historically, shouting the virtues of the Jews from the rooftops hasn't always been the soundest strategy. Luckily for Chuen, he really understood the most important rule of argument:"Know your audience." Even though only one of the judges was Jewish (Guess which one? I'll give you a hint: It wasn't Mr. Ho or Dr. Lau), the point really resonated with them, or so I've heard.
*I shouldn't write students' real names on the blog, so I'll just call him "Chuen."
Naturally, the Captain* of the Negative Side likened abolishing inclusive education to the Holocaust. "The Germans didn't want the Jews to live where they lived," Chuen argued. He continued, "So they killed them." Extending the analogy, Cheun pointed out that, "Jews are the smartest and most clever people in the World. For example, Albert Einstein."
In making this statement, Chuen took a big risk. Historically, shouting the virtues of the Jews from the rooftops hasn't always been the soundest strategy. Luckily for Chuen, he really understood the most important rule of argument:"Know your audience." Even though only one of the judges was Jewish (Guess which one? I'll give you a hint: It wasn't Mr. Ho or Dr. Lau), the point really resonated with them, or so I've heard.
*I shouldn't write students' real names on the blog, so I'll just call him "Chuen."
The judges and the winning team
Look, I'm not saying I'm a great teacher or anything, but before I got to LKPFC, most of these kids didn't know what a Jew was. "What is that, like, Catholic?" one student asked me. But just 4 months later, they can stand up at a debate (unchallenged, I might add) and state with confidence that Jews are the best, most successful people in the world. Now THAT'S teaching.
Christmas break starts Friday, so I'll have some time to catch up with the blog soon.
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Saturday, October 31, 2009
Brainwashing Hong Kong Teenagers
Since everyone who reads this blog knows me, everyone who reads this blog probably knows that I'm a huge Phillies fan. In case you haven't been following the playoffs, the Phillies are currently tied 1-1 entering game 3 of the WORLD F**K**G SERIES.
When I decided that I wanted to spend the year abroad, I didn't really consider sports. Well, that was stupid. I've spent the better part of my life and a good chunk of my savings over the years supporting the Phillies, a.k.a the losingest team in the history of professional sports. So of course I leave the country right in the middle of the most successful era of the team's 126 year history. Seriously, I'm not making that up. The Phillies are--right now as I type this--better and more successful than they've ever been. EVER. EVER. And, if the team's history is any indicator, this will be the only time in my ENTIRE LIFE that the Phillies will be a dominant baseball team.
Last year, I was at Game Five. Both Parts. In the stands. Geoff Jenkins sprayed me with champagne. I marched down Broad Street. It was probably the happiest I've ever been. Years and years and years of rooting for alternately pathetic, incompetent, underachieving choke-artists had finally paid off. Being at that one game (over the course of three days) made it all worth it.
So, yeah, I'm going a little crazy over here. Last year (and this year until August), I was going to games every week. I was watching every night on TV. When the Phillies won the World Series, it felt like the culmination of 22 years of hard, painful work. Also, I WAS THERE. Now, I can only watch games on the internet because the games start at 7 AM and the bars that would show them aren't open (I didn't even have the internet for my first month here). Most of the people I know are either British or Chinese. They couldn't care less about baseball. Sure, they try to talk to me about the games, but it only makes things worse. My boss thinks it's great that I love the NHL so much. My roommate wants to know how the "football contest" went. I wish those were jokes, but they're not.
This season and these playoffs should have been a thing of beauty for me to watch. It's rare in any sport to see a team defend their championship with as much determination as these Phillies have. All of the clutch hits and late-inning heroics have been incredible. (As my friend and Mitch pointed out on his blog, this Phillies group stands out for being such a great team.) But due to the above factors, by the time the Phillies rolled into the playoffs, I had become a box-score fan. I had probably only watched 3 full games since coming to Hong Kong.
But when the playoffs started, I decided that I couldn't let a little twelve hour time difference stop me from seeing the Phillies try to make history. In the NLDS , two of the games against Colorado started at 4:27 PM EST (4:27 AM here), so I did what any crazy person would do: Took a sleeping pill the night before at 8 PM and woke up at 4 to watch the game before work. When the games started coming on at 8 AM here, I MAY have told a little white lie to have the IT guys install the program I needed to stream live games from my office.
I've been doing my best to watch as much as possible. If I have a class to teach during the 6th inning, there's nothing I can do about that (other than make a bunch of excuses to keep leaving the class to go "grab something from my office real quick"). But if a game comes on and I can watch, I will and I have.
There are, however, a few very, very, very, very, minor upsides to being in Hong Kong for this. A big part of my job is "cultural exchange." What better way to do that than teach the students about baseball? And what better way to do that than stream the games on the overhead projector? I certainly can't think of anything. I've also taken the liberty of plastering my classroom walls
with Phillies stuff.
The bulletin board, an elaborate time-line detailing the team's history (click on it to see the full-sized image), may very well be my masterpiece. I've made it my mission to turn my school into Phillies faithful. I may even have a few converts:
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
When I decided that I wanted to spend the year abroad, I didn't really consider sports. Well, that was stupid. I've spent the better part of my life and a good chunk of my savings over the years supporting the Phillies, a.k.a the losingest team in the history of professional sports. So of course I leave the country right in the middle of the most successful era of the team's 126 year history. Seriously, I'm not making that up. The Phillies are--right now as I type this--better and more successful than they've ever been. EVER. EVER. And, if the team's history is any indicator, this will be the only time in my ENTIRE LIFE that the Phillies will be a dominant baseball team.
Last year, I was at Game Five. Both Parts. In the stands. Geoff Jenkins sprayed me with champagne. I marched down Broad Street. It was probably the happiest I've ever been. Years and years and years of rooting for alternately pathetic, incompetent, underachieving choke-artists had finally paid off. Being at that one game (over the course of three days) made it all worth it.
So, yeah, I'm going a little crazy over here. Last year (and this year until August), I was going to games every week. I was watching every night on TV. When the Phillies won the World Series, it felt like the culmination of 22 years of hard, painful work. Also, I WAS THERE. Now, I can only watch games on the internet because the games start at 7 AM and the bars that would show them aren't open (I didn't even have the internet for my first month here). Most of the people I know are either British or Chinese. They couldn't care less about baseball. Sure, they try to talk to me about the games, but it only makes things worse. My boss thinks it's great that I love the NHL so much. My roommate wants to know how the "football contest" went. I wish those were jokes, but they're not.
This season and these playoffs should have been a thing of beauty for me to watch. It's rare in any sport to see a team defend their championship with as much determination as these Phillies have. All of the clutch hits and late-inning heroics have been incredible. (As my friend and Mitch pointed out on his blog, this Phillies group stands out for being such a great team.) But due to the above factors, by the time the Phillies rolled into the playoffs, I had become a box-score fan. I had probably only watched 3 full games since coming to Hong Kong.
But when the playoffs started, I decided that I couldn't let a little twelve hour time difference stop me from seeing the Phillies try to make history. In the NLDS , two of the games against Colorado started at 4:27 PM EST (4:27 AM here), so I did what any crazy person would do: Took a sleeping pill the night before at 8 PM and woke up at 4 to watch the game before work. When the games started coming on at 8 AM here, I MAY have told a little white lie to have the IT guys install the program I needed to stream live games from my office.
I've been doing my best to watch as much as possible. If I have a class to teach during the 6th inning, there's nothing I can do about that (other than make a bunch of excuses to keep leaving the class to go "grab something from my office real quick"). But if a game comes on and I can watch, I will and I have.
There are, however, a few very, very, very, very, minor upsides to being in Hong Kong for this. A big part of my job is "cultural exchange." What better way to do that than teach the students about baseball? And what better way to do that than stream the games on the overhead projector? I certainly can't think of anything. I've also taken the liberty of plastering my classroom walls
with Phillies stuff.
The bulletin board, an elaborate time-line detailing the team's history (click on it to see the full-sized image), may very well be my masterpiece. I've made it my mission to turn my school into Phillies faithful. I may even have a few converts:
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Sunday, October 25, 2009
What the heck I'm doing in Hong Kong
Hey now! A couple of people have been asking me exactly what I'm doing in Hong Kong. I always roll my eyes and say, "Jeeze just read my blog don't make me TALK to you god ugh."
I was hired by a company that I can only refer to in outside media as "Shmatteris." They're the ones who hired me, flew me out to Hong Kong, and put me up.* Upon my arrival, Shmatteris "trained"** me and placed me in a local school, Loi Kwuk Pat Fung College.
LKPFC is a Band 2 Secondary school located in Kwun Tong, Kowloon. In Hong Kong schools are classified as either Band 1, Band 2, or Band 3, with band 1 being the highest rating. Our school is considered a high Band 2, or as my school officials like to say, "Band 1.5." Secondary schools are a lot like middle school and high school. Primary School runs from P1-P5, and Secondary School from S1-S7. I teach S4-S7, which is like 9th-12th grade.
So even though I technically work for Shmatteris, I spend virtually all of my time at LKPFC. I sometimes have to attend Shmatteris "training" workshops and events at other schools that have Shmatteris employees, but on a day to day basis, all of my work is at LKPFC. While you may be able to tell that I have some issues with Shmatteris, I'm happy to say that I love working at LKPFC. What is it that I do, exactly? Let's find out!
My job*** in the school is divided into two main parts, teaching and ELEEP****. Our school runs on a 6 day cycle, and I teach the oral lesson for every S4-S7 English class on even-numbered cycles. On odd-numbered cycles, I assist the Local English Teachers, or LETs, deliver their oral lessons. Sound confusing? It is.
The style of teaching in Hong Kong is much different than that in America, with a much lower emphasis placed on interactivity. Because of that, students' interest in English is often quite low. In the classroom, my job is to trick them into thinking that English is so much fun to learn. So every other cycle, I prepare a few different games and activities for the classes met with varying success (my baseball-inspired trivia game was a "hit," get it? An activity where they created their own countries was not).
Outside of the classroom, which is where I spend most of my time, I mingle with the students and try to get them to speak English. I'll play basketball, table tennis, badminton, etc. with them, ask them questions about their personal life, you know, things that teachers do. Actually, they're supposed to look at me like I'm not a normal teacher, which is good since I'm not a normal teacher. I also organize small and large-scale events designed to both promote English use and cultural exchange. These could be something like a Thanksgiving Celebration or a huge Christmas Party (my school is Baptist). During lunchtime every day, I organize a small event. For instance, Wednesdays are "board game days," on Mondays I screen Seinfeld, and on Tuesdays, I give them an article from the NY Times to read.
I'm also in charge of running the English Ambassador Team, or EAT. The EAT is a group of student volunteers whose job it is to assist me in promoting English throughout the school. They mostly help me plan, promote, and run our events. Next week, two EAT members and I are going to do a lunchtime radio show. Since I only see most students once a cycle, it's nice to have students that I see all of the time. Even better, it's nice to have students do work that I'd have to do if they weren't around.
That's the end of my most boring blog post ever. I hope it clears some things up.
*By "flew me out to Hong Kong and put me up," I meant, "Made me buy a ticket within one week of offering me a job and made me find an apartment within two weeks of arriving before kicking me out of temporary housing at a YWCA."
**My training, while a lot of fun, consisted of playing a lot of games and delivering lessons with up to 4 other teachers to classes of 15 students.
***My job title is "CNET," which stands for "Shmatteris Native English Teacher." While there are many different ways to explained the job--I usually use either "Teacher" or "Glorified Camp Counselor"-- I believe fellow CNET John said it best on his business school apps when he described it as, "A Program Coordinator for a non-profit in China." See, "China" sounds cooler than "Hong Kong," and "Teacher" doesn't adequately explains our multiple functions in the school. John's so good at resumes.
****I'm not sure what ELEEP stands for, but if I had to guess, I'd say, "English Learning English English People." It means extra-curricular junk.
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
I was hired by a company that I can only refer to in outside media as "Shmatteris." They're the ones who hired me, flew me out to Hong Kong, and put me up.* Upon my arrival, Shmatteris "trained"** me and placed me in a local school, Loi Kwuk Pat Fung College.
LKPFC is a Band 2 Secondary school located in Kwun Tong, Kowloon. In Hong Kong schools are classified as either Band 1, Band 2, or Band 3, with band 1 being the highest rating. Our school is considered a high Band 2, or as my school officials like to say, "Band 1.5." Secondary schools are a lot like middle school and high school. Primary School runs from P1-P5, and Secondary School from S1-S7. I teach S4-S7, which is like 9th-12th grade.
So even though I technically work for Shmatteris, I spend virtually all of my time at LKPFC. I sometimes have to attend Shmatteris "training" workshops and events at other schools that have Shmatteris employees, but on a day to day basis, all of my work is at LKPFC. While you may be able to tell that I have some issues with Shmatteris, I'm happy to say that I love working at LKPFC. What is it that I do, exactly? Let's find out!
My job*** in the school is divided into two main parts, teaching and ELEEP****. Our school runs on a 6 day cycle, and I teach the oral lesson for every S4-S7 English class on even-numbered cycles. On odd-numbered cycles, I assist the Local English Teachers, or LETs, deliver their oral lessons. Sound confusing? It is.
The style of teaching in Hong Kong is much different than that in America, with a much lower emphasis placed on interactivity. Because of that, students' interest in English is often quite low. In the classroom, my job is to trick them into thinking that English is so much fun to learn. So every other cycle, I prepare a few different games and activities for the classes met with varying success (my baseball-inspired trivia game was a "hit," get it? An activity where they created their own countries was not).
Outside of the classroom, which is where I spend most of my time, I mingle with the students and try to get them to speak English. I'll play basketball, table tennis, badminton, etc. with them, ask them questions about their personal life, you know, things that teachers do. Actually, they're supposed to look at me like I'm not a normal teacher, which is good since I'm not a normal teacher. I also organize small and large-scale events designed to both promote English use and cultural exchange. These could be something like a Thanksgiving Celebration or a huge Christmas Party (my school is Baptist). During lunchtime every day, I organize a small event. For instance, Wednesdays are "board game days," on Mondays I screen Seinfeld, and on Tuesdays, I give them an article from the NY Times to read.
I'm also in charge of running the English Ambassador Team, or EAT. The EAT is a group of student volunteers whose job it is to assist me in promoting English throughout the school. They mostly help me plan, promote, and run our events. Next week, two EAT members and I are going to do a lunchtime radio show. Since I only see most students once a cycle, it's nice to have students that I see all of the time. Even better, it's nice to have students do work that I'd have to do if they weren't around.
That's the end of my most boring blog post ever. I hope it clears some things up.
*By "flew me out to Hong Kong and put me up," I meant, "Made me buy a ticket within one week of offering me a job and made me find an apartment within two weeks of arriving before kicking me out of temporary housing at a YWCA."
**My training, while a lot of fun, consisted of playing a lot of games and delivering lessons with up to 4 other teachers to classes of 15 students.
***My job title is "CNET," which stands for "Shmatteris Native English Teacher." While there are many different ways to explained the job--I usually use either "Teacher" or "Glorified Camp Counselor"-- I believe fellow CNET John said it best on his business school apps when he described it as, "A Program Coordinator for a non-profit in China." See, "China" sounds cooler than "Hong Kong," and "Teacher" doesn't adequately explains our multiple functions in the school. John's so good at resumes.
****I'm not sure what ELEEP stands for, but if I had to guess, I'd say, "English Learning English English People." It means extra-curricular junk.
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
Wednesday, October 7, 2009
Why Hong Kong is Both Awesome and Not Awesome
I haven't really written about how the 12 hour time difference affects my life, mainly because it doesn't. See, there's this thing called the internet that lets me keep in contact with friends and family, watch TV, and read the news. There is one thing that's missing from my life right now, however, and that's sports.
As many of you know, I'm a die-hard Phillies fan. Last year, I was lucky enough to get to go to Game 5 of the World Series a.k.a. The Day The Phillies Won The World Series a.k.a. the happiest day of my life (no, seriously). Well, the Phillies made the playoffs! YEeeeahHHH!
The bad news? Since I've come to Hong Kong, I've hardly been able to watch them. See, when the Phillies play a 7:05 PM game, it comes on the next morning at 7:05 Am in Hong Kong. I'm either sleeping or at work. One of my favorite things about baseball is following a team for 162 games and really getting to know the players: their habits, their mannerisms, all of their quirks, etc. In the last 2 months, I feel like I've fallen out of touch with the Phillies. They're back in the post-season, and even though I went to about 10 games while I was home and I've been checking the box scores and reading the blogs, I don't feel the same connection to this team that I did last year. Missing the last two months of the season really took its toll.
The good news? I can watch today's game against the Rockies BECAUSE I'm in Hong Kong. Allow me to explain. Game 1 of the NLDS Phillies-Rockies starts at 2:37 PM EST. If I were in America, I'd be at work in an office, refreshing ESPN.com 40 times a minute because I couldn't think of a good excuse to get flash installed on my computer so I could watch/listen to the game. In Hong Kong, the game comes on at 2:37 AM. That means that all I had to do was go to sleep at 7 PM last night so I could wake up at 2:30 and turn on the game! Did I do it? You bet your balls I did it. And I'm doing it again tonight for game 2. Go Phillies!
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
As many of you know, I'm a die-hard Phillies fan. Last year, I was lucky enough to get to go to Game 5 of the World Series a.k.a. The Day The Phillies Won The World Series a.k.a. the happiest day of my life (no, seriously). Well, the Phillies made the playoffs! YEeeeahHHH!
The bad news? Since I've come to Hong Kong, I've hardly been able to watch them. See, when the Phillies play a 7:05 PM game, it comes on the next morning at 7:05 Am in Hong Kong. I'm either sleeping or at work. One of my favorite things about baseball is following a team for 162 games and really getting to know the players: their habits, their mannerisms, all of their quirks, etc. In the last 2 months, I feel like I've fallen out of touch with the Phillies. They're back in the post-season, and even though I went to about 10 games while I was home and I've been checking the box scores and reading the blogs, I don't feel the same connection to this team that I did last year. Missing the last two months of the season really took its toll.
The good news? I can watch today's game against the Rockies BECAUSE I'm in Hong Kong. Allow me to explain. Game 1 of the NLDS Phillies-Rockies starts at 2:37 PM EST. If I were in America, I'd be at work in an office, refreshing ESPN.com 40 times a minute because I couldn't think of a good excuse to get flash installed on my computer so I could watch/listen to the game. In Hong Kong, the game comes on at 2:37 AM. That means that all I had to do was go to sleep at 7 PM last night so I could wake up at 2:30 and turn on the game! Did I do it? You bet your balls I did it. And I'm doing it again tonight for game 2. Go Phillies!
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Friday, October 2, 2009
RIP Michael Jackson
A few months ago, the unthinkable happened. Michael Jackson, a.k.a. the King Of Pop, a.k.a. the Sultan of Swat, a.k.a. His Airness, died at the age of 50. Did this tragedy affect (or is it "effect") me in a deep, personal way? Let me answer my question with a question: Yes.
But Michael Jackson (or as I call him, Mikey) touched each and every one of us in a deep, personal way, even when he maybe shouldn't have. In his professional life, Mikey enjoyed a string of successes topped only by The Beatles, who, let's face it, were a lot more talented. His personal life, however, was marked by a terrible run of bad luck that nearly ruined his hard-earned reputation as a phenomenally talented entertainer who wasn't a danger to himself and others.
First, Mikey had the misfortune of a couple of kids blabbing to their parents even after he specifically told them not to. Then, he slipped on a banana, sending him into a giant tub of bleach and permanently lightening his skin. More recently, the liberal media took a perfectly common practice--airing-out-your-baby-by-dangling-him-from-a-balcony--completely out of context. He was just airing him out! Talk about unlucky! I mean, what's the big deal?? I blame the Jews. Mikey's bad luck finally ran out (you can't have bad luck after you're dead) when he created 19 aliases, used them to obtain any and every drug known to man, and then overdosed on an ungodly amount of prescription medication. Can a guy ever catch a break?
Thankfully, we'll always have the music. Who can forget where they were when heard Thriller, released in 1982, for the first time? I certainly remember dancing to 1979's Off the Wall at a bar the night he died! And I couldn't call myself a true Mikey fan if I failed to mention everyone's favorite: His 2001 release, the ironically named Invincible. It's safe to say that we can add Mikey's name to a list that includes such legends as Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison, and Kurt Kobain- artists tragically taken from the world at the peak of their creative powers. The real tragedy here is that Mikey clearly had so much great music left in him.
Ever since Mikey's untimely death, I've been searching for an appropriate way to eulogize him. With my my little-red travel blog chronicling my Hong Kong adventures, I have the appropriate space. It wasn't until my recent trip to the Hong Kong Space Museum, however, that I finally found the perfect way to say goodbye to my hero:
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
Thursday, October 1, 2009
Space Museum
On Sunday, Paul and I went to the Space Museum. Now, you may be wondering, "Why does China have a space museum?" I wondered the same thing, but that was before I found out that China was the first country in outer space! Did you know that? Also, did you know that China put a man on the moon almost 40 years before that jackass Neil Armstrong? In addition to lots of solid information and history, the museum also has a lot of fun, interactive exhibits, like this one:
And this one:
I highly recommend the Hong Kong Space Museum.
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
And this one:
I highly recommend the Hong Kong Space Museum.
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Why Hong Kong Is Awesome Part IV
Every once in a while, I wake up and thank my lord and savior Jesus Christ that I was born a white man in America. Our entire society is basically set up for me to succeed. I'm sorry for being so blunt, but I feel like it's pointless pretending that that it's not advantageous to be born a white male. I'm lucky. I'd love for this to be a post about how moving to Hong Kong has been a big wake up call, but I've got some bad news. Actually, it's great news! Hong Kong loves me! And by "me," I mean the guilo- the white ghost. The other day, some random ladies asked to take their picture with me:
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Tuesday, September 29, 2009
End of Training
In case I didn't make it clear last month, I really enjoyed training (I know this post is a little late). I have some pictures of the kids I taught over in Kowloon Tong for our two week training period. They were great sports, what with coming in during the summer to have a bunch of knuckleheads "teach" them English. Anyway, photos!
The Secondary CNET team, doing some serious training.
Just goofin' around with the kids
The class, Michelle, and I after another great lesson
Me and da boiz
PM Amanda and some of the gurlz.
Gina!
Here's how our training was structured. In the morning, we learned about the "Smatteris Approach To Teaching." In the afternoon, we taught or co-taught two 45 minute lessons, with a 15-20 minute break in between. We were given "mingling tasks" to complete during the breaks. They included things like "do a magic trick and take a photo" and, "ask a student what they think about the leaders of China and god and the bible." I'm happy to report that I successfully completed each and every one of my mingling tasks, as documented by these candid photographs.
I've got your nose! (magic trick)
Dirty ears! (2nd magic trick)
Look at us actually playing sports!
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
The Secondary CNET team, doing some serious training.
Just goofin' around with the kids
The class, Michelle, and I after another great lesson
Me and da boiz
PM Amanda and some of the gurlz.
Gina!Here's how our training was structured. In the morning, we learned about the "Smatteris Approach To Teaching." In the afternoon, we taught or co-taught two 45 minute lessons, with a 15-20 minute break in between. We were given "mingling tasks" to complete during the breaks. They included things like "do a magic trick and take a photo" and, "ask a student what they think about the leaders of China and god and the bible." I'm happy to report that I successfully completed each and every one of my mingling tasks, as documented by these candid photographs.
I've got your nose! (magic trick)
Dirty ears! (2nd magic trick)
Look at us actually playing sports!Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Monday, September 28, 2009
Apartment Tour
As promised a long time ago, here's the tour of my new apartment.! Happy Yom Kippur!
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Wednesday, September 9, 2009
Transcript of a speech I just delivered to 1200 kids who don't speak English
Good morning. I’ve had the opportunity to meet many of you during my first week at LKPFS. I’ve talked to students about a lot of different things, but one thing that people keep saying to me is, “I want to improve my English.” I thought I’d use my time today to make some suggestions.
Firstly, please speak English as much as possible. Many of you come up and talk to me, but others only say “hello.” When I try to start a conversation, they giggle and run away. Why are you scared to talk to me? I don’t bite. In fact, I’ve only bitten three students before, but it was at a different school and they really deserved it.
But seriously, folks, you don’t have to worry about talking to me! I won’t laugh or judge you if you say something incorrectly. If everyone in this school spoke perfect English, then I wouldn’t be here. Speaking correct English is very difficult. It requires a lot of practice, even for me. For example, I practice English for about 17 hours every day. Since you are not as good at English as I am, you may need to practice more; at least double that amount. So please start practicing English for 34 hours every day. If this is impossible, then allow me to suggest an alternative.
Every Thursday in the ELC, starting today, I will hold a discussion group during lunchtime. Today’s topic will be “music.” I will share some songs that I like, and then we can talk about them. I’d also love to hear about songs that you like. The songs don’t have to be in English, but our discussion will be. So if you want to practice speaking, please come to the ELC during lunchtime today at 1 PM.
You should also try to find me, Lois, or any of the English teachers at least once a day and speak to us in English. Try taking 5 minutes while you eat lunch or after school and speak to your friends in English. The more you talk, the easier it will get and the better you will get.
Another way you can get better at English is to read in English. I’m not talking about only your exercise books. My friend Noa is from Israel and she was also trying to learn English. Do you know what she did? She bought an English copy of Twilight. Before she read Twilight, Noa and I almost never talked about vampires, mainly because she didn’t have the necessary vocabulary. Thanks to Twilight, now almost every conversation we have is about vampires. Actually, maybe I would have liked it more if she read a different book. Still, she knows many more words now, including “immortal,” “eternal,” and “Robert Pattison.” This is because reading is the best way to improve your vocabulary.
To help promote English reading, I’m going to have a reading group every Tuesday at lunch during the ELC. I’ll be finding fun stories and articles in English for us to read and talk about. If you love to read, please come to the ELC during lunch on Tuesdays. If you’d like me to suggest something for you to read outside of school, please come by the ELC and we’ll find a book that you’ll really like!
Now I have some good news—I won’t yell at you for watching TV—as long as it’s in English. I think that watching TV is a very helpful when it comes to learning English. It will improve your listening ability, expose you to new vocabulary, not to mention, it’s a lot of fun! Some people say that TV is mindless, but I believe that we are in a golden age of television. “Golden Age” means that I think that TV is better right now than it has ever been.
That is why every Monday during lunchtime, I’ll be showing a TV show in the ELC. We’re going to start with my favorite show, Seinfeld. It’s very funny and the stories are interesting. It’s about the lives of four friends who live in New York City.
As you know, not every day is exciting. Think about what you did yesterday. Was it exciting? Would it make a good movie? Probably not. What Seinfeld does so well is that it takes the little things in life that we might not notice and makes them very funny. For instance, one episode is about waiting to get a table at a restaurant. In another episode, one of the characters has to watch a dog for his friend and the dog won’t stop barking.
Some of you may know that I studied television production when I was at university. For those of you who didn’t know this, I studied television production when I was at university. This means that I am a TV expert. I have the best taste, so just trust me when I tell you that Seinfeld is a great show. Remember to come to the ELC on Monday during lunch to watch.
There are many other ways to improve your English, such as listening to English radio, that I didn’t even mention. Just remember: Since “English” is such a broad topic, there is always a way to make it fun and interesting. That means if you are not excited about anything I’ve talked about today, tell us what you’re interested in! How can we make English fun for you? If you enjoy speaking and practicing English, you will learn it much faster.
One last note: If you didn’t understand my speech, please ask someone to explain it to you, because it's important to you in particular. I hope to see many of you in the ELC both during lunch today for discussion, and also throughout the year. Thank you.
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Firstly, please speak English as much as possible. Many of you come up and talk to me, but others only say “hello.” When I try to start a conversation, they giggle and run away. Why are you scared to talk to me? I don’t bite. In fact, I’ve only bitten three students before, but it was at a different school and they really deserved it.
But seriously, folks, you don’t have to worry about talking to me! I won’t laugh or judge you if you say something incorrectly. If everyone in this school spoke perfect English, then I wouldn’t be here. Speaking correct English is very difficult. It requires a lot of practice, even for me. For example, I practice English for about 17 hours every day. Since you are not as good at English as I am, you may need to practice more; at least double that amount. So please start practicing English for 34 hours every day. If this is impossible, then allow me to suggest an alternative.
Every Thursday in the ELC, starting today, I will hold a discussion group during lunchtime. Today’s topic will be “music.” I will share some songs that I like, and then we can talk about them. I’d also love to hear about songs that you like. The songs don’t have to be in English, but our discussion will be. So if you want to practice speaking, please come to the ELC during lunchtime today at 1 PM.
You should also try to find me, Lois, or any of the English teachers at least once a day and speak to us in English. Try taking 5 minutes while you eat lunch or after school and speak to your friends in English. The more you talk, the easier it will get and the better you will get.
Another way you can get better at English is to read in English. I’m not talking about only your exercise books. My friend Noa is from Israel and she was also trying to learn English. Do you know what she did? She bought an English copy of Twilight. Before she read Twilight, Noa and I almost never talked about vampires, mainly because she didn’t have the necessary vocabulary. Thanks to Twilight, now almost every conversation we have is about vampires. Actually, maybe I would have liked it more if she read a different book. Still, she knows many more words now, including “immortal,” “eternal,” and “Robert Pattison.” This is because reading is the best way to improve your vocabulary.
To help promote English reading, I’m going to have a reading group every Tuesday at lunch during the ELC. I’ll be finding fun stories and articles in English for us to read and talk about. If you love to read, please come to the ELC during lunch on Tuesdays. If you’d like me to suggest something for you to read outside of school, please come by the ELC and we’ll find a book that you’ll really like!
Now I have some good news—I won’t yell at you for watching TV—as long as it’s in English. I think that watching TV is a very helpful when it comes to learning English. It will improve your listening ability, expose you to new vocabulary, not to mention, it’s a lot of fun! Some people say that TV is mindless, but I believe that we are in a golden age of television. “Golden Age” means that I think that TV is better right now than it has ever been.
That is why every Monday during lunchtime, I’ll be showing a TV show in the ELC. We’re going to start with my favorite show, Seinfeld. It’s very funny and the stories are interesting. It’s about the lives of four friends who live in New York City.
As you know, not every day is exciting. Think about what you did yesterday. Was it exciting? Would it make a good movie? Probably not. What Seinfeld does so well is that it takes the little things in life that we might not notice and makes them very funny. For instance, one episode is about waiting to get a table at a restaurant. In another episode, one of the characters has to watch a dog for his friend and the dog won’t stop barking.
Some of you may know that I studied television production when I was at university. For those of you who didn’t know this, I studied television production when I was at university. This means that I am a TV expert. I have the best taste, so just trust me when I tell you that Seinfeld is a great show. Remember to come to the ELC on Monday during lunch to watch.
There are many other ways to improve your English, such as listening to English radio, that I didn’t even mention. Just remember: Since “English” is such a broad topic, there is always a way to make it fun and interesting. That means if you are not excited about anything I’ve talked about today, tell us what you’re interested in! How can we make English fun for you? If you enjoy speaking and practicing English, you will learn it much faster.
One last note: If you didn’t understand my speech, please ask someone to explain it to you, because it's important to you in particular. I hope to see many of you in the ELC both during lunch today for discussion, and also throughout the year. Thank you.
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Monday, September 7, 2009
Where's My Food?
There are, it turns out, reasons that Hong Kong isn't always so awesome. In fact, there are plenty of reasons to get a little down; whether it's the humidity, the random acid attacks, or real estate agents. But nothing is as frustrating as the service in restaurants (for me at least- the people whose faces melted would probably go with the acid attacks).
Like any foreign country, Hong Kong etiquette is different from American etiquette. And by "different" I mean "stupid." In restaurants, this can translate into some interesting behavior. To illustrate, I thought I'd do a quick role play. I'll give myself a prompt, answer first as a typical American restaurant manager, then answer as a Hong Kong restaurant manager.
American Restaurant Manager (ARM): I'll list the food and drinks that we serve at the restaurant and nothing else. This seems like a stupid question.
Hong Kong Restaurant Manager (HKRM): I want as many people to come to my restaurant as possible, so I'll just put anything on there, including tons of foods that we don't make and an extensive drink list containing exotic items like "Sprite" that we'll never ever have in stock ever.
Like any foreign country, Hong Kong etiquette is different from American etiquette. And by "different" I mean "stupid." In restaurants, this can translate into some interesting behavior. To illustrate, I thought I'd do a quick role play. I'll give myself a prompt, answer first as a typical American restaurant manager, then answer as a Hong Kong restaurant manager.
The Menu
Your new restaurant is about to open, and it's time to finalize the menu. What should go on the menu?American Restaurant Manager (ARM): I'll list the food and drinks that we serve at the restaurant and nothing else. This seems like a stupid question.
Hong Kong Restaurant Manager (HKRM): I want as many people to come to my restaurant as possible, so I'll just put anything on there, including tons of foods that we don't make and an extensive drink list containing exotic items like "Sprite" that we'll never ever have in stock ever.
Ordering
A customer just ordered the Apple Curry Chicken, an item that's listed as one of the specials but in fact you've never even considered preparing. How do you keep your patron happy?
ARM: Well, this wouldn't happen because I wouldn't put that dish on the menu in the first place. On the occasion that we were out of an item, I'd inform the customer that we were out of that item, apologize, and suggest an alternative meal.
HKRM: Oooh this is bad. I didn't think anyone would order that. Hmmmm. Maybe if I just ignore him, he'll forget that he even ordered it. Yeah, that's the ticket! I should probably charge him for it anyway so he's not confused when the bill comes.
ARM: Well, this wouldn't happen because I wouldn't put that dish on the menu in the first place. On the occasion that we were out of an item, I'd inform the customer that we were out of that item, apologize, and suggest an alternative meal.
HKRM: Oooh this is bad. I didn't think anyone would order that. Hmmmm. Maybe if I just ignore him, he'll forget that he even ordered it. Yeah, that's the ticket! I should probably charge him for it anyway so he's not confused when the bill comes.
The Bill
Your party of six has just asked for the check. What do you do?
ARM: I give them the check.
HKRM: Well I don't want it to look like I really want them to leave, so I'll wait until they ask me again to make sure that they REALLY want to pay. At the same time, I don't trust that they won't just skip out on the bill, so I'll hover over them while they sort it out. If they're taking a long time, I'll clear my throat to let them know that I'm there. I hope they leave me a big tip.
It's been a really busy week, but hopefully I'll get the apartment tour up tomorrow. Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
ARM: I give them the check.
HKRM: Well I don't want it to look like I really want them to leave, so I'll wait until they ask me again to make sure that they REALLY want to pay. At the same time, I don't trust that they won't just skip out on the bill, so I'll hover over them while they sort it out. If they're taking a long time, I'll clear my throat to let them know that I'm there. I hope they leave me a big tip.
It's been a really busy week, but hopefully I'll get the apartment tour up tomorrow. Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Why Hong Kong Is Awesome Part III
There was this movie I wanted to see, District 9. It's playing in the theaters, but who wants to go all the way to a movie theater these days? Good thing there's a huge, completely out of control black market! I just walked around the corner to one of your typical street stand DVD stores. You know the ones- they're selling all of the latest titles! It's a shame bootlegging is illegal, or else I would have bought District 9, Funny People, I Love You Man, and Coraline for $50 HKD total (about $6.50 USD). Oh well.
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Sunday, August 30, 2009
Spreading the Gospel
My new school is baptist, so I figured I had better get ready to teach my kids all about the word of my lord and savior, Jesus Christ. Now this is just a general brainstorm, but let me know if you think that I'm on the right track:
The word of the Bible should be taken literally with no exceptions.
The only REAL Christianity is Catholicism.
No meat on the third Sabbath of every other February.
Every Baptist must be "baptized," in a ceremony called a "baptism." The ceremony occurs on or around a boy's 13th birthday (or a girl's 12th birthday) and celebrates the boy's passage into manhood. This is the first time that the boy or girl can read from the "Torah," which is a fancy word for the Christian Bible.
Sunday is Funday!
It's a sin to use condoms while having sex with students.
End with a Scientology joke to lighten things up after that last one.
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
The word of the Bible should be taken literally with no exceptions.
The only REAL Christianity is Catholicism.
No meat on the third Sabbath of every other February.
Every Baptist must be "baptized," in a ceremony called a "baptism." The ceremony occurs on or around a boy's 13th birthday (or a girl's 12th birthday) and celebrates the boy's passage into manhood. This is the first time that the boy or girl can read from the "Torah," which is a fancy word for the Christian Bible.
Sunday is Funday!
It's a sin to use condoms while having sex with students.
End with a Scientology joke to lighten things up after that last one.
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Saturday, August 29, 2009
Why Hong Kong Is Awesome Part 2
I've said this several times already, but there's air conditioning everywhere. Every room in our apartment has a window unit. Every store, restaurant, and bar has it. Giant entrance ways that have doors that are kept open are air conditioned. What's the big deal you ask? In case you haven't heard this, Todd Barry explains:
Friday, August 28, 2009
Movin' On Up
Exciting times are here in Hong Kong. A few updates:
1) Rob, Paul, and I moved into our new apartment yesterday. It's a three bedroom place in Jordan and it's pretty awesome. Unfortunately, the neighbor's internet that I'm stealing right now is a little slow, so some of the blog posts that I have in the works (such as the apartment tour) have to be put on hold until we get our own internet. So stay tuned.
2) Shmatteris done went and switched my school! Apparently, I reminded my boss a lot of a CNET who was in a different school last year, so they pulled the old switcharoo. There are good things about the switch (I don't have to teach the middle schoolers any more and I have more freedom to do what I want) and bad things about the switch (it's further away, I work longer hours, and it's a Baptist school). I met Mr. Ho, my teacher in charge at the new school, and he seemed pretty nice. More updates when I start on Tuesday.
I guess I only had two major updates.
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Saturday, August 22, 2009
Lantau Beach, Big Buddha
On Saturday, Future Roommate Rob and I went to the beach on Lantau Island.* Although Lantau is MTR accessible, Rob and I elected to take the 40 minute ferry ride. To our suprise and my overwhelming delight, it was air conditioned. Plus, the view was nice I guess.
To view a larger version of my face, just click on this (or any) of the images.
Inside the ferry.
The Ferry dropped us off in Mui Wo, seen below.
From Mui Wo, we hopped on an air conditioned bus that took us deeper into the island towards one of the beaches. When we got off the bus, I noted that this was the first time I'd been in a place that was quiet in about two weeks. It was nice.
Right off the bus
Walk to the beach
Beach during magic hour.
Wild cows by the beach
Just a hop, skip, and jump from the USA.
Rob with a wild cow in Ngong Ping
On the road to enlightenment
Buddha Buddha Buddha Buddha Buddha Buddha
Mission Accomplished!
We had accidentally timed our trip so we would be able to see sunset from up at the monastery. Since it was closed, we improvised, climbing up a small hill. Although we missed the sunset by about 5 minutes, the view was still worth the climb.
Buddha in the background
Oh, hey Ngong Ping
From there, we took a bus to the MTR and headed back to Anne Black. Yaaayyy, we did it!
*Hong Kong geography may be confusing for those not living here, so I suggest taking a look at a map. Basically, Hong Kong comprises of Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, the New Territories, and Lantau Island. Kowloon and most of the New Territories are connected to Mainland China. Hong Kong Island is south of Kowloon, and Lantau is southwest of Kowloon. There are also several smaller islands, accessible via ferry.
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
To view a larger version of my face, just click on this (or any) of the images.
Inside the ferry.The Ferry dropped us off in Mui Wo, seen below.
From Mui Wo, we hopped on an air conditioned bus that took us deeper into the island towards one of the beaches. When we got off the bus, I noted that this was the first time I'd been in a place that was quiet in about two weeks. It was nice.
Right off the bus
Walk to the beach
The beach was pretty beautiful.
Beach during magic hour.
Wild cows by the beach
After having some pretty awesome fish and chips (the fish was definitely fresh) at the seaside restaurant, Rob and I hopped on another bus. This one went to Ngong Ping, a town that the guidebook aptly describes as, "Disneyesque." (I described it as "faux Chinese.") Still, it's a pretty popular tourist destination, being home to the famous Big Buddha and all. Said Buddha is the world's largest sitting outdoor Buddha. I swear I'm not making that up.
We were expecting it to be pretty crowded, but when we arrived at around 6:30, Ngong Ping looked like a ghost town. Even 7-11 was closed. This is because access to the Buddha and Po Lin Monastery closes at 5:30. This also meant that we were unable to do the Walking With the Buddha exhibit, the Monkey's Tale Theater, visit Chopstick Palace, or stop in Railroad Construction City. Only one of the above is my own racist invention. Anyway, we still got a pretty good look at everything.
Village of Ngong Ping
We were expecting it to be pretty crowded, but when we arrived at around 6:30, Ngong Ping looked like a ghost town. Even 7-11 was closed. This is because access to the Buddha and Po Lin Monastery closes at 5:30. This also meant that we were unable to do the Walking With the Buddha exhibit, the Monkey's Tale Theater, visit Chopstick Palace, or stop in Railroad Construction City. Only one of the above is my own racist invention. Anyway, we still got a pretty good look at everything.
Village of Ngong Ping
Just a hop, skip, and jump from the USA.
Rob with a wild cow in Ngong Ping
On the road to enlightenment
Buddha Buddha Buddha Buddha Buddha Buddha
Mission Accomplished!We had accidentally timed our trip so we would be able to see sunset from up at the monastery. Since it was closed, we improvised, climbing up a small hill. Although we missed the sunset by about 5 minutes, the view was still worth the climb.
Buddha in the background
Oh, hey Ngong Ping
From there, we took a bus to the MTR and headed back to Anne Black. Yaaayyy, we did it!
*Hong Kong geography may be confusing for those not living here, so I suggest taking a look at a map. Basically, Hong Kong comprises of Hong Kong Island, Kowloon, the New Territories, and Lantau Island. Kowloon and most of the New Territories are connected to Mainland China. Hong Kong Island is south of Kowloon, and Lantau is southwest of Kowloon. There are also several smaller islands, accessible via ferry.
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Hong Kong Work Time
Well, the party's over folks. Job training and flat* hunting have made my second week in Hong Kong very stressful and tiring. Let me be more specific.
On Monday, my fellow Shmatteris teachers and I began our formal job training. I, along with thirteen other CNETs, was placed in a secondary school. I'll be teaching S1-S6, which basically means 6th through 12th grade. So far, training has actually been a lot of fun. We arrive at a local secondary school at 9 AM every day. In the morning, our wonderful project manager Hannah teaches us about the "Shmatteris Approach" to education. Apparantley, said approach is one of fun and wonderment. We brainstorm ideas, learn some methodology, and demo activities for the afternoon. After a lunch break, a small group of local students arrive and we lead various games and exercises. Today, for instance, we turned the classroom into an "English Cafe," serving drinks and playing games with the kids.
It's the other part of the week that blows. We usually get out of school around 3:30, at which time Paul and I head to Mong Kok or Prince Edward or wherever, walk in to a random real estate office, and ask a suprisingly important question, "Do you speak English?" Usually, the answer is, "A little," which really means "no." At the beginning of the week, we had a couple of realators who didn't speak English show us flats. The main problem wa not being able to communicate to the agent what we liked and didn't't like about prospective apartments. For instance, we suspected a communication breakdown after an agent showed us a flat that was about the size of a small closet, filled with bugs, and had only one bedroom. Not being able to get an agent to understand that we have a strong preference for a place without an infestation was quite* frustrating.**
So that lasts until about nine o'clock at night. By that time, we've been on our feet since half twelve.* Justin, I know you work in an emergency room and are on your feet for twelve hours all the time, but you can stuff it. It's tiring. When we get back to the hotel after dinner, it's usually around 9:45. Time to check some email, and maybe write a blog post! Luckily, the internet shuts off at ten. So there goes that plan. At least the search is narrowing down. We looked at a promising three-bedroom place last night, and hope to settle the details with the landlord tonight. Once this week is over and the apartment situation is figured out, I can focus on realizing that I'm going to be a teacher and I have no idea what I'm doing.
*Silly-British-English-That-I-Use-Now to Real-English Conversion Table:
"Flat" = Apartment
"Quite = Very
"Half twelve" = half past twelve = 12:30
**A way to avoid the whole walking into random offices thing would be to go on Craigslist, but I can't do that for reasons I'll explain shortly.
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
On Monday, my fellow Shmatteris teachers and I began our formal job training. I, along with thirteen other CNETs, was placed in a secondary school. I'll be teaching S1-S6, which basically means 6th through 12th grade. So far, training has actually been a lot of fun. We arrive at a local secondary school at 9 AM every day. In the morning, our wonderful project manager Hannah teaches us about the "Shmatteris Approach" to education. Apparantley, said approach is one of fun and wonderment. We brainstorm ideas, learn some methodology, and demo activities for the afternoon. After a lunch break, a small group of local students arrive and we lead various games and exercises. Today, for instance, we turned the classroom into an "English Cafe," serving drinks and playing games with the kids.
It's the other part of the week that blows. We usually get out of school around 3:30, at which time Paul and I head to Mong Kok or Prince Edward or wherever, walk in to a random real estate office, and ask a suprisingly important question, "Do you speak English?" Usually, the answer is, "A little," which really means "no." At the beginning of the week, we had a couple of realators who didn't speak English show us flats. The main problem wa not being able to communicate to the agent what we liked and didn't't like about prospective apartments. For instance, we suspected a communication breakdown after an agent showed us a flat that was about the size of a small closet, filled with bugs, and had only one bedroom. Not being able to get an agent to understand that we have a strong preference for a place without an infestation was quite* frustrating.**
So that lasts until about nine o'clock at night. By that time, we've been on our feet since half twelve.* Justin, I know you work in an emergency room and are on your feet for twelve hours all the time, but you can stuff it. It's tiring. When we get back to the hotel after dinner, it's usually around 9:45. Time to check some email, and maybe write a blog post! Luckily, the internet shuts off at ten. So there goes that plan. At least the search is narrowing down. We looked at a promising three-bedroom place last night, and hope to settle the details with the landlord tonight. Once this week is over and the apartment situation is figured out, I can focus on realizing that I'm going to be a teacher and I have no idea what I'm doing.
*Silly-British-English-That-I-Use-Now to Real-English Conversion Table:
"Flat" = Apartment
"Quite = Very
"Half twelve" = half past twelve = 12:30
**A way to avoid the whole walking into random offices thing would be to go on Craigslist, but I can't do that for reasons I'll explain shortly.
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
Tuesday, August 18, 2009
Titles For This Blog Thrown Out Due To Lack Of Availability, Racism, or Both
1. GoGoHongKong
2. GoGoChina
3. The Great White Threat
4. Go Ninja Go Ninja Go
5. Yellow Fever
6. Ninja Rap
7, Hong Kong Phooey
8. Vanilla Ice
2. GoGoChina
3. The Great White Threat
4. Go Ninja Go Ninja Go
5. Yellow Fever
6. Ninja Rap
7, Hong Kong Phooey
8. Vanilla Ice
Monday, August 17, 2009
Sightseeing
On Sunday, I decided to do me some 'sploring. Let's relive the journey together!
First, I hopped on the number 7 bus, getting off down by the harbor:
There were some cool buildings and a nice fountain:
After that, I hopped on the ferry. There was a nice view, I guess:
Next, I hopped on the MTR to head to Jardine's Crescent, an outdoor shopping market known for cheap bargains. My headphones were broken, so I bought new ones. It was incredibly crowded. I didn't take any pictures :(
From there, I paid a visit to Victoria Park, Hong Kong Island's largest public park. I DID take pictures!
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In the park, there was a pond for people to drive their model boats. Apparently, that's a popular hobby in Hong Kong. Anyway, I took a sweet video. Check it out:
Finally, I paid a visit to the Laughing Corner:
Woah! Look at the time! We need to get back to the Anne Black Guest House so I can do my prep for teacher training!
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeee
First, I hopped on the number 7 bus, getting off down by the harbor:
There were some cool buildings and a nice fountain:
After that, I hopped on the ferry. There was a nice view, I guess:
Next, I hopped on the MTR to head to Jardine's Crescent, an outdoor shopping market known for cheap bargains. My headphones were broken, so I bought new ones. It was incredibly crowded. I didn't take any pictures :(
From there, I paid a visit to Victoria Park, Hong Kong Island's largest public park. I DID take pictures!
id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5370533993745839314" border="0" />
In the park, there was a pond for people to drive their model boats. Apparently, that's a popular hobby in Hong Kong. Anyway, I took a sweet video. Check it out:
Finally, I paid a visit to the Laughing Corner:
Woah! Look at the time! We need to get back to the Anne Black Guest House so I can do my prep for teacher training!
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Sunday, August 16, 2009
A Few Thoughts On The Chinese Police (Camp, Part II)
The Chinese (or at least their government) take crime very, very, VERY seriously. Allow me to explain.
During our two days of fun and wonderment at the magical Chinese summer camp, a girl from my program had her bag stolen. It contained her money, credit cards, underpants, etc. Shmatteris called the police. Police said, "We'll see what we can do." In the US, the previous sentence would probably be spoken to the victim in a tone that implies, "What the *** do you want me to do about it?" and that would be the end of things. Not in China.
Hong Kong police sent nothing short of a task force. I counted not one, but TWO detectives and THREE additional support officers. They reviewed security footage, conducted interviews, and even closed the "crime scene" for several hours (read: the girls couldn't go to their rooms). Then, they called the girls back to the scene of the crime for an additional search. Since she was staying with eleven other Shmatteris CNETs, this included going through everyone's personal belongings. After they finished, the police made the poor girl go through her roommate's stuff one by one to make sure that they didn't miss anything. Guess what? They didn't find the bag! Can you believe it?! The police, not nearly finished, summoned us to the ping pong area--remember, this is a summer camp--and made us line up by room.
The Lead Inspector informed us that he wanted to look through our rooms just in case someone took the purse by mistake. The way he said "mistake" made me believe that he really meant "on purpose." He asked if we had any objections. I had a few, but decided not to raise them. The Police Task Force took each room, one at a time, and repeated the process described above.*
Just a quick reminder: her purse was stolen. There wasn't a murder.
I'm not completely sure what to make of this. On the one hand, why is it a bad thing to take crime seriously? If I had been inclined to commit a crime before, my experience with the police at the camp would definitely have squelched it. After all, if they take a missing purse so seriously, imagine how they'd react to a larger crime. On the other hand, the whole affair was fairly ridiculous. It certainly seems like everyone was put through an awful lot of trouble and inconvenience for what amounts to a very small and ultimately meaningless act. Furthermore, the police response was immediate, fierce, and pretty frightening.
At the very least, my time at the camp probably presented a very strong indicator of how things work in China. I haven't quite wrapped my head around it all yet, but maybe in a few weeks or months it'll make more sense to me. Pictures are coming (internet has been too slow to upload more than one at a time), as well as school placement info.
*My room was not searched, probably due to an oversight. I was in quarantine and staying with just my mentor Adam, so we were not part of the large group room checks. This was a huge oversight on their part, considering I have one more purse now than I did two days ago...**
**In case China is reading this blog, I was joking just now.
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
During our two days of fun and wonderment at the magical Chinese summer camp, a girl from my program had her bag stolen. It contained her money, credit cards, underpants, etc. Shmatteris called the police. Police said, "We'll see what we can do." In the US, the previous sentence would probably be spoken to the victim in a tone that implies, "What the *** do you want me to do about it?" and that would be the end of things. Not in China.
Hong Kong police sent nothing short of a task force. I counted not one, but TWO detectives and THREE additional support officers. They reviewed security footage, conducted interviews, and even closed the "crime scene" for several hours (read: the girls couldn't go to their rooms). Then, they called the girls back to the scene of the crime for an additional search. Since she was staying with eleven other Shmatteris CNETs, this included going through everyone's personal belongings. After they finished, the police made the poor girl go through her roommate's stuff one by one to make sure that they didn't miss anything. Guess what? They didn't find the bag! Can you believe it?! The police, not nearly finished, summoned us to the ping pong area--remember, this is a summer camp--and made us line up by room.
The Lead Inspector informed us that he wanted to look through our rooms just in case someone took the purse by mistake. The way he said "mistake" made me believe that he really meant "on purpose." He asked if we had any objections. I had a few, but decided not to raise them. The Police Task Force took each room, one at a time, and repeated the process described above.*
Just a quick reminder: her purse was stolen. There wasn't a murder.
I'm not completely sure what to make of this. On the one hand, why is it a bad thing to take crime seriously? If I had been inclined to commit a crime before, my experience with the police at the camp would definitely have squelched it. After all, if they take a missing purse so seriously, imagine how they'd react to a larger crime. On the other hand, the whole affair was fairly ridiculous. It certainly seems like everyone was put through an awful lot of trouble and inconvenience for what amounts to a very small and ultimately meaningless act. Furthermore, the police response was immediate, fierce, and pretty frightening.
At the very least, my time at the camp probably presented a very strong indicator of how things work in China. I haven't quite wrapped my head around it all yet, but maybe in a few weeks or months it'll make more sense to me. Pictures are coming (internet has been too slow to upload more than one at a time), as well as school placement info.
*My room was not searched, probably due to an oversight. I was in quarantine and staying with just my mentor Adam, so we were not part of the large group room checks. This was a huge oversight on their part, considering I have one more purse now than I did two days ago...**
**In case China is reading this blog, I was joking just now.
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
Friday, August 14, 2009
My School
Hey guys, they gave me a school! I'll be teaching at Queen's College Old Boys' Association Secondary School. In Yankee English, that means I'll be teaching at a co-ed high school. It's located in Tsing-Yi, a small island in between Kowloon and Lantau. It's classified as part of the New Territories. Unlike most of the New Territories, however, it's accessible by MTR (subway). I'm pretty happy with this placement. I requested to work in a high school and the QCOBASC seems fairly accessible. I made a little map to make things easier for you guys (click on the map to find out what those fancy markers mean):
View Larger Map
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
View Larger Map
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
Hong Kong at Night
A couple of days a go, we went to the harbor for the evening light show. It holds the Guinness world record for longest running nightly light show or something. Anyway, it was pretty cool and the view was amazing. These pictures are from the southern point of Kowloon looking onto Hong Kong Island:
Under The Weather
Well, getting sick in China sucks.
As part of our training, Shmatteris (I found out that my contract forbids me from using my company's real name in any "outside media outlets) took us on a retreat to a summer camp in the New Territories up north.* We were promised two days of team building, activities, outdoor adventures, etc. I was really looking forward to it, but shortly after we arrived, I began to feel under the weather (BLOG POST TITLE ALERT!!!!).
I started sneezing constantly, developed a sore throat, and felt just crappy in general. These are three of the main early indicators that one could be coming down with Swine Flu. Shmatteris told us to let them know if we were feeling ill so they could isolate us and prevent Swine Flu from spreading. Due to an intense fear of being placed in Chinese quarantine, however, I didn't want to say anything. But as I continued to sneeze and failed to get better, I noticed my fellow trainees noticing me, so to speak. I realized that if I didn't say something, someone on leadership probably would. So, like a good little CNET, I told my bosses that I was feeling sick.
My mom is probably reading this and saying out loud to no one in particular, "I TOLD HIM OVER AND OVER THAT HE SHOULD GET THE FLU STUFF BEFORE HE LEFT AND HE DIDN'T LISTEN." Well mom, here's the the thing: I didn't have Swine Flu.**
I could go on a rant about how as of yet, there's really no difference between Swine Flu and other strains of flu other than its rapid spread. And while I'd be right, I think the bigger problem is that people in China seem to forget that it's possible to get sick and not have Swine Flu. One could argue that preventing this disease from spreading is a good thing, but I think that maybe China's gone a little overboard.
By quarantining people with even slight indicators of carrying N1H1, China has created fear where none is necessary. You get sick, it lasts a couple of days, then you get better. It's kind of like getting the flu. But people are terrified of getting quarantined, so they become terrified of getting ill. What's worse, this fear of quarantine prevents people from taking preventative actions such as seeing the doctor.*** Why? Even though I probably only needed a little amoxicillin, my director told me that if she took me to the doctor, I'd most likely be taken into quarantine. Great.
So what happened? Shmatteris moved me from the bunk I was staying in with nine other guys into a smaller, moldier, isolated room. I had to wear my mask at all times (This really sucks. I kept breathing in the same hot, smelly, diseased air over and over again.) I wasn't allowed to touch the big plates of food; it had to be served to me. I needed to have my temperature checked three times a day. I didn't go to the doctor and eventually got better, but I spent the two days fairly isolated from the group during the time we're all supposed to be getting to know one another. Also, the food sucked and I got bit by about thirty different bugs.
Me, in my mask back when I still thought it was funny (not at camp)
In conclusion, camp was sooooo much fun! I had the best time ever you guyz!!!!
*The New Territories are considered part of Hong Kong, but they're mostly connected to mainland China.
**My illness had something to do with any combination of jetlag, the poor air quality, the entire camp being built on a mountain of mold,**** and coming down with a minor bug.
***Granted, I'm can only really speak for myself, but I like to think of myself as your typical Joe Chinaman. I thus believe my feelings to be fairly universal.
****Seriously, look at the mold in the bathroom. They don't have drains in the floor! Water just stays there. Throw in the humidity, and you have a perfect breeding ground for mold, insects and disease. This is bad news for someone with allergies.
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
As part of our training, Shmatteris (I found out that my contract forbids me from using my company's real name in any "outside media outlets) took us on a retreat to a summer camp in the New Territories up north.* We were promised two days of team building, activities, outdoor adventures, etc. I was really looking forward to it, but shortly after we arrived, I began to feel under the weather (BLOG POST TITLE ALERT!!!!).
I started sneezing constantly, developed a sore throat, and felt just crappy in general. These are three of the main early indicators that one could be coming down with Swine Flu. Shmatteris told us to let them know if we were feeling ill so they could isolate us and prevent Swine Flu from spreading. Due to an intense fear of being placed in Chinese quarantine, however, I didn't want to say anything. But as I continued to sneeze and failed to get better, I noticed my fellow trainees noticing me, so to speak. I realized that if I didn't say something, someone on leadership probably would. So, like a good little CNET, I told my bosses that I was feeling sick.
My mom is probably reading this and saying out loud to no one in particular, "I TOLD HIM OVER AND OVER THAT HE SHOULD GET THE FLU STUFF BEFORE HE LEFT AND HE DIDN'T LISTEN." Well mom, here's the the thing: I didn't have Swine Flu.**
I could go on a rant about how as of yet, there's really no difference between Swine Flu and other strains of flu other than its rapid spread. And while I'd be right, I think the bigger problem is that people in China seem to forget that it's possible to get sick and not have Swine Flu. One could argue that preventing this disease from spreading is a good thing, but I think that maybe China's gone a little overboard.
By quarantining people with even slight indicators of carrying N1H1, China has created fear where none is necessary. You get sick, it lasts a couple of days, then you get better. It's kind of like getting the flu. But people are terrified of getting quarantined, so they become terrified of getting ill. What's worse, this fear of quarantine prevents people from taking preventative actions such as seeing the doctor.*** Why? Even though I probably only needed a little amoxicillin, my director told me that if she took me to the doctor, I'd most likely be taken into quarantine. Great.
So what happened? Shmatteris moved me from the bunk I was staying in with nine other guys into a smaller, moldier, isolated room. I had to wear my mask at all times (This really sucks. I kept breathing in the same hot, smelly, diseased air over and over again.) I wasn't allowed to touch the big plates of food; it had to be served to me. I needed to have my temperature checked three times a day. I didn't go to the doctor and eventually got better, but I spent the two days fairly isolated from the group during the time we're all supposed to be getting to know one another. Also, the food sucked and I got bit by about thirty different bugs.
Me, in my mask back when I still thought it was funny (not at camp)In conclusion, camp was sooooo much fun! I had the best time ever you guyz!!!!
*The New Territories are considered part of Hong Kong, but they're mostly connected to mainland China.
**My illness had something to do with any combination of jetlag, the poor air quality, the entire camp being built on a mountain of mold,**** and coming down with a minor bug.
***Granted, I'm can only really speak for myself, but I like to think of myself as your typical Joe Chinaman. I thus believe my feelings to be fairly universal.
****Seriously, look at the mold in the bathroom. They don't have drains in the floor! Water just stays there. Throw in the humidity, and you have a perfect breeding ground for mold, insects and disease. This is bad news for someone with allergies.
Byeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
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