This is China

On one of the first days in my class, I learned about a phrase that expats living in China like to use to describe some of the...unusual...experiences one might encounter while living here. "This is China," or just TIC for short, is the only way to explain some of the odd things that go on in this country on a daily basis. Almost got run down by a speeding car ignoring all traffic laws? TIC. Bombarded by street vendors selling everything from octopus tentacles to live crickets? TIC. Ordered water with a meal and had it served scalding hot? TIC. Went to a cat themed bar with a plethora of actual cats roaming around the entire place? TIC. I could go on and on and on. All you can do is laugh it off and chalk it up to one simple explanation: This is China.

Other than learning clever inside jokes, my TEFL course has actually been quite enjoyable. I'd be lying if I said I had been looking forward to it but it has actually been a good experience. My peers are mostly Americans but there is a vast array of other countries represented, including Canada, Great Britain, Germany, Australia, Iran, Israel, and China. Our instructor is an American who has been teaching English in China at the university level for the past 15 years. He's a pretty entertaining guy with an interesting sense of humor. He's done a great job of presenting a ton of valuable information and keeping our attention. It's been a very informative course. The first few days consisted of just lecturing and group discussions but the past three days have been filled with everyone doing a 30 minute demo lesson, which accounts for 30% of our grade. I was the second person overall to do my lesson and it was really nice to get it out of the way early. I've kinda just checked out ever since. Tomorrow is our last day and we'll be taking a final exam which accounts for 40% of our grades. I've done very well on all the coursework so far so I only need like an 18 on the final to pass the course. Needless to say, I'm not too concerned about it. After the final, we will all go our separate ways in various parts of the country to teach at different public schools, private schools, international schools, universities, and language centers. It's been nice visiting with everyone and I think we will all do great in our respective assignments. Several people will be in Suzhou which is only about 10 minutes from Kunshan, so it's possible I'll see them again. Then again, there are 10.5 million people in Suzhou, so maybe not. TIC

Hunter