Today is Dragon Boat Festival, one of the few official holidays’ here in China. Curious at what that means? Well read this post that I wrote last year about the history and culture behind it. We are right in the thick of finishing up our final exams (Thursday will be
Cake Week
I have eaten more cake this week then the past year combined. It’s a perfect storm of birthday’s and end-of-year parties that had me shovel piece after piece into my mouth. Chinese birthday cakes are all thick sugary frosting and no cake, but then I’ve never been one to turn
Hangin' With my Homies
It’s spring time here and that can only mean one thing: class trip time! In China classes live, work, eat and breath together. On your first day freshman year you are assigned a class number, and you will stay with those classmates for the next four years. I have mixed
Instant Forest – Just Add Trees
Normally the front entrance of the school is filled with purple and green bushes crisscrossing and intertwining to make colorful lines from afar. One day a giant boulder showed up, stuck around for a few weeks, and the mysteriously disappeared. Then the green bushes disappeared as did the purple. The
Spring Has Sprung
May first, or May Day is a holiday to celebrate the coming spring. My college is a Forestry University, and as you might expect, it has some pretty amazing landscaping. It doesn’t hurt that the campus is nestled at the base of some green rolling hills, nor that when spring
5 Reasons to Teach English in China (Now With Bonus Reason)
1. A Comfortable Lifestyle You’re never going to get rich teaching English in China (the exchange rate will make sure of that) but you can live a very comfortable life. If you negotiate your salary well, and stay away from daily doses of western food and bars, you can make
Easter Bunny — Chinese Style
What do you get when you add a sock, some rice and a piece of string? Why the Easter Bunny of course! Easter is not a big deal here at all. In fact, most of the students knew about Easter, but had no idea when it was. And I had
Teacher Deaths Confirmed in Japan
The news just announced the second death of an American resulting from the recent earthquake/tsunami disaster in Japan. His name was Monty Dickson and he was a 26-year-old English teacher. The only other confirmed American death is Taylor Anderson, 24, also an English teacher. It hits close to home, for
Star Wars Day has Come a Little Early
This semester is my busiest semester since arriving to China. My contract stipulates that I should only be teaching 16 hours, yet this semester I find myself teaching 20. Teaching extra hours, above and beyond your contract is basically a teaching no-no. In China there are many disreputable schools that
Partying the Fuzzy Way
Writing and creating a book is a solitary and lonely experience. Oftentimes it’s not even that much fun, just a whole lotta work. That’s why, when the book is finally released, it’s important to let your hair down, break out the fruit punch and have a book release party! For