This past weekend my school, Jimei University, celebrated it’s 100th anniversary. Chinese universities don’t need much of an excuse to have a big celebration and this is a worthy milestone, so for months the school has been preparing for it. My school was started by a guy who was basically
How to (Successfully) Find a School to Teach in China—and Announcing my Next Destination!
I have the signed contract and visa paperwork in hand so I think it is only fitting to finally announce where I’m going next year. (I wanted to wait till it was legal before I jinxed anything.) Next September I’ll be teaching in the beautiful seaside city of….Xiamen. I know,
The End of an Era
Today I taught my last class at Zhejiang Agriculture and Foresty University. It was 2nd year students from Survey of English Speaking Countries. I still have paper work to submit, and all the annoying bits of teaching but that’s it…I’m done with class. I started in the fall of 2009
Lucky Once Again
Usually by December I’m teaching class in my winter coat and hat (no heat in the classroom) but this year we’ve been especially lucky. It’s been a long and beeaoootiful fall. Cold nights, but clear, sunny, warm days. My school is a forestry school and has a beautiful campus with
And so it Begins……Year 5 at Zhejiang Agriculture and Forestry University
So here I am on the eve of the new school year. I can’t believe it’s been 5 years already. Where did the time go? I expected to be in China for one year, but for 5?! It boggles the mind. Of course after such a long time you get
The Teacher Becomes the Student
This semester I’ve taught English speaking to every single sophomore class. I’ve never taught an entire grade the same subject at the same time before and I kinda like it. Usually each class hangs out mostly with themselves, as they live together, have class together and pretty much do everything
And So Begins Year 4
The thermometer is still hovering near 100, but I finally have to face the facts, that my summer is officially over. Tomorrow begins the first day of the 2012-13 school year. And I’m having a hard time realizing that the fun is over. Can you blame me? In the past
A Walk in the Woods (with Ben)
There’s no getting around it: my campus is one of the most beautiful in China. The college is nestled in the foothills of Lin’an, and while we have a dirty, fast moving city to the south of the college, the north is entirely wild with mountains, footpaths, hidden lakes and
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
Our University
The University we teach at is called Zheijang Forestry University and true to its name, there is a lot of forest and natural beauty surrounding it. The campus is landscaped and planted, and trimmed and some spots are amazingly gorgeous. We spent the first several weeks just exploring the campus