A Different Picture

I must say that China is nothing what I thought it would be.

For one I had no idea what to expect, and for number two the vague scenes I had imagined included wontons and men in business suits heading into high rises and eating dog for lunch. It just shows how the world portrays different places and the general ideas in which we have of countries may not be general at all.

For one thing, from my experience in China I haven’t come across a single wonton. In fact no one here, foreign or not, knows what they are! Yes there are men in business suits but no way near the amount compared to the population. The people I see consist of ladies sitting outside on stools relaxing and watching life stretch out before them, men fishing for food in the lakes that are plentiful and children playing with their much loved dog friends( not food!) whilst smiling up a storm.

Through the chaos of the millions of people I don’t know how they do it but the Chinese have taught me to stop more and just take life in.

An example of this is the lovely old man who sits on our street. He makes me smile every time I see him with his smile, casual nod and his words mumbled to me in Chinese. He sits on his stool and it’s like he voluntarily patrols his part of the street. He helps people park their cars and talks to them about their vehicles. He takes care of our recyclables and jokes with his friends. He has the simple life and it seems to me like he is happy.

Of course I’m not going to stop my life and move onto a wooden stool or anything drastic but this man has taught me the lesson to be content, and to appreciate the world around me. It may just be a street but that street holds a thousand stories and if you rush past too quickly you won’t appreciate its value. Getting off the bus a few stops before I get home has become a bit of a habit some days. Wandering the streets and gardens is a lovely way to end the day of teaching and take China in. 

Other than the life lessons being thrown at me; Ningbo has passed me a few cruisy weeks. My birthday came and went and I am now officially 20 :O, the All Blacks won the rugby world cup(!!!!!!!), I have now ice skated in a mall and discovered that there is a pretty sweet dance club here and dressed up as a panda for Halloween.

My birthday cake!

Also the kids I teach have got the low down on trick-or-treating and can do some of the Haka. Okay so I’ve done some cool things but in general my life in Ningbo has slowed down to a steady pace now that we are settled in and know the city more. In saying that though, our school has given us a few different lessons than usual which changes up things a little.

One thing you will know when you are in China is a ’go with the flow’ attitude is essential. Well, maybe not essential but just a helpful quality as you never know what is around the corner here.

As I’ve said before and will say again, China is definitely not boring! A rollercoaster is a good metaphor to describe it and with a rollercoaster you can either close your eyes and wait for it to be over or you can open your eyes, take in everything in around you, throw your hands up in the air and enjoy every second.

• China
• China internship 2012
• TEFL in China
• TEFL
• TEFL course