Hi there fellow TEFLers! Well, it’s that time of year and we’re all busy writing out our wish lists - a western toilet, a fab apartment, well-behaved students, great bars and even greater clubbing. Yup, you guessed it. It’s nearly time to move on. Our adventure as interns is coming to an end in three weeks! OMG!!! We are soon to fly the TTC nest and make our own way in the world as fully fledged TEFL teachers. And I bet you thought I was talking about Chrimbo? Well, there is that as well, but all the talk round here lately has been about our futures as TEFL teachers. Should I stay or should I go? Which job offer should I accept? Do I really have to go back to the UK for my visa? The list of questions going round your head at this point, is endless. And, it’s brain-numbing!
To try and give you all a heads-up, I’ve devised a small list of do’s and don’ts which you may want to bear in mind when your turn comes:
a) Firstly, you might not want to leave it too late to start looking for work, if you are intending to continue your TEFL teaching. Things don’t work the same way in China as they do in the UK. You may think that starting to apply for future jobs 8 weeks before the end of your internship is ample time to get things sorted. Don’t believe it. Schools here move at their own pace so before you know it, you have 3 weeks to go and you are still trying to sort out visas, etc. You may also find that you have to contact the aforesaid school many times before you get things sorted. In addition to this, you may also find yourself having to do a lot of the leg work.
b) Secondly, don’t be tempted into accepting a job based on a glitzy website or photos of the school. These can be misleading. Do your homework! Get on to the internet and do a good search. Google the school’s name and read everything you can about it. TEFL teachers use many ESL sites to give feedback on schools they have worked at and you can use these sites to see whether that feedback is positive or negative. Just make sure you get a balanced view.
c) As regards the Z visa. Well, it’s been a matter of huge consternation here lately. To cut a long story short, a few of us who came to China on the August internship, did not buy a return plane ticket. The reason for this was that we always intended to stay on and teach here after the internship was over. And this is where some of our problems have occurred. For most of us already here, the plan was simple – we knew we had to leave the country to apply for the visa, so why not go to Hong Kong? We also knew from research (and word of mouth), that visas could be obtained in Hong Kong. Great! We could go to Hong Kong, get our visas and have a little holiday at the same time. Well? Not so. It seems that different provinces in China have different rules regarding the application for the Z visa. Some provinces can provide the paperwork which will allow a Z visa application through Hong Kong. Others cannot. If you apply to one of the schools who do not provide the Hong Kong paperwork, you have only one of two choices; 1) to return to your country of residence and make your visa application there, or 2) go out of the country (Hong Kong is the usual destination), and send your passport/visa documentation by registered courier to your country of residence and get a relative or agency to make the application on your behalf. The obvious problem here is that you are then left without a passport, and should anything happen, you will be stranded. So proceed with caution would-be TEFLers. Think long and hard about your future plans before you get here. Granted you could buy a return ticket and find that you lose out on the return by staying. It’s a small price to pay for peace of mind and infinitely cheaper than having to buy another one way ticket should you end up going home.
So, having said all that, what’s to be done about spending Christmas in China - away from all your loved ones? One of the most-asked questions I’ve had directed at me via Skype and email is, “Do they do Christmas over there?” The short answer to this is, “No” and, “Yes”. Confused? Let me enlighten you then. The Chinese don’t celebrate Christmas as such, particularly any religious reference to it. Having said all that, many of the shops in Chengdu city are ablaze with Santas, Christmas trees, snowmen, tinsel and baubles. There is an avid interest in China for all things ‘western’ and that includes Christmas. There are an abundance of hotels and restaurants offering full-on Christmas fayre and many shops are overflowing with Christmas trees and decorations. We even have a Christmas tree in our apartment (provided by the lovely Aoife), so it’s feeling really festive.
And what about Christmas Day itself? Well, as many of our interns are leaving Chengdu and heading off to pastures new, we have decided to book into a hostel in the city (Sim’s Cozy Garden – you’ll find it in your Lonely Planet guide), on the 24th and 25th December. The plan is to go out on Christmas Eve (it’s a Saturday, which is great), and go back to the hostel, where we can all wake up together on Christmas Day. That way, no-one will be alone on Christmas morning. We’ve also planned some Bucks Fizz and a bran tub! The hostel is laying on a party and drinks and then we’re off out again on Christmas night. A fantastic idea, courtesy of Nic, our resident Kiwi. What would we do without her? I’ll let you know how it goes.
So, here’s wishing you all a Very Merry Chrimbo! I know you’ll have a fantastic New Year – because you’ll be coming to China! I’m off to write a speech – I’ve been asked to judge an English poetry reading competition at school.
Take care one and all. The clock’s ticking and you’ll be with us sooner than you think!
Denise x
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