Part S - Teaching in China - Shanghai

It’s a sobering experience to have spent more than 4 hours flying across the vast and mostly empty interior of Australia with its approximately 23 million people clinging to a few pockets on the perimeter, only to spend the last few minutes of the 12 hour flight peering down at Shanghai with more than 24 million people in just the one city.

I don't know Shanghai well, but I enjoy visiting. Over the years, I’ve walked along a few streets, I’ve taken a few taxi rides, been on a couple of subway trips. Given the size and density of the city, that’s as insubstantial as someone making an assessment of Australia based on perfect Spring day in Sydney and concluding that no place could be finer!

One year, we stayed at a small hotel in the French Concession and enjoyed walking ... and walking, and walking. Wandering down alleys, peering between fence palings, oohing and aahing at statues. 

As a tourist, I find this area enticing. The generous tree lined streets provide welcome shade and a sense of coolness in the hot, humid summer heat, and while some areas are busy with crowds of people, others encourage you to pause and reflect on the rapidly changing country. 

Shanghai is a living city, with children heading off to school, university students and exchange students milling around with backpacks and take away coffee. Men of varying nationalities in suits, striding purposefully to offices. Others gliding along on bicycles, seemingly oblivious to the traffic, threading through cars and electric motor bikes with apparently no care in the world!

Chubby middle aged men stripped to the waist, some only wearing boxer shorts, sitting on upturned boxes, or with their singlets or t-shirts rolled up to below their armpits to allow their sweat to evaporate in any hint of breeze. Beautifully made up women, slender and haughtily confident of their superiority, clip along in sparkly stilettos and short, figure hugging outfits. 

Older people stroll to get the morning paper, some with small dogs with little booties. Washing hanging on poles jutting from windows in narrow, homey alleyways. 

In parks, in singles and groups, people exercising in the mornings - various kinds of dance, tai-chi, games similar to badminton - all part and parcel of a city so different, but somehow vaguely similar to Melbourne. Maybe it's something to do with the plane trees and the Chinese having been part of the Australian population since the early days. 

Here, as in Melbourne, you're just a face in the crowd, no different to millions of others. It's very different to teaching off the tourist track, where it's obvious many people haven't seen, let alone spoken with people from English speaking backgrounds before, where your every move is cause for curiosity and staring.
Hoardings and living green walls hide construction sites and the crowded relocatable housing for workers who've been attracted to work in the big city. Living conditions are as varied as in any large city, and dust covers the valiant efforts to dry washing on a line outside a hut. The amount of construction is incredible, cranes appear like a giant game of pick-up-sticks, scattered around the huge city. It's a riot of colour, movement and sound.

Shanghai is a city gripped by modernisation, and the pace of the change is breathtaking. On my first visit in 1978 it was like visiting a city with solid roots to the past. Those roots are still there in the lively alleys and the stately old buildings contrasting with the futuristic gravity-defying new ones. 


Not everything relating to the past has been discarded, but what demands attention is the iconic skyline and colourful nighttime lighting.

The Friendship stores are long gone, replaced by international flagship stores encouraging consumption and materialism, but of more interest to me are the people who've flocked from around the world to make this city home, bringing with them skills, interests and services for locals, expats and tourists alike.  

Not least is the availability of international foods, wines and good coffee! Leaf and Bean, Jamaica Blue, and a variety of independent cafes make a stopover in Shanghai after teaching in the country a real treat! 

My previous posts about Teaching in China were our Arrival, Banquets,  Culture and Comfort foods, Driving, Exercise, Fabulous Food,Games, History, Illness, From Jerilderie to Jiangsu, Kenny (which is about toilets) Lists and Communication Misunderstandings, Non-verbal communication followed by The Observations of an Onlooker, Pets, Questions, Rest Rooms, Shanghai and the next will be .... Teaching Teachers ...!

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Part R. Teaching in China. Rest Rooms.

Ah the joys of miscommunication!

It appears that the term rest room isn't a euphemism for the area where the toilets are housed, but was to be taken literally! At our school in Xuzhou, the rest room appeared to be a formal conference or Boardroom, and during the vacation period it had been set aside for staff to rest in after lunch.

However, we weren't aware of that on the first day, and, on being asked if we'd like to go to the rest room, made polite, non-committal noises and entered ...  I don't really know what we expected, but it certainly wasn't this!

Details of the large room were difficult to make out in the diffused light, and the gentle sounds of deep breathing (some might use the word snoring) greeted our chattering entrance. Stunned, we lapsed into awkward silence and looked at each other. Could this be true? Were the skeleton staff on duty really deep in a post luncheon kip?

Formal Boardroom chairs had been pulled together to make the semblance beds. Heads lolled in what appeared to be awkward, uncomfortable angles, on the backs or arms of the chairs, feet were draped over the adjoining chair. Clearly this wasn't a new idea, as all staff members were completely at ease and relaxed. Some had simply put their head down on the boardroom table and checked out for a while.

Not the Boardroom in question, but similar
except for the alert, focussed students!

We'd regularly enter the classrooms after lunch to find all lights had been turned off and our students sound asleep with their heads on the tables. Even they had the sense to have a complete break!

How civilised! An area specially set aside to have a snooze in the middle of the day! Australia could really learn from this! Less stress! Increased afternoon productivity! And so simple!

Unfortunately the opportunity for total relaxation wasn't for us. We rarely returned from lunch for long enough than to sit for more than a few moments before gathering our bags, books and photocopies and presenting the afternoon sessions. There were times in the afternoons when I thought longingly of the Rest Room and those gently snoring souls.

In contrast in 2015 in Gaoyou, we had lunch at the hotel we were staying at, and so were able to lie back in private and put our feet up in our hotel rooms on the pleasantly hard Chinese mattresses, (my back loves them!) and have a complete break after eating. It did wonders for my aching legs and I was able to give more energetic presentations in the afternoons!

On my list of things to learn however, is the ability to sleep anywhere. It'd be a very useful skill!

I haven't yet worked out the attraction of a window between the
bathroom and bedroom in some hotels.

My previous posts about Teaching in China were our Arrival, Banquets,  Culture and Comfort foods, Driving, Exercise, Fabulous Food,Games, History, Illness, From Jerilderie to Jiangsu, Kenny (which is about toilets) Lists and Communication Misunderstandings, Non-verbal communication followed by The Observations of an Onlooker, Pets, Questions, Rest Rooms and the next will be .... Shanghai ...!
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Part Q. Teaching in China. Questions.

The one question I've been most often asked on my return from teaching teachers in China is, "Would you do it again?"

I've often wished it was, "Did your students gain confidence in their spoken English?" That would be easy to answer with a confident - "Yes, all of them!"

But "Would you do it again?" is harder to answer. Partly, it's related to my undeniably Western upbringing and how my body copes with the change of food - it doesn't adapt quickly to the quantity of oil used in Chinese cooking. I'm constantly on the verge of diarrhoea and have a complaining gut. I have trouble sleeping, and find the sweltering heat and extreme humidity draining. Others suffer with painful heat rash. The lack of easy contact with home is challenging. "Yes ... maybe" is met with "So you didn't enjoy the experience", which simply isn't true. Questions aren't always easy to answer.
....

Once you've gained the confidence of adult students, and respect and trust has been fostered, questions beyond your expectations may surface.

Stereotypes absorbed from films make for interesting discussions: Is everyone really that wealthy? Do you all have large homes? We might rarely stop to think about the skewed version of the "typical" western family life, particularly as depicted in TV shows and movies glorifying "the American Dream". We know it's a facade, and the reality for the bulk of US citizens and the western world in general, is very different. Westerners aren't a homogenous group and while students might implicitly understand this, it's important to also note differences within and between cultures. We don't all live in huge beautifully furnished homes. Not everyone is wealthy, many people are afraid of overseas travel particularly to a communist country where the main language isn't English.

My Chinese students were stunned to hear that, before I left home, I'd heard comments like: "Be careful, you never know if you'll be safe overseas, especially in China."
"What do you mean you don't know the name of the town and hotel you'll be staying in before you arrive, isn't that dangerous?" "How will your family know where you are?"
"Isn't China a scary place?"

My Chinese teacher-students looked at me with wide eyed disbelief, then looked at each other with genuine shock tinged with hurt. How could anyone think they, as individuals, could present a danger to anyone! "We thought all Westerners would be comfortable travelling to China." "We're just the same as you except we speak a different language."

And one thing leads to another. More questions emerge, and as trust builds, so does the confidence to ask them.

One day, I had the sense that something was going on between a group of the women. There was a general shuffling of feet, and pointed looking at each other.

"Do you want to ask me a question?"

Nod, nod, nod.

Okay, why aren't they asking? Why do they look so embarrassed? They haven't been backwards in coming forward the past few days.

"Is it something you'd prefer the men not to be here for?"

Nod, nod, nod.

Oh my goodness. What on earth could it be? What to do? How do I handle this? Nothing like this was mentioned in the pre training sessions! I checked with our interpreter and she encouraged me to let the women ask whatever it was they wanted, so I asked them to write the questions down with the understanding that I'd do my best to answer as well as possible.

And what followed probably only came about due to my age, and reinforced that we're all in this together. We all face similar problems and often feel the need to share and know we're not alone:

• How do I get on with my in-laws?
• How do I teach manners to children?
• How do I broach the topic of sex education with my child?
• How early do I begin the discussion?
• But they also were curious about our attitudes to abortion and single parenthood, about contraception, menopause, age and retirement.

At other times they asked questions specifically related to teaching:

• How do you inspire students?
• How do you help the student who is struggling - with school work, or with problems at home?
• How do you make your classroom interesting when there are tight time frames in which to deliver necessary material?
• How do you be a great role model?

And like so much in life, there's no single easy answer. Life is complex, answers will be different, depending on your country of origin, your age, experience and personal background.

More than anything I encouraged them to keep sharing between themselves, to find mutually supportive networks and to use this sharing experience as a great start.

As for "Would you go again?" I returned to Jiangsu in 2015 (to the city of Gaoyou) and found the experience just as rewarding the second time!

My previous posts about Teaching in China were our Arrival, Banquets,  Culture and Comfort foods, Driving, Exercise, Fabulous Food,Games, History, Illness, From Jerilderie to Jiangsu, Kenny (which is about toilets) Lists and Communication Misunderstandings, Non-verbal communication followed by The Observations of an Onlooker, Pets, Questions and the next will be .... Rest Rooms ...!

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Part P - Teaching in China - Pets

"They eat dogs in China you know."

How many times have I heard this statement and wondered what the underlying message was designed to be. For goodness sake, other people eat snails, snakes, eels, kangaroo, lambs, deer, fish, pigs, horse, insects and all sorts of creatures. It's what many humans tend to do to fill their bellies - often because they enjoy the taste, sometimes through necessity. If the need arose, I suspect I'd gnaw on some foods that right now I'd prefer not to think about.

And just to put the record straight, not all dogs, fish or snails in China are destined for the dinner plate. Many of them will become pets, kept for their beauty, serenity, good fortune or plain lovability.

The Chinese word for fish is similar to the one for abundance, so keeping fish as pets has special significance, fish also represent fertility and happiness.

I'm not too sure who is the star of the cheerfully posed photo above, though the little blue runners on the pooch were striking!

An expat enjoying walking the dog in dappled sunlight.

Puppies for sale in a market in Xuzhou. Not all were in prime condition and I suspect puppy farms are as much a problem in China as they are here. The little ones I photographed were in good condition and bouncing around healthily.

Every morning we'd look out of the hotel window and see groups of people training their dogs, chatting or walking briskly along before the heat of the day became unpleasant. Often the dogs would be off-leash and we nervously watched as the traffic streamed past and the dogs roamed free. But not once did one come close to being splattered! Although small dogs were most common, there were some large animals as well - Samoyed, Chow Chow, and others I didn't know.

One lunchtime our hosts asked us to give some suggestions about which dishes to order. I looked at some meat and suggested it could be a nice change. Bonnie, our interpreter looked at me with horror and simply said "Oh no, that wouldn't be nice"

"Why?"

"It's dog."

Even though dog is on the menu at various restaurants, it's clearly not the meat of choice for everyone!

It's odd though, while I'll cheerfully eat some animals, others aren't quite as tempting. I don't pretend it makes sense and my somewhat more logical brain says that if I'll eat one animal, then why not all of them? My brain then tells me that if I'm unhappy about munching on dog then I shouldn't eat any meats at all.  I'm obviously not as rational as I like to pretend I am!


My previous posts about Teaching in China were our Arrival, Banquets,  Culture and Comfort foods, Driving, Exercise, Fabulous Food,Games, History, Illness, From Jerilderie to Jiangsu, Kenny (which is about toilets) Lists and Communication Misunderstandings, Non-verbal communication followed by The Observations of an Onlooker, and the next will be Questions!

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Part O - Teaching in China - The observations of an onlooker.

If you're female, tall, blond and blue eyed you'll be noticed in a country where most people have black hair. That's a given. There's no way you won't turn heads and create both obvious and discrete comment from children and adults.

If a bloke has a generous amount of face foliage and is older, you'll not only turn heads, but will have people constantly queuing up, asking to have their photo taken with you.

When you're a foreigner staying in a non-tourist Chinese city, be prepared to be stared at. Staring isn't necessarily rude, but is more along the lines of "Did I just see what I think I saw? My eyes must have been deceiving me!  I'll just have another look to check." This is often closely followed by a nudge to a friend, a hurried conversation and more staring eyes.

Put simply, if you're in the above categories, and don't like being stared at with curiosity, wonder or disbelief, dye your hair a dark colour or shave the beard off. For the introvert it'll save a lot of angst, and isn't uncommon among foreigners. You won't blend in, but you will be less obvious!

Staring can range from the cursory glance, to the prolonged unblinking stare, to the positively amusing triple take, complete with audible gasp and bulging eyes.

In the photo below you can see this in action. The lady in the blue/green blouse on the left is staring at the beard. The man in the black t-shirt in the centre of the photo is staring at our blond colleague.

I'm following along behind, bemused, insignificant and practically invisible ;-)

On the escalators however, it was another matter.  People couldn't stop and stare. They'd be travelling up the escalator chatting away and were unable to stop or backtrack to get a better look at the gweilo. I'm sure some of them would need to have had a neck brace fitted afterwards as their necks snapped round with such speed!

Walking along behind either Candy or Ian was often entertaining! You'd always know where they were by the synchronised turning of heads. Ah yes, they must be that way .... hmm, no more people looking, time to backtrack and follow the signs! On one occasion in a crowded market I couldn't see Ian, and simply gestured to a stall holder, stroked an imaginary beard and with a huge grin and wink, he pointed me in the correct direction. A beard can be a very useful item for a wife!

My previous posts about Teaching in China were our Arrival, Banquets,  Culture and Comfort foods, Driving, Exercise, Fabulous Food,Games, History, Illness, From Jerilderie to Jiangsu, Kenny (which is about toilets) Lists and Communication Misunderstandings. Next up - Pets!

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Part N - Teaching in China - Non-verbal Communication

First impressions are said to be gained within seconds of meeting a person; even before you've opened your mouth ... and it's easy to get it wrong. 

Non-verbal communication includes our dress, hairstyle, posture, age, how we smell, and they all contribute to the impression we give to others; and once that impression has been gained, it can be extremely hard to overcome, particularly if it's negative.

Non-verbal cues are understood to represent approximately 2/3 of communication and as with spoken language can easily be misunderstood, especially when culture is added. 

Those of us from backgrounds where eye contact is direct, can find it difficult to adapt to the lack of eye contact between men and women in countries where this is inappropriate. How close we stand can  also present problems, with some westerners finding they keep stepping backwards to attempt to maintain a comfortable distance, while the person they're talking with (who comes from a close contact culture) finds themselves advancing to close the gap! All these and more (see below) could be important to discuss with teacher-students.

The type of clothing we wear conveys non-verbal cues about our personality, background and financial status, and impacts on how people will respond. 

As a teacher visiting China in a professional capacity, how should one dress? The recommendation for the women was: no skimpy outfits or flaunting the cleavage, no shorts, nothing too strappy or revealing, try to cover the shoulders (though that seems to be changing) and remember it's going to be really hot and humid, so quick dry is good. Great! This sounds like my work wardrobe! 

Thankfully, I'd carefully folded my work clothes before leaving home and they'd survived relatively well so the first impression was professional, conservative, and with funky functional shoes that didn't cause blisters and that I could stand in all day. 

Shoes you could stand in all day?!

SHOE FAIL! 

My students wore glittery fancy shoes with heels! Sparkles, bows, faux gems, platforms and colour! Flats are definitely not the popular shoe. Sigh. As for my comfy sandals which had gone paddling in Nanjing - they looked decidedly worse for wear, they'd changed colour to an uneven, slimy, murky, puke green, and .... was that rust on the rivets, and mould growing on the leather? My feet felt decidedly underdressed! 

Look at the shoes! With gems, colour and bows. They're fun!
I wish I'd thought to ask my students to pose for a shoe photo! 

Unfortunately I'd assumed that there'd be an iron in the hotel - there was, but it didn't work so I felt very embarrassed to be in a perpetually crumpled state after I washed my clothes the first time. The supposed trick of hanging the item in the bathroom when you're having a hot shower so that the steam de-crumples the item doesn't work even when you wish really hard. Sometimes, all you can do is explain the problem, then ignore it, walk tall (Did I hear laughter back there? Yes, I know I'm the shortest person in the room, but being tall doesn't only refer to height, it can be manner as well!) and carry on as normal.  

I've mentioned before that much of my teaching has been with mixed nationality groups, and I've noticed that wherever they're from, it's relatively easy to identify the nervous student, the serious student, the stressed, the humourous, the cheeky and so on.

I've also had the experience of attempting to communicate with someone whose spoken English isn't strong and seen the blank face combined with the nod of agreement - and known that the message hasn't been received! 

It's an odd experience however, to suddenly find yourself doing exactly the same thing!

Picture this scenario - you're in a conversation with a hesitant English speaker, or someone with a strong accent and you have absolutely no idea what they just said. Unlike the janitor clearly conveying his meaning about not putting toilet paper in the toilet, in this instance the speaker isn't gesturing towards any specific nearby object and there are no cues about the subject. The words have come out with emphasis, but they're a confused fuzzy blur. The standard response is to ask them to repeat the sentence. Your ear is tuned in now, all will be fine...

but no

so you ask again

and they patiently repeat what are presumably words, with added emphasis and volume

um, still no

could you possibly try again please, perhaps use some different words? I'm having trouble understanding

so they launch into a frustrated, animated, loud, but ultimately futile attempt to force the meaning into your reluctant brain, and finally, in the desperation borne of complete and utter incomprehension, you decide to nod and smile and hope that what you're smiling about and presumably agreeing to is safe, inexpensive and legal! They must think I'm so thick ... and so, when it happens with students I have some understanding of how it feels. 

Are they smiling with nerves, nodding to avoid the embarrassment of admitting incomprehension, laughing to cover shame, or is it the nod and smile of agreement?

Sometimes though, no effort at all is needed. When you take your lead from your non-English speaking support staff, the non-verbal communication including smiles, touch and hugs are all that's important!

Other important things to remember: 

• Allow time and silence for the other person to respond. The length of time to respond could be longer than we're used to and it's important not to rush in to cover it. Listening to unfamiliar words, working out context, considering and forming a response can take a while. It's important to be respectful and not to step in to cover that silence simply because we're not used to it or find it uncomfortable. It can erode attempts to find the right words and undermine independence. Careful observation of non-verbal cues will let you know if the struggle is too much and you can gently ask if the person would like help without being pushy or dominating.
• Self deprecating humour can be confusing or misunderstood. 
• Be careful of sarcasm and put downs - at any time, but especially between cultures. Even in English speaking countries some humour can be misunderstood and create tension - it's relatively easy to back-track and clarify when you both speak the same language, but a challenge otherwise.

There are some good non-verbal communication teaching suggestions here: 

http://iteslj.org/Articles/Darn-Nonverbal/

My previous posts about Teaching in China were our Arrival, Banquets,  Culture and Comfort foods, Driving, Exercise, Fabulous Food,Games, History, Illness, From Jerilderie to Jiangsu, Kenny (which is about toilets) Lists and Communication Misunderstandings. Next up - Observations of an onlooker!

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Part M - Teaching in China - Communication problems. Being malicious or merely an unfortunate misunderstanding?

Misunderstandings can happen between people who know each other well, in loving long term relationships and between friends who respect each other deeply. It's easy to inadvertently upset someone with a careless word uttered at the wrong moment or when someone is feeling tetchy and out of sorts. 

We all have sensitive buttons, which when pushed, can occasionally result in an out of control reaction, a cruel explosive retort, or smouldering resentment.

It's far too easy for misunderstandings to take on a life of their own and expand with a putrid, nasty, writhing intensity. They have the potential to erode relationships beyond repair, and unless efforts are made to clarify, and for apologies to be made and accepted openly and honestly, without strings or malice, the hurt or bitterness can last a lifetime.

If it's this easy for divisive misunderstanding to occur between friends from a similar background and speaking the same language, imagine how easy it is for misunderstandings to happen between people who were born in different countries, speak different languages, but also have different world views and expectations about communicating. Aspects of communication also include things such as dress code, how far to stand apart when conversing, whether it's normal to defer to the older person, their relative status, whether to make eye contact or not and whether touching is acceptable or not. It's complex!

I overheard an exchange where a teacher from the United States was deeply offended and insulted, by a word used between our Chinese organisers who were speaking Chinese between themselves. What on earth could have happened?

It turns out that the Chinese word “nei ge” which translates at “that one”, can sound like the taboo word nigger to someone from the US who understands and has lived with the culturally laden impact of the "N word" which I'm assured wouldn't be uttered by a white person. People from other English speaking countries, may, however, be completely oblivious to the sound of the word, and not even notice it in a Chinese conversation because it's not part of their culture and history. The strength of the taboo of saying the word is huge in the United States, but ... 

Remember you’re in China. Different world, different challenging history, different problems, different assumptions and expectations, and different taboos. 

Most Chinese people you meet and interact with will naturally speak Chinese to each other. They won’t have any idea that their conversation where they're referring to a book, a bus or a pair of cute shoes as “that one” could possibly offend anyone, and they’d be perplexed at any angry reaction to their conversation.  If for some reason they did happen to be speaking about people they're hosting, they won’t knowingly choose an offensive word! They have their own problems, and insulting or offending one of their visiting teachers definitely won't be on their list of things to do. 

If you hear something hurtful whether you're at home or abroad, step back and think calmly; ask for clarification. (Which is what happened in the instance above.) Don't let a private conversation and a foreign word sweep you into a reaction which could get embarrassingly awkward if you make a scene.

A misunderstanding is easy, and if it happens, finding a time to discuss the cause could also lead to a rich conversation about history, oppression, taboos and similarities and differences between peoples. 

Remember too that our words, expressions, body language and habits can also cause offence. I mispronounced my host’s name and referred to him as a glob of snot. To his face. More than once. Thankfully he was gracious enough to laugh it off and accept my pathetic and inadequate pronunciation and patiently try to teach me to say his name correctly - again, and again, and again.

A hug is good at any time, but especially if things go wrong!

I'm sure most people have a story about communication and misunderstandings which have either led to problems or to more open discussion and deeper understanding. You're welcome to share ...

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My previous posts about Teaching in China were our Arrival, Banquets,  Culture and Comfort foods, Driving, Exercise, Fabulous Food, Games, History, Illness, From Jerilderie to Jiangsu, Kenny (which is about toilets) and Lists! Next up - Non-verbal communication
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Part L - Teaching in China - Lists, lists and more lists!

I'm a list kind of person! You can find illegible, hastily scrawled lines, (which may or may not be wrods) on tiny scraps of paper, on the back of a crumpled receipt, crowding both sides of tatty and torn envelopes, and on occasion, on a full sheet of art paper spread neatly on the dining room table. In the latter case the idea is that this approach will hopefully keep diverse ideas from colliding chaotically and assist in achieving the desired result in an organised fashion.

That's the dream anyhow.

Sometimes it seems the sheer volume of my lists would rival the legendary one of Father Christmas (or Santa if you prefer) who appears to manage to collate columns of naughty and nice children, itemise their behaviour, keep it updated and have it ready and correct in time for dissemination of gifts sometime on Christmas eve.

In contrast, though my lists have been enthusiastically begun, they can often be found in various states of crumpledness and legibility, in different rooms of the house, tucked into pockets, pinned to a cork board or held securely by a super strong magnet to the frig. Neat they aren't.

Which all becomes a bit of a bother when attempting to be in control and organised for a teaching gig in China. There are lots of diverse things to keep in mind - from the mundane: passport, visa, money, comfy shoes and suitable clothing; to the more fun: What will I take as small gifts and as iconic Australian food for the students to sample? That's not to overlook the teaching materials, but that has a list of its own!

I insist  with clear eyed confidence which I don't genuinely feel - "If it's on the list it'll get done!" But really, this is more wishful thinking than an accurate statement. Skittish thoughts are corralled onto slips of paper though few seem to be crossed off as quickly as I'd like.


Surely an electronic version would be more reliable and less likely to get lost!

In an effort to collate some of those ideas into a retrievable list just in case there's a next time, here are some ...  

Notes to self : What to take?

• Tim-tams(they went a bit soft in the heat, but were popular) 
• Eucalyptus lollies in the bag with the Australian flag on
• Milo - don't bother! (It turns out it's commonplace in China - who'd have thought!) 
• Download useful apps before you go - it makes life easier 
• Gmail on phone is mostly ok
• Zip-lok bags, elastic bands, bulldog clips, stick it notelets, decks of cards, plastic envelopes, permanent marker, (all available there cheaply)
• World map, country maps, (buy Chinese one there) globe stress ball (good for games and rough country information
• A-Z notebooks - great for new vocab words for the students.
• Photos (family, wildlife, scenery - especially beach) 
• Calendars with Aussie pics
• Recipe leaflets - the free ones from supermarkets
• Buy a SIM card as soon as you arrive from one of the hole in the wall places - about $10 and you can then use wifi at cafes etc easily. They'll set it up for you if you ask nicely.

and...
darn I've forgotten the other ideas already!

Lists on the hotel window - planning and re-planning the programme. This is what happens when 2 Aussie and 2 US teachers collaborate and pool resources!

More lists, this time the classroom ones related to films the students would normally watch and their assessment of them.



My previous posts about Teaching in China were our Arrival, Banquets,  Culture and Comfort foods, Driving, Exercise, Fabulous Food, History, Illness, From Jerilderie to Jiangsu and Kenny (which is about toilets)! The next post is about Misunderstandings in communication.

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Part K - Teaching in China - Kenny

Kenny?

But isn't that a quirky Australian film, probably seen by few people overseas?

Indeed it is, but the topic of the film is relevant - toilets, portaloos, poo, human waste. It’s a topic we all have experience of, but which is rarely discussed in polite circles – until you’re travelling!  

If you haven't seen the film, try to find it, if you can't find it, there are some good clips here. It's a delightful mockumentary, full of Aussie slang and home grown philosophy. (More here)

Whether you refer to "it" as the convenience, the rest room, the john, the bog, the WC, the outhouse, the powder room, the dunny, the small room or whatever, it's something we need to ask the way to, and learn the signs for, when travelling.

When you're away from home, toilets, the lack of them, the cost, their state of cleanliness, the pong factor, whether you could find one "in time", whether you need to take your own paper or not, often seems to steer the conversation. In a sense, it's a bit of a bonding experience, something we have in common. Tall tales are told, some real, some embellished - though often there's no need for wild embellishments!

Squatties are common throughout much of the world, but sometimes it seems as if people from the west are affronted by anything other than a white porcelain structure, sanitised to within an inch of its life which has preferably never been used by another person. Not a positive note to begin a working trip to a lesser known school, in a city in China, well off the tourist beat!

But first Shanghai, where I was confronted with a loo where complexity ruled, and which needed skill and understanding way beyond what I've acquired.

Help! Which one is the flush?

One thing which hadn't been mentioned in our introductory classes preparing us for teaching in China, was the fact that communal toilets are apparently all the go in Chinese schools.  Extremely basic, half swing doors, like in an old western cowboy movie, provided some semblance of privacy between the "business area" and the outer corridor.

I was taken aback on the first day of teaching to have teacher-students come up to me during the lesson, show me a wad of paper or tissues, and in one case a sanitary napkin, and ask if they could be excused. After a couple of instances of this and me thinking "whoa guys, waaaaaay too much information!!" I gently, and politely but firmly, reminded them that we're adults here, and if you need to go, just discretely get up and leave the room; if you want, make eye contact with me, but there's no need to ask! The same with phone calls - if you need to take or make a call, just get up and go outside - no problems! Really, it's fine!

But back to the communal nature of the toilets. Staff and students don't have separate toilet areas - on its own I can't see the possibility of sharing the area with students gaining traction in Australia. My teachers were genuinely surprised that we don't share and I wondered how many foreign students have innocently made their way into staff toilet areas to be greeted with icy stares or rude comments. That's something we definitely need to let international students know in their Intro to Aussie Customs lectures!

The other aspect is that communal also equates to no doors. There were small dividing walls and .... oh hang it all, it's too hard to describe - I'll show you a picture.

Old, but clean and perfectly serviceable, with a trickle of water coming from the cistern up there on the wall going in to the trench bit to wash away the waste. No graffiti, no foul slogans or drawings on the walls, no paper strewn around. Being on the dreaded toilet duty at this school wouldn't be much of a problem! But yep, communal ... um, and very chatty and natural, but different to what we've been brought up to accept as usual. But that's all it is really isn't it, what we've been brought up to accept as the norm, and we just assume that the rest of the world is like us until we come upon different ways to live. It's just another of those things that makes you think, and wonder, and question if we've become a bit too precious about bodily functions. As if it's shameful to be human and we hide from the reality that our bodies produce waste.

Then the naughty part in me kicks in and thinks it'd be good for the pretentious, arrogant, self important, condescending, sneering, smugly entitled Aussie pollies and the people who pull their strings, to have the daily experience of this kind of communality. It'd be a healthy reality check for them, and a reminder that they're no different to everyone else; the poor, the unemployed, youth, disadvantaged, asylum seekers or others they vilify and treat with contempt.

Someone said to me "Why do they use squat toilets?" and apart from a vague - "That's just the way it is here and it's probably better for us", I really had no good answer. I've read a bit since I got home and they are accepted as being much healthier for us (there's lots of information here) and it'd be crazy to change what works ... except for the actual sewerage system which struggles and gets pretty pongy at times.

Some useful information: BYO paper, and never, never, never put the paper in the system, whether it's a basic squat toilet, one with auto flush or a sit one in a hotel. There's a bin there and it's for the paper. Yes, the used paper. Maybe in posh international hotels and slick businesses in the major cities it's ok, but elsewhere don't, just don't. There's nothing quite like needing to call housekeeping and tell them you need someone to come and unclog the toilet, and then getting a kind, but firm lecture from the janitor explaining (completely in Chinese, but you magically understand every word) exactly what to do with the paper, and that it doesn't  ever, (have you got this?) not ever go in the toilet. It's like they're explaining to an extremely thick, dreadfully slow child - or just a dim-witted foreigner. As they say, When in Rome ...

Old habits die hard though, and it's difficult to remember ... What's the number of housekeeping again?

Slippery tiles, freshly mopped and damp, are one of the other challenges. Shiny wet tiles are scarily slick and treacherous - an accident waiting to happen. It's definitely the time for careful steps, and extreme caution no matter how desperate you are! 

And how do you know you're home again? When you go to the toilets at Tulla (aka Melbourne Airport) and see this:

You don't stand on the seat to squat and the paper goes in the toilet! Hooray! I'm home!


My previous posts about Teaching in China were our Arrival, Banquets,  Culture and Comfort foods, Driving, Exercise, Fabulous Food and History, Illness, and From Jerilderie to Jiangsu! The next one will be - The problem with Lists!


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