Warren and I were on a bus heading back to our flat, we had been to the capital for the day. Buses in China allow quite a lot of room for standing patrons and as such in the middle of the bus is standing room and only one row of single seats. I was sitting on one of these opposite the second door towards the back.
At one stop, I noticed a young woman get on the bus and swipe her bus card, I resumed people watching out of my window and then I heard a voice asking "Vicki? is that you?" I turned to face this person and she smiled and said "It is you!" I agreed that I was indeed Vicki and she went on to tell me that I had taught her in high school and she graduated in 2007. It must have been 2006 that I was her teacher as the students did not have foreign teachers in their final year as they were too busy studying to get a place in college.Back the school was not a University.
Nine years ago, what a memory! Chatting with her I discovered that she herself was practicing to become an English teacher, she was doing her final prac before getting her qualification.
As "our" school was a vocational school, students could go on to become qualified but it took a little longer so she had graduated from high school done four years at college then onto Uni.
She laughed and said that she always remembered that she had to say please when asking for something, I apparently had held back on giving her and others a worksheet until they asked properly. They would just say "I want/need a paper" I would insist that they say "I want a paper please" then and only then would I give them what they asked. She said it was a good lesson in using English correctly as it is not usual in Chinese to add that little magic word of "please". She also said that she makes sure that her students use Please and Thank you when they are using English.
All too soon her stop came up and she had to get off, she thanked me for teaching her and waved Goodbye.
We taught so many kids while were in China and we have only kept up with a handful of them, it was nice to meet one just out of the blue. I cant believe that she recognized me after nine years!After all, I am nine years older, now wear glasses, greyer and 20 kgs lighter.
Showing posts with label China. Show all posts
Showing posts with label China. Show all posts
Sunday, 24 May 2015
Monday, 16 February 2015
Finally!
Some years ago I bought wall paper when we were working in China. Warren said that while he liked it he didn't want a whole wall so we compromised, I could buy it and he would put it into frames to hang on the wall. I could live with that. This was several years ago, he had said he would do it while I finished my time in China and he was back home, giving him four months to complete (give him something to do he said)
While decluttering late last year we unearthed this roll of wall paper and Warren asked what did I want to do with it, I told him that I was still waiting for him to frame and hang it. I think he was hoping I would say to chuck it out.
Coming into the six weeks of holidays, I asked him to do two things, one was to hang candles holders that he had bought for the outside patio, he had bought them three or four weeks before and they were still sitting on the outside table. The second was to frame and hang my wall paper.
The morning after my request, the drill was going and candles holders were in place before morning tea, one down and it was only the middle of December. Bonus!
A couple of days later he was out buying the Christmas present that he had been assigned to purchase and he came with mirrors. Mirrors? why do we want mirrors and three of them? "Haha!" he said "I am going to turn them into frames as frames were three times the price."
He cut the paper to fit and then need to glue onto the back of the frames.
Yesterday they were hung! In the dining room. A piece has been used in the caravan as well on a cupboard that Warren made where the oven had been. The mirrors were placed on the wardrobe doors in the spare bedrooms so they didnt go to waste.
While decluttering late last year we unearthed this roll of wall paper and Warren asked what did I want to do with it, I told him that I was still waiting for him to frame and hang it. I think he was hoping I would say to chuck it out.
Coming into the six weeks of holidays, I asked him to do two things, one was to hang candles holders that he had bought for the outside patio, he had bought them three or four weeks before and they were still sitting on the outside table. The second was to frame and hang my wall paper.
The morning after my request, the drill was going and candles holders were in place before morning tea, one down and it was only the middle of December. Bonus!
A couple of days later he was out buying the Christmas present that he had been assigned to purchase and he came with mirrors. Mirrors? why do we want mirrors and three of them? "Haha!" he said "I am going to turn them into frames as frames were three times the price."
He cut the paper to fit and then need to glue onto the back of the frames.
Yesterday they were hung! In the dining room. A piece has been used in the caravan as well on a cupboard that Warren made where the oven had been. The mirrors were placed on the wardrobe doors in the spare bedrooms so they didnt go to waste.
Tuesday, 23 September 2014
Shocked!
Last week when I was applying for my position, I sent an email to each of my referees, I also had their written refs but I got in touch with them to advise them that I was using it and may be contacted.
Karen who we saw in June and Brian who we visited at year replied the next day. Jason from Western Australia, I didn't hear from and thought that maybe he had moved jobs as we hadn't been in contact for a couple of years. Jason used to visit the school in China and he was the overseer that the course was being taught and marked correctly as the students if they passed would receive a certificate from WA TAFE. When he was in China we spent quite a bit of time with him both work wise and socially.
Last night I received an email from his wife to inform us that Jason had been diagnosed with cancer in 2010 and had died last June. It probably was 2010 that we ad last been in contact. What a shock, I think he would have been about eight to ten years younger than us.
Shocks were the order of the week as Karen, again I have known her in a work capacity for about ten or twelve years, replied that I was too young to retire and she is the same age as me. She is Chinese and as such if some-one had asked me what age she is, I would have thought mid forties.
The first shock was through a phone call on the weekend. A friend from Red Hats asked me abut the house sitters that we had had. I said that I couldn't fault them and arranged to put her in contact with Lesley. The sit was for three weeks, finishing on Friday. Apparently the house was untidy with nuts and washers in the passageway, car had been damaged and she had unpaid tolls. She was not happy. I felt awful but all I could say was that wasn't our experience.
Due to people overstaying on a previous sit, they split up and one did one sit and one the other. We were going to get them back when we go for an extended trip next year, now we are not sure if we will or not.
Karen who we saw in June and Brian who we visited at year replied the next day. Jason from Western Australia, I didn't hear from and thought that maybe he had moved jobs as we hadn't been in contact for a couple of years. Jason used to visit the school in China and he was the overseer that the course was being taught and marked correctly as the students if they passed would receive a certificate from WA TAFE. When he was in China we spent quite a bit of time with him both work wise and socially.
Last night I received an email from his wife to inform us that Jason had been diagnosed with cancer in 2010 and had died last June. It probably was 2010 that we ad last been in contact. What a shock, I think he would have been about eight to ten years younger than us.
Shocks were the order of the week as Karen, again I have known her in a work capacity for about ten or twelve years, replied that I was too young to retire and she is the same age as me. She is Chinese and as such if some-one had asked me what age she is, I would have thought mid forties.
The first shock was through a phone call on the weekend. A friend from Red Hats asked me abut the house sitters that we had had. I said that I couldn't fault them and arranged to put her in contact with Lesley. The sit was for three weeks, finishing on Friday. Apparently the house was untidy with nuts and washers in the passageway, car had been damaged and she had unpaid tolls. She was not happy. I felt awful but all I could say was that wasn't our experience.
Due to people overstaying on a previous sit, they split up and one did one sit and one the other. We were going to get them back when we go for an extended trip next year, now we are not sure if we will or not.
Saturday, 28 June 2014
So many clothes
I do have heaps of clothes and two years ago just before going back to China for another year, I know that I bought extra "to take to China" as there was very little that I could buy there to fit me. Many of the extras that I bought didn't make the "cut" to take to China because of weight restrictions.
When I was first asked to do the five week relief work, my thoughts turned to clothes, what should I wear? I had set myself a challenge for the year of not buying any clothes as I didn't need any more. I did buy two pairs of boots, why two pairs? because I couldn't decide on between a black pair (more serviceable) or a suede burgundy pair, the price was ten bucks each so what the hell, I bought both. The burgundy one I have worn once but I have had quite a few wears from the black ones.
After two weeks I realised that I hadn't worn the same shirt/top so i wondered if I could continue and yes I could, as i worked four and a half weeks, that's twenty three days, really I must have too many clothes. Although to be fair (trying for a bit of justification here)the days were still warmish at the start and so short sleeved shirts were fine but needed something with long sleeves for the last couple of weeks.
Thankfully the three cardigans that I had made for me in China have made an appearance as well as I was starting to think they were a waste of money but where else would I have got cardigans made to fit (in cashmere)at an affordable price?
My many scarves also got quite a bit of use too, so maybe I should continue my no buying clothes for next year as well.
When I was first asked to do the five week relief work, my thoughts turned to clothes, what should I wear? I had set myself a challenge for the year of not buying any clothes as I didn't need any more. I did buy two pairs of boots, why two pairs? because I couldn't decide on between a black pair (more serviceable) or a suede burgundy pair, the price was ten bucks each so what the hell, I bought both. The burgundy one I have worn once but I have had quite a few wears from the black ones.
After two weeks I realised that I hadn't worn the same shirt/top so i wondered if I could continue and yes I could, as i worked four and a half weeks, that's twenty three days, really I must have too many clothes. Although to be fair (trying for a bit of justification here)the days were still warmish at the start and so short sleeved shirts were fine but needed something with long sleeves for the last couple of weeks.
Thankfully the three cardigans that I had made for me in China have made an appearance as well as I was starting to think they were a waste of money but where else would I have got cardigans made to fit (in cashmere)at an affordable price?
My many scarves also got quite a bit of use too, so maybe I should continue my no buying clothes for next year as well.
Wednesday, 25 June 2014
KFC
Warren did his grandparent/parent duty today and went to sports day at school with youngest grandson. As he and I had been out all day (and I hadn't taken anything out of the freezer for dinner)I suggested take away. We decided to buy KFC and take it home. Five pieces of chicken, two individual serves of coleslaw, two small tubs of potato and gravy, a serve of hop chips and a pepsi each and a few cents change from $20.
After we had eaten i asked warren how was his chicken and he said "Quite frankly, the KC that we used to buy in China tasted much better" I had to agree. We had bought KFC quite often while we lived in China probably as much as once a fortnight, some nights we would walk to one KFC outlet, eat and then walk home again a distance of between five or six kilometres. (In our city in China there was at least six KFC outlets and only one Maccas)
Often we would buy a bucket of chicken which would include ten pieces of chicken two bread rolls, two sweet corn cobs and a large bottle of Pepsi for 74RMB (approx $16) included in the pack was three large disposable cups and ice.
Tonight's meal was the first KFC that we have eaten since returning from China twelve months ago. I have already taken meat out of the freezer for tomorrow nights dinner.
After we had eaten i asked warren how was his chicken and he said "Quite frankly, the KC that we used to buy in China tasted much better" I had to agree. We had bought KFC quite often while we lived in China probably as much as once a fortnight, some nights we would walk to one KFC outlet, eat and then walk home again a distance of between five or six kilometres. (In our city in China there was at least six KFC outlets and only one Maccas)
Often we would buy a bucket of chicken which would include ten pieces of chicken two bread rolls, two sweet corn cobs and a large bottle of Pepsi for 74RMB (approx $16) included in the pack was three large disposable cups and ice.
Tonight's meal was the first KFC that we have eaten since returning from China twelve months ago. I have already taken meat out of the freezer for tomorrow nights dinner.
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