Just the Usual

 I decided to document a typical day for me here in China.  Honestly, I didn't have anything to blog about so this is what I decided on.  I know you’re very excited to see what I do every day!  Haha

Most weekdays I have a morning class, so I have to get up around 5:30am.  This is very different then my schedule last year.  Last year I could walk to school within 10 minutes and my earliest class was at 9am.  This year I have the first class twice a week, which starts at 7:30am!  Eek! This means I have to catch the 6:25am bus to school.  We take a school bus for 30 minutes each way to and from school. 

Early morning…about to leave the apartment.

Pictures of my route on the way to the old school, where I catch the bus to the new school.  These streets are only empty like this at 6am! One of the nice things about getting up so early is China actually seems peaceful.  I rarely feel this way with all of the crowded streets and noise.  See, I'm looking at the bright side of an early morning!

 You know it’s early when the shops and street vendors aren’t open yet. 

Arriving at the old school to catch the bus.

 The teacher’s school bus.  All the students live at school, so only the teachers ride the bus to and from school each day. 

 The bus is jungle themed with ivy and a monkey hanging from the TV! Haha

 Arriving at the new school.  All of the students are walking to their first class of the morning. 

Something I do every day is climb a billion stairs!!!  Okay a slight exaggeration, but not by much.  One of our offices is on the 5^th floor,  the second office is on the 3^rd floor of a different building, classrooms are on the 2nd-6th floors, the dormitory is on the 4^th floor, the cafeteria is on the 2^nd floor, and our apartment is the 3^rd floor.  Most of these places I go to at least once a day if not more.  Let’s just say my calf muscles are HUGE and not necessarily in a good way! Eek!

My 5^th floor office with all of the English teachers from Grade 1.  

Having my quiet time and coffee in the office. 

Time for class, which is the best part of every day.  I really love teaching and my students!  They were so confused why I wanted them to take a picture. Haha

My area of the classroom, including a podium, chalk boards, and a stage so I can see the whole class even the students in the back of the classroom.  

Some days I eat lunch at the cafeteria.  I actually like the food, but most of the students think it is terrible.  It is much blander and less oilier than most Chinese food, which is why I like it and they hate it.

I forgot to take a picture before starting to eat, so it looked much better than this.  It is chicken, rice, and soup.  You can't tell from the picture, but the chicken did include a chicken foot.  Don't worry I didn't eat it!

View of the cafeteria 

Nap time at the dorm. This is one thing I think America should start doing!  For real though, a 2 and half hour lunch break where everyone quickly eats and then goes for a nap.  Awesome! 

Some days I teach afternoon classes, so I take the 5:20pm bus back to the city. 

On this particular day, Lesley and I decided to brave the meat market, so we could make chili for dinner. (This is not part of my typical day, but I decided to share it anyways)  It was by far the scariest experience I’ve had in China!  We kept asking for ground beef and we were sent on a wild goose chase through the entire meat market.  I will spare you the details, but let’s just say I won’t be going back anytime soon. We ended up with ground pork instead of beef, but it worked.

On the way home, we stopped for a Mango smoothie from Calca! We deserved it after making it through the meat market.  It was delicious! 

Back at my apartment.  It looks scary on the outside, but I promise the inside is much nicer. Sorry the pictures blurry!  

Cooking chili on the stove for dinner.  A great way to end the day with a yummy Western meal!

You made it through a typical day with me!  Thanks for reading, if you made it this far!