What a week

This week has been wonderful! Tuesday we went to the football. Yes me, I went to the football, although it's not something I normally enjoy apart from the World Cup, this was so good. We went to see China vs Parague. The stadium was unreal and just walking in, being surrounded by thousands of fans was an experience. We bought flags and tshirts, the local news reporters recorded us and we had a billion photographs taken.

The stadium it's self was not what I expected. It was huge and so snazzy. There was 26,000 people there. As soon as the doors had shut everyone in our section started moving. When we asked what was happening they said we now move to better seats, so we joined the mass crowd and ended up with front row seats. Within the first 18 minutes China had scored which set the atmospher on fire, starting an epic Mexican wave around the stadium 3 times over. Then they scored again! I found my self getting very excited , jumping on chairs, cheering an everything. China remained 2-0 up until the last 15 minutes when Parague scored but even with the over time they we're unable to beat China. A local man told us that this was a first for China playing well. We must of brought them luck. Afterwards we headed to Helens for burgers and free beer! Proper man night. Once seated and food ordered a string of free drinks, tankards, pitchers of cocktails and more beers arrived. This on a normal day would of been amazing but we all had work in the morning and Shaun's and Rachel had to make the last train home. Regretfully we had to decline the gesture and pass the drinks on to the next table. Wednesday very tired I had 3 double classes which went swimmingly. On the evening I finally bit the bullet and and Lorraine dyed my hair. Luckily it came out fab. No more roots! Thursday I woke to find both my classes had been canceled so instead of heading back to bed I went shopping, in record time I might add. I got so many winter clothes for a bargin! I came home and tidied. At This point Lorraine is beyond excited as Cian is already on his way to China!!! I was still unsure what I was doing the evening as I was meant to be going for dinner with Jack but as he hadn't been paid along with a few others, which is awful considering we have now been in China for two months! My night consisted of more californiacation and being eaten alive by mozzys! First time in ages I slept horrendously. I woke up after a bad dream,boiling and covered in bites! Aircon and bite cream goes on and broken sleep continues. I wake up still with no plan for the weekend. I was initially meant to be going to the big Z to do some modelling ! Ha yes me modeling I can bearly take a selfie right! Well anyway the man told me he needed me to audition on Saturday and the shoot had been moved to Sunday so Cat and Evie asked me to join them in xiangers and I thought why not. I packed and headed straight there after classes, with a quick hello, nice to meet you to Cian as I was leaving. I get to the bus station, I will no longer be using, and the next bus isn't for an hour. While waiting for the bus the conductor man ushers me on a bus 20 minutes early. I'm all settled and talking to a nice lady when a man gets on and starts going mad that there's no seats left. I just know that I'm the problem but think hmm let's just wait it out and see. So when the lady takes my ticket she and the whole bus start laughing that I'm on the wrong bus and I have to quickly depart. Obviously my bus is then twenty minutes late! Finally on the bus, the debate then occurs do we head to the big z to meet the boys for a wild one. After much deliberation we decide to have a girls night plus beast in xiangers! It was like a sped up version of all our nights out but with only the best bits. We predrink and divulge private information as per. Head to dongers for free drinks, a spot of pole dancing and a massage this time. Then on to Soho. Straight on stage, but the best part about this night was I felt like I was at home with my girls. We danced the best way to dance like complete and utter twats! The lunges came out, squats! Few yoga moves a bit fishing and the lorn mowa! I have never seen Chinese people look so confused. And then when the Dj goes on his toilet break we manage to soften the stern bouncer who let's us play with the decs and mic! I even gave him a bit of a tickle and got a smile out of him.

Straight from here we head to Shoa Koa devour a lot of veg that I'm not intierly sure we paid for and head home. Where lots of pillow talk occurs. Jade was my cuddle buddy tonight, and isn't she snugly!

We wake up at 830 get ready and head to the girls to shower grab there stuff and make our way to the big Z.

 

The last section I wrote was deleted so I'll try again. I'm also in an extremely pissed off mood as my class has just told me I need more patients, because they don't understand. I said that's fjne but if you do not tell me you don't understand I think your just bored or not listening.

Anyway I also think the Chinese government have a deal with all tissue factories because they must be making a mint from it. You have to take your own toilet roll/tissues to the toilet in most places!

Anyway back to the weekend! We head to the girls get quickly showered after eating what can only be described as a Chinese oatcake and get a lift to the bus stop that arrives straight away and is half the price. The day is going well! We arrive drop our bags at Rachel's then head to meet the modeling guy. He and his gf take us to some snazzy restaurant and order a shed load of random food that is impossible to get through. Then on to the studio! God I don't know why I even considered doing it (actually I do, the money was great) but I juat can't pose to save my life, I got changed and was told to stand in a certain spot and move my legs around ha! It lasted a whole of ten minutes then we had a family portrait! 

The guys we're actually really nice so I wasn't that bothered about not getting it we then left them to go shopping! And shopping we did! I was really shopping for everyone else but I did treat my self to two beautiful bags for a steal. After entering every boutique on one road we then headed to what can only be described as China's Primark! It had everything, I quickly vacated so not to buy anything more than the two pairs of pumps for £9! 

We headed back to Rachel's with one thing in mind, Pizza! The lads we're off out on a lads night and we had fully embarced the girls night with pizza, face masks, foot masks and copious amounts of girl talk. Lots of hilarious stories later we head to bed to wake full refreshed and early enough for a maccys breakfast! We head home easily and I just chill out. Then get ready for the Belarus symphony orchestra with Jade. Some how she managed to get VIP tickets so after making the two hour journey to Jades we got a lift there and we're amazed it was set up in the base of mountain and was stunning

They played so many beautiful songs and then the opera singer came out and the whole night was just wonderful. Someone also bought us candy floss lol. 

At the end I got a lift to a taxi and headed home. The weekend was pretty much perfect! Exactly what I needed and so much fun to really catch up. As much as I love going out I actually love to just sit and chat. 

I also managed to avoid the 'date' with one if my students lol! So all in perfection 

Rambling

Iv been in china now nearly 2 months and I'm still waiting for it to get hard.

There are minor things that cause irritation and of course I've had the odd moment when I just want my mom but all in all I'm having the time of my life. Work is fun and rewarding at times tedious and frustrating as well as draining but for the most part I love it. I love my students well most, I have one class out of 12 where I don't like half the class but that's not bad out of 500 students. I do more hours than most the other teachers but seriously I don't mind. It keeps me busy yesterday both my classes we're cancelled so I went shopping! I was in and out with in an hour and half seriously record timing. I had a budget and didn't even over spend. As long as you shop in small boutiques privately owned your winning. Anyway by the time I was back I didn't know what to do with my self. I cleaned my flat, I straighterned my wardrobe and I watched a hell of a lot of californiacation. I am conscious not to spend my spare time eating as much as I would in England. With so much free time and now being in the swing of things having food in and snacks it makes it easy to just eat for the sake of it. Although anyone who knows me will be proud I bought a block of cheese the day I moved in and still have some left. That block has been rationed mercifully! 

It's not just me whose conscious about weight, but the most part of china. They spend for ever changing their appearance, I new about the whitening creams and centres to become paler, walking round with masks and umbrellas to never catch the sun, but little things that Iv seen that I find strange. You can by strips of stickiness to stick your eyes open! I'm being serious they are conscious of the one thing most the world associates china with. I have just realised this may sound vaguely racist I assure you it's not. Over here everything comes down to appearance. I have some students turn up for class dressed for a cat walk and the flip reverse side is they come dressed as 8 year olds. The diversity of my students ranges like their ability to grasp English.  And I wholey understand the difficulties. English is such a difficult language to grasp, I can just about speak it let alone write perfectly. Being dyslexic makes me appreciate how hard it is, (I'm also hoping this year teaching others will help improve my own as I am now so vigilant about everything I write) I can't get frustrated with them even when I want to. I have one lad that can't for the love of god say smile he says "smell" his mouth will just not form the word and in all honesty I think that's exactly how I must sound when I try and speak Chinese. I feel like Joey out of Friends. I hear it, I know how to say it, I think it and yet it comes out something else completely. English may have all different tenses and words sounding the same but meaning different things, trust me there are way more than you think. One night me and Shaun sat up discussing them for hours lol! But in China each word means four different things dependant on the tone! This can be a serious problem! Because saying somthing slightly different can completly balls up a whole sentence. And the looks you recieve can be anything from deathly to hilarious.

Anyway what I was getting at is appearance. I am automatically classed as a good teacher because of my appearance. It's not even my looks it's purely being white. I have found the word beautiful has lost all it's meaning out here. Everything is beautiful, I am told I am beautiful everyday and as much as you may think that sounds lovely it isn't. In normal life I'm not someone that likes words that are used for the sake of it. I truely think you should only say things you really mean.  So out here when beautiful is the only word they seem to associate with westerns it no longer has any impact or meaning. In England if someone other than my mom or a drunken sleeze told me I was beautiful I would more than likely go bright red and be overly touched, but here it's just a word. It has no meaning.  The way it seems to work out here is the better looking you are the higher up in social order you go. On reflection I guess that's how it was in school. The more beautiful you we're the more popular you we're. And then we grew up and your social stance at school meant naff all. Personalities finally became important! Woop woop! But here I can't see that happening any time soon. 

One thing I can see happening is a whole generation of Chinese people getting fat due to the mass influx of fast food restraunts everywhere! You can see it happening. No where in the world seems safe from KFC and Mcdonalds! And the quality of KFC here is horrific maccys is basicly the same as back home, although some only sell mcflurrys and others only sell chicken. It's very strange.

What I was getting at was even with everything I have just said I love it here. And with my mom coming out so soon it just makes it so much easier :) as well as Skype and then with the idea of 6 weeks off to go bask in beautiful sunshine I just can't comprehend going back to 9-5 in miserable weather! The big topic at the moment is so many people are already talking about staying another year. But for me there are 3 major complications. One my family and friends, I think Hayley and my mom may kill me if I stayed, two I have a job to go back to and 3 and I understand how ridiculous this will sound but if I ever plan to meet someone, get married and have kids I actually don't have that long left! Cringe I know to even think about such things. But it's true. Maybe I just won't have kids and spend my life bobbing around the world as a bachelorette Hmmm we'll see. 

Observations

I just want to point out today is a good day. Iv lost another Kg, I got up for class and both have been cancelled. I got my first lift off the security men and I'm off shopping. Not to mention my parents might be coming to see me for New Years :)))))! I plan to go into hotels today and ask for a discount! Worth a shot I reckon. Probably won't amount to anything but this is China and in all honesty anything goes. 

Anyway safety.

Safety and discipline are two things I have noticed massively. Safety, there isn't any,care free is most definitely a moot out here, even down to small things like the windows on buses. I could actually climb out the windows and  they are always open. There not like the tiny ones in England. The whole glass panel slides back so you get the full force of the wind/pollution whilst sat/stood/swinging on the bus. I'm sure I mentioned before about the child pooing on the bus? If I haven't, yes that goes too, into the bin of course. One thing someone brought to my attention which I had never considered is how do the parents know the child needs the toilet? In a way it shows how potty trained they are as they are able to convey they are about to soil them selves at such a young age. Would it be controversial to say they learn to not shit them selves a lot quicker than most other nationalities, simply because they don't wear nappies. Or maybe it's just a mothers instinct, I have no idea. I do know they have no clue when the child is about to throw up, as twice in one week in restaurants (nice ones) a child through up right next to my table! The first time apart from the smell it was funny as I was hung over. The second time I was in hysterics that it could happen yet again right next to my table, in the space of 3 days, maybe it's me? The best part is the parents walk off! They don't say sorry, or clean it up. It's just left. Or in the first instance it was so bad  the parents asked to be moved because of the smell! Cheers for that, really appreciated that.

Anyway Safty is not first and for most here, you'll see whole families on one moped with no helmets. You'll see the most dangerous driving. You'll see man holes vaguely covered and wires hanging down here and there. But on the flip side, no one drives that fast, road rage never occurs and everyone knows to not walk over the man holes. Life is so simple here in so many ways.  What they say they mean. What they want to do they do. If they can help you they will. Obviously like all races there are exceptions to the rule but right now my happy bubble hasn't been burst just yet.

I also mentioned discipline. I have seen children smacked, heard teachers talk about hitting children and when asking my students for imaginative ideas how to use a ruler they all came up with discipline, beat children.

I am not saying that I am an advocate for child abuse far from it, get me talking about obese children and I won't stop. But what I will say observing a nationality and over 500 of my own students I have gathered that maybe being strict from a young age makes a massive difference in comparison to our views at home. My students want to learn, well most of them, they work hard, and stupidly long hours and are attentive. Which was nothing like school when I was there and from what I gather from friends who are teachers back home, it's only got worse. The other thing about Chinese students is they don't seem to have a real concept on life. They are still teenagers in my eyes. I had to tell someone to work with a boy, sorry no man, they're 21 for god sake, the other day and it was like talking to 5 year olds. But again this is their culture. The culture I love, and still adjusting to.  Sorry off on a tangent again.  The point I'm making is the more discipline instilled at a young age seems to make a calmer, friendlier, happier adult. I love England, it is my home. But Everyone in China seems to think England is full of happy, beautiful, smiley people who are all lovely and kind to each. When in reality if you walk down the street smiling at everyone you will get the odd arseholes who will ask you "what your staring at". Or talking to random children can end in any sort of accusation. After working with children for 4 years one thing I can strongly say I believe in is children need to be taught, manors, discipline (not a beating,just something stern) and appreciation. The expectations of children in England and most of the western world are ridiculous. Children as young as 2 have iPads! What happened to playing with dolls and mud. We are an electronic generation with spoilt children and an increasing amount of people eating them selves to an early grave, while the other half of the world die of malaria, dehydration and starvation! 

Well this really didn't go where I expected ha! This is what happens when I'm stuck on a bus and left to blab on.

But yes safety and discipline that's they key points I was getting at:) 

A recent debate has occurred

A recent debate has occurred between friends across continents and sexes and that is what is a fuck buddie? Now being female I assumed it was what the titles states someone you have sex with and that is all and talking to close female friends they share the same view. It is just sex and that is all. But when asking men the same question they seem to think it's more. Sex, cuddles, chilling, watching films and hanging out. But this is where the dilema lies because when these things happen, to us (women) that is more than just FB's. That is a basis of a relationship, spending time together and getting to know each other is how wires get crossed. I now understand why so many people end up in tears or men assume women are to needy and clingy when in fact they have clearly stated it is nothing more than what it says on the tin. 

Women are women and if a man does more than they say they will, we will assume it is more than what it is this. What I've figured out is men want all the nicestes of a relationship and of course the sex but with out the actual commitment. But that in it's self leads to the confusion. It makes something that has clearly been stated more complex. Maybe this is because the man assumes that this is what the women wants. But really anyone that signs up for this unless they think they can change the mans thoughts and make them fall madly in love, I don't personally know, knows the deal. They know it is what it is. But when the cuddles and kisses and time spent just hanging out. Cooking dinner, constant text and increase interest gets involved that's the begining of something. Whether both parties want it or not.

My own personal opinion is the only thing that dificierates between a friend and a boyfriend is sex. Otherwise your just friends. Or alternatively fuck buddies.