Mini Adventures

September 26, 2009

Carrie and I finally leave the apartment to take in a few tourist experiences. Our school planned a day trip for the new Native English Speaking Teachers (NEST) aka it was free!! haha. Only a few decided to come but it was a still an exciting little day.

Highlights not in the video

Carrie tried some of the traditional Hakka food that I couldn't try because it was looking at me! Her face as she tried to de-shell the giant shirmp was priceless. Also her face after I told her the "meatloaf" tasting dish was squid and random seafood. She was unaware as they chose not to tell us what we were eating but I could see little tentacles in it, suction cups and all. Finally Carrie and two little girls were looking at fish in the pond and as Carrie pointed at one it jumped up out of the water and bit her finger! I would have paid money to see that happen. The litte girls thought it was the funniest thing ever!!


Episode Six

Just another Manic Monday

Monday, September 21, 2009

Monday....the beginning of another week at Korrnell. Luckily, Denise and I have a fairly relaxed Monday to start off our week.
A student who missed one week of class due to illness came back today. I found out he had the swinepox. Not sure if it's related at all to chicken pox but I had my first experience wearing a mask. I didn't wear it for very long though because it's hard to breathe in those! Don't they know it's hot out?

We found out on Saturday we are going on a little excursion with the NEST teachers. We're excited, it should be fun. We haven't done a lot of "touristy" things yet so this will be a nice change.

My care package came today! YAY! Thanks Mom, you're the best!

Episode 5

Shoppin

Sept 17th, 2009

Our fresh food supply was running a little low so Denise and I took a little trip with our buddy Berma to A-Mart. With our bags packed tight and our arms full, we knew we wouldn’t feel like making supper when we got home. McDonald’s it was…Denise had her first taste of the fries in about 3 years. Yes, I tattled.

Just a Wednesday

Sept 16th, 2009

Hump Day! Denise and I finally feel like we’ve started to get into a groove…except they keep throwing things at us. “Oh by the way…do this…by tomorrow.” Gee, thanks for the warning.

Parent's Night...

Sept 10th, 2009

Parent’s PTA evening. Arrived at school around 7:00am to start our day and left around 10:30pm or so. The teachers are expected to make a Powerpoint presentation to introduce themselves to the parents of each classroom they teach in. So, in other words, our nightmare. Parents are very vocal here about their children and their issues. It’s a completely different way of looking at things…what the parents say – goes!

Saturday Mayhem

Sept 5th, 2009

After our first week of teaching we have learned one very important thing…we are not the only ones who have no idea what’s going on. How refreshing…neither does anyone else at Korrnell. The things we do throughout the day are very ritualistic and in no way have anything to do with a normal school day. Korrnell is much more concerned with doing things the same way than doing them the right way or the best way. We were given some wise words of wisdom comparing ourselves to jellyfish. Just float along with the current, nod and smile and don’t ask any questions.

Wednesdays are our monthly NEST teacher meetings. We were told (not asked) that we would be going on a 10k bike ride. Umm, ok? Saturday morning, the one morning we were so looking forward to sleeping in, would be spent biking around Jhubei. It was for the Deaf Olympic Games so how could we say no? The day turned out beautiful and we wished we had showered. We’re probably on the news somewhere here in Taiwan. Pictures were taken left, right and centre. Played the drums with the Governor of Hsinchu!


Episode Three



After that week and our tiring bike ride, we were in high need of some beverages and a night out on the town. We did a little research on Hsinchu county nightlife…turns out, not a whole lot is happening! Found a little bar called “The Flying Pig” and made do with that.


Episode Four

Date Night

Sept 4th, 2009

Movie night. Denise and I stay in for a romantic evening to watch some movies together. We don’t quite feel like we’re spending enough time together so we thought we should stay in. Found a bootleg copy of “The Ugly Truth” on the internet. Shut the lights off, curled up on the couch…good to go!