We had a surprise waiting for us in our kitchen this morning, or should I say 2 surprises...cock roaches! I'm sure they are some type of delicacy over here, but I insisted that Mike flush them:)
We again ventured off on our own to explore, as we had a complete free day. We took a taxi to a bus stop to catch a ride to the Clifford Estates. We weren't sure what to expect, as we had thought we were taking public transit, but discovered the estates had their own line of buses which were air conditioned, not crowded, and very much like our tour bus we've been riding around in. It was about a 40 minute ride to the gated community. We're told around 80,000 people live in the community, but you can only get in if you are accompanied by someone from within. We were met by Lile, a teacher from Canada. The community seems to be completely self sufficient. It is made up of well off Chinese families and foreigners.
Lile took us to the school, which is gated itself. Many of the students live in the dormitories, and they are not allowed to leave that part of the compound alone, except on weekends. Some of the children in the dorms are as young as kindergarten, and just spend the weekends with their parents. It was a very different way of thinking for us.
The staff was so friendly and helpful. The school is private, bilingual (Mandarin and English), and does not allow other dialects to be spoken. The staff we met were Canadian, Australian, Chinese, and American. I'm sure many other countries are represented as well. We were given a tour by Jeanette, who use to be our friend Kurt's TA when he taught here. He lives in Oak Harbor now and set us up with Lile for the visit. Thanks Kurt! We visited a kindergarten class where they were "reading" in unison a big book with the teacher about things they like to eat. "I like to eat turtle. I like to eat snake." They added frog to their list too. We were standing off to the side chuckling! We visited a 7th grade English class that was reading aloud in a circle, a PE class practicing their morning exercise (like calisthenics), students playing badminton on outside courts, and finally Lile's class, which was 10th grade math. They were all very interested in Jaelyn. I thought they were asking questions about her arm, but they were actually interested in adoption. They couldn't believe she had only been with us a week, as she seemed so "like family." We have been told this before, as well as "very happy baby."
Overall this was a very insightful experience. The boys entertained the idea of going to school here until they learned that school doesn't get over until 5:30, and then they have a mandatory study hall in the evening. As you can see from the sign in the picture below, they have some very important exams to take. The fist is the high school entrance exam. If you don't pass, you repeat the 9th grade. The next is the university exam. Again, if you don't pass, you repeat 12th grade. The interesting thing is that their whole 12th grade year is spent strictly reviewing for the exam. No new material is introduced. Forget about "no child left behind"...many are!
On the way home we experienced thunder and lightning storms. It has rained the entire time we have been here and is quite muggy. The same is predicted until after we leave, which is just 3 days away. See you soon Kaia!
breakfast anyone?
Lile and beautiful entryway to Clifford Estates Gated Community
badminton courts at school...a highly competitive game over here
