作者：Tamzin Hardy 　　 来源：本站原创 　　　文章点击数：

I want to give you a little bit of personal information about myself before I tell you all about my experiences in China - I know that from some of the experiences I have read on this website myself I would love to know a bit more about the people who wrote them. My name is Tamzin Hardy, I'm 24 years old, from Cairns, Far North Queensland in Australia - and this is my first trip overseas. About a year ago I decided that I had two choices, I could either stay in my nice, safe, job as a retail trainer or I could do something that was going to change my life, and take a trip overseas. Backpacking wasn't an option, I don't mind traveling around a bit but I have to have somewhere to call home, and I wasn't interested in a four week whirlwind tour either. So working overseas looked like a good option for me. I decided to take a TESOL course through Teach International, but at this stage I wasn't sure if I would be able to leave my family and friends for such a long time. What made me make up my mind was meeting a couple of friends from High School who had been working in London for the past few years. They had so much to talk about and it made me realize that if I wasn't careful I was going to end up being the person at our 20 year high school reunion who hadn't done anything interesting with their life! So I posted my resume, and got a heap of job offers from a lot of schools I knew nothing about. The job ads all seemed to promise the same things! Some of the schools had a photo or two, but nothing really caught my attention until I found Owen's website. The added security that Owen and his crew personally check out the schools and accommodation was a big plus for me - the last thing I wanted to do was end up in a country where I didn't speak the language, and have problems that I couldn't handle on my own. I'm so glad I did, it's great to have the support the Owen and the crew at Owen College offers.
So here I am.
Arriving in Yangshou
The night I arrived in Yangshou will go down as one of the most fantastic, freaky nights of my life. I can still remember the feeling of total bewilderment I felt as I got off my plane from Hong Kong in Guilin. I was totally wired from lack of sleep and way too many hours of not being able to stretch my legs out properly. After my brief visit to Hong Kong and seeing their state of the art complex which they call an airport but could be better classified as a small city, I have to admit, I was expecting something similar in Guilin, especially with its reputation for being a tourist mecca. Not the case! I managed to pass SARS inspection (walking through a gate that takes your temperature) and get through customs (two guys talking and drinking tea totally ignoring everyone) and made my way to the gates where James was holding up a sign with my name on it. He first asked if I needed to use the bathroom - which I thought was totally considerate - and let me know that we were in for a bit of a drive. He also asked if I was hungry, and I said no, thinking that I would be able to get something once I got to Yangshou, but more on that later. We walked outside, saw the illuminated palm trees and he went and got the car and we were off.
I think it was about a half an hour to Guilin, and James took me on a scenic drive through the town, which was pretty amazing. Guilin is very much a nighttime city; it reminded me a lot of The Esplanade in Cairns. A long street running along the river, with restaurants and curbside cafes lining the pavement on one side, and on the other trees decorated with fairy lights. The hotels all have huge signs in bright neon, all advertising the names, but you wouldn't believe the difference it makes when you can't understand the language. At home, any type of light show that bright and in-your-face would be an assault on your senses. I found the experience to be, in some strange way, relaxing. When you can't understand what the signs say, you can enjoy the lights for what they are. Also totally amazing was the traffic and lack of road rules there seems to be. We then drove about another hour and got to Yangshou. The trip at nighttime is not impressive, you can see vague outlines of some of the limestone peaks but you can sense that you are in for something special the next morning. It wasn't boring though - watching the traffic and playing dodgems with the oncoming busses is enough entertainment for anyone. There seems to be a kind of code when you are driving in China, dip your lights a couple of times when a car or bus or truck is far away from you, and if they dip back that means they have seen you and know you are there. If they don't dip their lights, lean on the horn a few times. That usually gets their attention. Also lean on the horn if you are about to overtake a man on a bike, teenagers walking home, woman carrying basket full of ducks or anyone else you might see. Lean on the horn a lot if three busses are trying to overtake each other at the same time. In fact, lean on the horn every time a car passes you - I'm not too sure if it is like a hello to them or what but it made for a noisy and interesting ride home. I think that I hitting the brakes more than James was. And perhaps I over-exaggerate, but I have been exposed to the traffic for a while here now, and honestly, it's enough to make you want to take a train. Or walk!
When James told me we were arriving in Yangshou, I thought he was joking. After the bright lights of Guilin, I was expecting more of the same in Yangshou, but on the way to the Owen College Hostel there are very few road lights, no signs, and definitely no shops open there at 11pm at night, so when James asks if you are hungry, take him up on his offer of dinner if you are! James showed me how to turn on the heat for the shower, the air-con and showed me the welcome information booklet in my room. He said to just come downstairs when I was ready in the morning. I didn't have a clue how to get into town, I wasn't even sure there WAS a town at that stage, but was too tired to care anymore, so I made myself at home in my room, got used to the Chinese shower, and went to sleep.
The next day I got up and wandered downstairs to the office to meet Jennifer, I also met Betts, David, Star and some of the other Owen College crew. I also met a heap of other teachers who were going out for lunch, so I followed along and got my first look at the town. There are internet bars all the way into town, as well as places you can make international phone calls, so don't worry about keeping in touch with family and friends. We went to MC Blues for lunch, where they do a mean veggie pizza and a great bacon and egg sandwich. I was also warned that this might be my last taste of western food for a while, especially as far as cheese is concerned. MC Blues is a fantastic restaurant/bar and I ate there a lot before I left for my school. The walk into town is also lined with restaurants selling simple dishes, and a street market where all sorts of food can be cooked right in front of you. The street market has all types of interesting things in buckets which you can try - if you're brave enough!
On my second day in China, I came down with the flu! Probably from sitting in planes for a stupid amount of time - and spent most of the next few days laying bed, with a shocking fever. I had brought enough cold and flu products with me to last a week or so, and now I was going to use this in my first few days! Jennifer and Owen were wonderful, they offered to take me to the hospital, but I declined saying I would get better in my own time. I ended up taking the teaching training even though I wasn't well and thankfully I was back on my feet for the start of the demonstration lessons.
The training was very informative - most of the topics I had already covered in my TESOL course, but the lesson on Chinese culture given by Owen really interesting, and the demo lessons by Betts and David were also great. My repertoire of games was fairly limited, so they also helped me out by giving me a few new ideas. David's "Three Little Pigs" lesson was the highlight of my training, and is not to be missed! I've never seen a lesson presented like that before and I use some of the same ideas in my own lessons now. The classes were very relaxed, and you also get a couple of hours break for lunch and siesta.
After I got over my flu, I did get to go and see a couple of things worth mentioning. Owen had organized a group to see a "show" and despite my questioning the other teachers who had already been about what I was spending my money on, all they would say is "It's amazing - don't miss it!" So I went to see Impressions of San Jie Liu. And I'm not telling you anything! You will just have to come and see it for yourself. But it was absolutely amazing, Andrew Lloyd Webber eat your heart out. We also got a big group of teachers together and went for a massage. $30 Aus for a one hour full body massage!

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