News, updates and fotos live from Anhui in PRC

2010/01/12

How to find order in a disordered world?

Ok, as you see, the last post is without structure, but being back in China means as well that you only have restricted use of websites.

It has been quite a while I've been living in Hefei now, well it feels like, but I'll start telling about the last 6 weeks. After Hong Kong I got straight back to Hefei... As nothing worked out for me the easy way, even my arrival here was different. First I couldn’t find the person that was sent to pick up from train station, and then they showed me my flat on the new campus which was out of imagination. Didn't expect a lot but that was all over the ways, couldn’t shower or use the toilet for days, wouldn't enter the kitchen and so on. But they tried hard to clean and fix everything.

For now I'm only living in one room of the apartment because without heaters it's only possible to get one warm room with aircon and an oil radiator which I bought. Even if it's far from anything I got used to the "non-existing" life on campus. There are two places outside where I get my food from, local family ran restaurants. The so called spicy noodle lady and fried rice, noodle couple. They are always nice and interested...

Just few days after I tried to figure out my living situation, I had to start my classes. Actually it wasn't that hard to get used to. Preparation is getting quicker and the students surprise me every time. Having studied about 3 months they can keep up with German, show passion and have fun doing presentations, role-plays and games. I don't see my colleagues too often, but they are always nice. We had a comfortable and relaxed lunch to speak about the next weeks, got invited to their homes and so on.

Just before Christmas there was set up a big diner for all foreign teacher by the Department of foreign languages which gave me the possibility to meet more people, the dean, party secretary and so on. Seemed like most of them had heard about me somehow, just rushed on me in talking Chinese... Taff, but good practice though.

As Christmas arrived I was a bit moody, being a Newbie, there weren't too many options to hang out with people, and I cancelled Nanjing because I was tired of travels. So I spent the time on my own, cooking nice diner, reading and reflecting my situation. Christmas Day there was a party set up by a French teacher. Best thing about this evening is maybe that I met a Chinese who lived 15 years in Germany. That fact alone is not spectaculars but that he lived in Duisburg was too funny. Little world, little China and Hefei!

Days passing too fast, just few days later we went to a New Year’s Party at the German Department of another University here. Lots of other German teachers, nice Chinese people and self-made salads... Just before 0:00am we took a taxi downtown to the Revolutionary Bar. Not knowing who might be there, it turned out that lots of the expats where celebrating there. So good time to meet and greet...

For now I can't believe that the semester is basically over which means that I'm flying back to Europe in less than 4 days. I'm looking forward but somehow I feel like it's too early to leave. We will see how I feel like later...

Ok, hope to see lots of people back in Germany!

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