Monthly Archives: January 2005

Climatized

Well, I think I’m finally settling into my groove. It’s difficult to get to know a city when it’s generally too cold out to do much exploring – but now with three weeks in country, I have a pretty basic, but solid, understanding of where things are, how to get to and from (a) AND …

January 31, 2005
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Feeding The Dog At The Table

Right. So I did it. Despite moral objections to the way in which the animal is killed, I can officially say – for the first time in my life – that I have cold, dead dog in my fridge. After class today my neighbour Matthew and I went out for some Korean food. By and …

January 27, 2005
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What’s in a name…

“I view living the day-to-day grind sort of like smoking. It’s not cool, it’s bad for you and in the end, it just leaves you feeling dirty and used.” Names. A funny thing at the best of times, in China it’s a bit of an on-going practical joke that Westerners use to communicate to those …

January 22, 2005
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A Note From Nong

Right, so I don’t know if I’ve ever mentioned to any of you my friend Nong in Thailand. I met her in Chiang Mai when she introduced herself to me as my new Thai girlfriend. She’s quite funny. Anyway, despite being funny, and a bit in need of a boyfriend, she is also one of …

January 21, 2005
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The White Safety

I’ve been trying to write an update for about two days now, and I just keep getting side-tracked, so though it’s getting close to midnight, and I’ve got to be up at 6:30… I’m going to do this damnit. So what’s new, what’s new… Oh, right! I officially started my classes. I went to school …

January 19, 2005
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Hello Teacher

Right, so I figured that today I’d just go in to the school, chill out, maybe sit in on one of Tom’s classes and get a feel for the whole thing… but a sickly Matthew last evening put a kink in that. As there is only five foreign teachers at the Jinzhou school, and I’m …

January 16, 2005
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ATMs 15, Ryan 1

Whose got money? Oh, I’VE GOT MONEY! That’s right ladies and gentleman, after searching high and low, I went where I should have gone to begin with – my Lonely Planet guide book. Many people swear they suck, some swear they ruin the travelling experience, but those people have never been stuck in Jinzhou with …

January 14, 2005
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Orient-ation

It’s 7:30 a.m. and I’m just waiting for the water to warm up for my morning shower – sadly, though constantly reminding myself last night I forgot to turn on the water heater before bed. I’m heading into my second day of orientation and yet another day of trying to track down access to my …

January 13, 2005
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Dag Yo, I’m In Jinzhou!

As mentioned, I’ve successfully made it to China – and have been “stationed” in a small city just outside of Dalian called Jinzhou (pronounced jin-joe, sorta). My last few days getting accustom to everything here has been a bit daunting, but taken in good form none the less. I left FAR too late from Chris …

January 11, 2005
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Soundsapound

Alright, I’ve not much time on here, but I just wanted to quickly say that I did indeed make it to the airport in SF (a feet that questions the validity of our space-time continuem) and have survived the flight to China. I’m in my new home, Jinzhou (or is it Jinzhuo…), a “small” city …

January 10, 2005
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