International Day

One of the big "days" at the school we are working at is International Day. Every year the school student body is divided into different "countries". The kids learn about the various countries they are assigned to as well as designing an outfit native to that country. Tammy and I were the "German" team leaders and spent Thursday afternoon sewing suspenders and outfitting hats to create a team of Barvarian students. (My initial thought to outfit them as stormtroopers and have them go as the Nazi "youth league" was vetoed by Tammy. She was probably right, educators have no sense of humor on those things :)

On Sat. morning, the children initially came to school with a costume from their home country. Tammy and I threw on some baseball attire while Gabriel dressed as a cowboy. After a parade around the school grounds we retreated to our classes to put on our "Barvarian" clothes. Then, I led my "team" every half hour to a different station where they got to learn about, and participate in, activities from Canada, Thailand, Mexico, Kenya, India, and Korea.


After an International "potluck" lunch, we went to the open field where we had tug-o-war contests and other assorted games including baseball. As you can see from the pictures, I too dressed kind of silly. I promised the older kids that I would not ask them to do anything that I, myself, were not prepared to do. But a good time was had by all.

Sailing Pt 2.

Ok, this is not so much a new entry as a chance for me to throw up more pictures of Gabriel sailing. They were sent to me from the instructor. Gabriel came back from his second Sat. sailing more on fire than the first. He also said, "My two instructors are from France and China. They both have cool hair and wear funky clothes. They look like they came from Boulder."

"C" List Celebrities

One of the things you have to get used to being Caucasians living in China is the fact you are a celebrity. A "C" list celebrity granted, but a celebrity none the less.

I am actually surprised how after twenty years of China being opened to foreigners the presence of a non-Chinese can draw such attention. It is not uncommon for people to stare, wave, or give you a "hello". Standing on the street it's interesting to see people pass by and some times do a double take. I like to pretend they're saying, "Was that Tom Cruise?". Other times, people come up and just want a picture with you. Gabriel gets this and sometimes its from young girls. The first time it happened he just looked at me in astonishment with a "What do I do?" look. (I've included some pictures from these encounters)

Some of the more adventureous want to engage in conversation. We will be relaxing on the beach when someone will drop down next to us with a big grin and a "Where do you come from?" I think its funny because the question that always comes up is, "How long will you be in Qingdao?" When I answer, "I live in Qingdao" there is often a look of astonishment as if to say, "Impossible, no white man has EVER lived in Qingdao". Which is unusual as these days it is quite common to see foreigners out an about, especially in the major cities.

In most cases we welcome the intrusion. It gives us a chance to interact with local people and perhaps practice our Chinese. The people are usually very gracious and often just curious about foreigners.

Another interesting aspect to living in China is the reaction you get from other foreigners. Some see you and give you a small nod. Some come up, introduce themselves, and start talking just to have a conversation in non-broken English. The funniest are the foreigners who have "gone native". They prefer to ignore you because your presense reminds them that they are not, in fact, Chinese...and that makes them sad.

For us, we're trying to learn Chinese. Then maybe we can move up to the celebrity "B" list.

Gabriel the Sailor

At Yew Chung International School we offer a number of after school extracurricular activities. Each child is required to to take at least one course and each teacher has to teach one. I am running a Bible club on Monday afternoons and assisting with the Film Making club on Thursdays. I have 9 students in my Bible Club and we are studying the Book of John. In American public schools, students can have a Bible study, but a teacher is not allowed to lead it. I am able to lead one here and consider it ironic that I have to come to China for some religious freedom :)

Gabriel has chosen to do sailing on Saturdays. Yesterday was his first day and he was picked up promptly at 7:00 AM by the school van. He traveled across the bay to the Olympic sailing center where he will go every Sat. for the next 10 weeks. For 6 hours yesterday they learned knot tying, capsizing, and balance.

I was a little nervous because he left at 7:00 AM and was not returned until 6:30 that evening. Its a long day and being that the course wasn't cheap, Tammy and I were afraid he'd come home overwhelmed and we would have to spend the next 9 weeks forcing him to go to recoup our investment and develop his commitment.


No Worries!! He came through the door wearing the sailing shirt and hat they gave him as well as the biggest smile. "I LOVED it!" he exclaimed.

National Day Vacation

With are double duties here at school, Tammy and I were looking forward to the National Day holiday here in China where we get a week off. National Day celebrates October 1st, 1949 when Mao Zedong stood at Tiananmen Gate and proclaimed the establishment of the People's Republic of China. It's the U.S. equivalent to the Fourth of July.

We decided just to explore our home territory a bit and get out on some bikes that we have at our disposal. There is a long boardwalk along the beach that goes about a mile or more and we spent one day riding up and down it. There were a lot of activities going on for the holiday so we stopped occasionally and had something to eat or would take a brief swim in the ocean

Yesterday we went into Qingdao for one of the cities most famous events. The 18th Annual Qingdao International Beer Festival. Before we got to the festival we explored one of the city's biggest bookstores hoping to find a few books in English or a newspaper. Inquiries of foreigners living here on where to buy an International newspaper have been met with blank stares reserved for Rod Taylor by the Eloi (bonus point if you got that cultural reference). Well, there were no newspapers or English books but they did have something that stunned me. On a computer screen they had an episode of Deperate Housewives playing. Next to the picture, the text was scrolling in English and next to it, in Chinese. As the actors spoke, the text would be highlighted. It was software to help you learn English while watching American TV shows. Learning English by watching Desperate Housewives???...Oh, someone help me, say it ain't so.

After that we enjoyed an evening at the beer festival. There were rides, cotten candy, carnival games...and scorpians on a stick! Yep, just like at home!

What are we doing?

I've been asked a number of times what we are doing in China so I thought I would devout a blog entry to that very answer.

Tammy and I work for Yew Chung International School in Qingdao China. Yew Chung is a network of International Schools based out of Hong Kong with schools in various cities in China as well as Silicon Valley USA. The school in Qingdao is the newest school and is in its 3rd year of operation. We are temporarily housed in a set of residential "villas" while our new campus is being built. The school is geared toward the children of foreign business expatriates working in China. Because of the proximity of Qingdao to South Korea, many of the school's student body comes from Korea

Tammy and I were initially hired to run the boarding program at the school. A small number of the students live at the school in "the dorms" (which are actually very nice apartments) and Tammy and I's job is to be the parent, teacher, mentors to the kids while they are staying at the school. On Friday afternoon after school the kids go home to their homes for the weekend and return to the school on Sunday nights.

However, the Year 1 & 2 teacher (what in America we would know as Kindergarten and 1st grade) position has still not been filled so Tammy and I have been asked to step in to that position as well. We share the duties with the class' Chinese co-teacher (every grade gets taught in both English and Chinese so that the children develop fluency in both languages).

In addition to that Tammy teaches secondary Art and I teach secondary Citizenship as well as Information Technology. (Again, for those in America, Secondary is what we would call middle or high school. Primary is elemenatry) Although the work load is pretty heavy between the two jobs, Tammy and I are excited about the new skills and experience we are receiving. Teaching secondary Citizenship...wow.. am I in my element. (Just asked the kid who in the last class asked me what the difference between a Democrat and a Republican was)
Likewise Tammy has REALLY enjoyed researching and teaching her secondary Art class.

Oh, and things are a little more formal and professional than what we were accustomed to in Boulder. As a teacher, I wear a tie to every class

Steve at 42

Last week I turned 42!! For the last couple years we have had an outdoor movie in our backyard to celebrate the occasion. When I turned "40" a couple years ago we watched City Slickers. Lets face it, there is nothing funnier when you are turning 40 than watching a movie where Billy Crystal is turning 40. Last year, in the midst of the Colorado Rockies making their historic run for the National League Championship, we watched Field of Dreams.

This year we had hoped to start the outdoor movie tradition now that we are in China. Especially with the new LCD projector we were given by our friends at church before we left. However, the typhoon of activity at the school while getting ready to start the new academic year meant our outdoor movie premier will have to be delayed.

As busy as everyone was at the school, Tammy still wanted to do a little something for my birthday. She organized a bunch of refreshments and rented a couple of tables down by the beach. As the sun set, we sat with new friends and co-workers and raised a toast in my honor to another year...this time in another land.