Hello to all. I have arrived alive and well in shanghai. I have been here for only eight days and already so much to share...

For those of you who were curious how long the flight was from san Francisco to shanghai, it was about 12.5 hours. Not too bad, considering on the way home from Munich this past September the flight was ten hours just to Atlanta. At the day's end ( whatever time zone that is referring to) I arrived in Shanghai just about 24 hours after having left my house in St. Louis. To say the least, I have been exhausted and I am still catching up on sleep, flying against the sun with a fourteen hour time difference can really make a person a little jet lagged.

I arrived in shanghai on Tuesday night ( about one week ago) and was picked up at the airport by representatives from the school. Wednesday morning ( the next day) I was already teaching my classes after a quick orientation of an hour with the head master over a breakfast of dumplings and spring rolls ( with chopsticks of course!). I mention this only to note, until that morning I still did not know my exact classes: subjects, ages, nor how many classes I was going to teach not to mention the typical orientation for new foreign teachers is two weeks in duration.

My school is located about twenty minutes from downtown city proper Shanghai, just as Clayton is to downtown St. Louis. the school is a private boarding school and is ranked as the second best high school in China. The campus is huge, most comparable to a small private university campus in the States. The campus is well manicured, literally there are gardeners everywhere you look and some even cut the grass with small scissors. There are many gardens, lakes, and paths on campus. It is at least one city block in size and is gated off from the hustle and bustle of the busy Shanghai streets. Some days after going to the market or dinner, it is a relief to pass the guards through the gates to get back on campus, a sort of refuge. My apartment is quaint most definitely comparable to a studio in New York city, but it is very clean and has a beautiful balcony. Many foreign teachers in my building have much larger apartments, but they have also been here much longer.

There are about thirty foreign teachers on campus. They have been here for at least six months, but some as long as two years. All are similar in age, but some a little older having already obtained their master's degrees. Many have also taught before, so they have all been very helpful in entertaining my questions. I must say I certainly underestimated the difficulty of teaching, I apologize to my 10th grade math teacher for being so sassy! The foreign teachers all speak Chinese, so I have a bit of catching up to do. Soon, once I am a bit more settled in ( literally meaning to have my bags unpacked) I will begin my language study with a tutor. Many teachers have come from the States but also from the United
Kingdom.

I teach two classes, a native English- speaking 9th grade English class and a non-native English speaking 10th grade writing composition class. The latter class is much more difficult, but a good challenge. In the 9th grade class I am teaching Charles Dickens "Great Expectations" ( a great book, but it had been some time since I reviewed it last) and then we will continue on to the Odyssey. All of the students here are very intelligent. I teach 2-3 hours a day, Monday-Friday. Most of the students stay in dorms on campus and their day starts with morning exercises at 6:30 am over the loud speaker and their classes continue throughout the day until 4pm. and even right now as I am typing in the office, students are being taught in a classroom ( it is 8:15 pm).

The people of Shanghai, referred to as the Shanghainiese are very much taller than the average Chinese person in China. Many people here are my height or taller, can you believe that?! ...I think in about ten years there will be many more Yao Ming's playing basketball!

By the way, mentioning Yao Ming... I ate at the most fantastic teeny-tiny restaurant a few days ago with some fellow teachers. The food was beyond fantastic and it is a restaurant Yao Ming frequents when he comes home to Shanghai to visit. Perhaps I will get to meet him on the streets of Shanghai! The Chinese cuisine is absolutely delicious. The Chinese have a saying that a full belly is a happy person. It is expected all food given to you to be eaten, there is no such thing as I am full or I would rather not eat this. And being a taller person they seem to think my appetite is that of a giant ( which at times I would agree ) but not for every meal everyday. At the rate I am consuming the food here, I will
have to be rolled out of this country! Shanghai is a city of very international cuisine as well, such as Indian, Thai, Japanese, Spanish, etc...just to name a few. I do not know if I will be able to eat Chinese food like I used to in the States, authentic Chinese food is so much very different. I have eaten bok choy almost every day, the sticky rice ( so different from home), noodles, soups, beans, dumplings, tofu, to just name a few.

The dollar goes a long way here. But only after being here a short time I find it all relative. I have adjusted to the prices and quite often find myself going somewhere else to get something if I know it will be less expensive. The exchange rate is roughly 8 rnb to $1. To give you an idea: McDonald's ice cream cone $.20 ( they come in chocolate too!), diet coke ( can) $.60, Elle Magazine $2.50, a steam iron for clothes $6.00, an entire bed set ( comforter, sheets, and pillowcase) $21.00, two pillows for my bed $10.00, a water purifier $20.00, and dinner at a Chinese restaurant ( more than enough to fill you up) $2.00.

so I have presented you with the basics, a practical warm-up for the updates to come from Shanghai. I already have so much more to share, but I must get home to get some rest. I will write you soon. I hope everyone is doing well and is in good health.

Best wishes.