Post #115 7 July 2016

Gentlefolk,

This post is about two company training classes I had this semester.

The university has a Training Center which runs specialised courses for staff from major Chinese oil companies (CNPC, Sinopec, and CNOOC). The courses can be technical (about some aspect related to oil & gas), or language (mainly English, but also Russian and Arabic).

I have taught a number of these courses, and quite enjoy teaching adults who have been in the workforce for several years. They are older and more mature (mostly married) and have a different perspective on life than college students.

I was asked to give a speech at their graduation ceremony on 25 June 2016.  I complimented them on their dedication and progress, and canvassed ways they could maintain their English skills. At the end I said "today is an important day for you, and also for me as this is my last official function as a teacher in China." I became  a bit teary, probably not a good look for an old fart!

This semester I taught two groups - details below.

The awesome team from UPC Training Center, from left: Zhang Yi Zhi (Mia); me; Yang Yuan Yuan (Lucy); Wang Yuan (Joy).  They were terrific.  I called them "my Charlie's Angels".  They used my book "It's all about the students" as a marketing tool to promote UPC's training services.

Sinopec (Zhong Shi Hua) #10 Construction Company

Their 10 week course ran from 18 April to 25 June 2016.  The company has a number of projects overseas (mainly Africa and Middle East) and they want to upgrade staff English skills; and staff are keen because they earn double their normal salary when posted overseas.

At the beginning of their course Sun Da Zhang (Merlin) and I tested the group; our conclusion was that 55% had 'reasonable or good' Oral English skills while 45% were rated as 'poor'.  

At the end of the course the proportion of 'reasonable or good' had risen to 80%, with an additional 10% in the 'very good' category. It was a matter of unlocking their latent knowledge of English which many had not used since graduating from University years ago.  

10% didn't make the grade (still rated as 'poor') - some people find it very difficult to absorb another language - but they all tried very hard.

It was a tough course. They had classes for 6 hours a day, 6 days a week with only Sunday off; actually, a public holiday (Duan Wu or Dragon Boat Festival) fell on Thursday 9 June but their company insisted that they continue studying! That would never happen in Australia!!!

The course covered English reading, writing, listening, and speaking; they also had lectures on technical aspects of their work, teamwork related to projects, etc.

It was a large group so I split them into two groups for the class photos.

From left: Zhou Zhen Xing (Andy); Gai Xin Fei (Gary); Su Wei (Will); Li Bao Qing (Mike); Zhang Kai (Kroos); Xie Bin (Kris); me; Wan Gui Yang (Bon); Gao Shuang (Alic); Ma Huai Zhi (Allen); Li Zheng Han (Melo); Zhang Dong Ge (Frank); Zhu Chao (Jason); Guo Yan Long (Tony); Zhao Jin Long (Simon).

From left: Zhang Qing Fu (Wordsworth); Bian Pei Liang (Henry); Sui Han Yi (Johnny); He Xiang Yang (Hobart); He Liang (John); Liu Xin You (Jim); Xie Bin (Kris); me; Liu Song (Lewis); Gao Yan (Gavin); Zhang Hong Qiang (Mark); Zhang Xiao Ming (River).  They all had copies of my book "It's all about the students" which I autographed. 

Graduation ceremony, 25 June 2016

Presentation to class leader Li Bao Qing (Mike) by Professor Wang Tian Hu (UPC) and Yang Lian Wen (Sinopec)

Luo Chun, Head of UPC Training Group.

Group photo after Graduation ceremony.   I was asked to give a speech at the graduation ceremony, and became quite emotional at the end as this was my 'final hurrah' after teaching in China for six years.

The students put on role-plays to demonstrate their Oral English abilities.

Another role-play, with the judges looking on.

 CNPC (Zhong Shi You) Pipeline Construction Company

This group was from Lang Fang, Hebei Province, between Beijing and Tianjin.  Their general level of English was much better than the Sinopec Group which made teaching and communication easier.  Having two women in the class also made it different.

I taught them twice a week for 4 weeks.  Their course will run through till September so other teachers took over.

From left: Chen Meng (Mike); Liao Fu Jin (Leo); Zhao Ying (Ivy); Cao Peng (Lucifer); Ma Gen (Morgan); Zheng Xiang Yu (Maggie); Yin Wei (William); me; Chen Li Ming (Bran); Tian Ya Lin (Allan); Li Jin (Robert, co-monitor); Wang Jing Lei (Jolley, CPC Secretary); Jiang Zhen (Michael); Lin Jing Min (Jason); Li Peng (Mason); Ding Ping Ping (Salam); Zhang Yun (Andrew).

From left: Sun Ya Jia (Pier); Hao Guang Hao (Roger, co-monitor); Jin Feng (Feng); Jiang Lan Jun (Julian); Zhang Xiao Dong (Jerry); Xu Chen (Hunter); Liu Da (Jordan); Cheng Shu Qi (Albert); Chang Yuan (Jack); Chen Zhou (Thomas); me; Zhou Wu De (Wood); Feng Zhao Sen (Dasen); Chen Kai (Kevin); Zhang Zhao Meng (Evan); Liu Ming (Luke); Zeng Yu Ping (Austin).

...

That's it for this post.

I'd planned to do two more (one June News Summary, and another on our overall experience in China), but am rapidly running out of time.

Let's see how final packing goes over the next two days, but I suspect this might be my last post in China.

In two days we will fly from Qingdao to Frankfurt and then on to Budapest.  Three weeks in Hungary followed by four weeks in Germany. We'll get to Brisbane mid-September and then drive to Canberra to start the next chapter of our lives.

Not sure what I'll do about the blog.  Keep it going? Let it lapse?  In any case, I'll have to change the title as this will probably be the last "Letter from China".

Thank you for accompanying Vera and me on our China adventure for the last few years.  It's been a wonderful experience, but now time to RTA (return to Australia).

Over and out.

...


Best wishes, keep well and keep smiling.

Alex & Vera Olah
English teachers at the China University of Petroleum, Qingdao
www.upc.edu.cn
Thursday, 7 July 2016


Qingdao TV did a series of programs on foreigners living and working here.  One program featured two foreign teachers, Laxmisha Rai and Alex Olah - to view on YouTube click HERE.  It's about 25 minutes, mainly in Chinese but enough English to get the gist.

Post #114 6 July 2016

Gentlefolk,

Another post about different aspects of our life in Huangdao (note: all dollars are US$; the exchange rate  at the moment is US$1 = Yuan 6.5).

As you can see I'm trying to do as many posts as possible before we leave in 3 days.  While things are still fresh in my memory.

On Saturday we fly from Qingdao direct to Frankfurt (Lufthansa); overnight at Frankfurt Airport; then on Sunday fly to Budapest. Three weeks in Hungary, followed by four weeks in Germany.

I doubt there'll be time for blogging while we are touring around - so want/need to get as much done on China as possible before our departure.

But I'm almost done - only one, possibly two posts to go - thank god, because Vera is getting pissed off at the time I'm spending on the computer (instead of packing, etc).

The bus stop outside the university's East Gate.

Bus #6 took us into town; usually a 6 minute ride to the stop near the gym.

Michael Christensen and Vera on Bus #6 going to the gym, I've never seen an empty bus in China - always passengers, usually full. But great service every 10 minutes and still only Y1 ($0.15) for a ride across town.

The entrance to the Gold Coast Gym. It occupied the 3rd and 4th floors.  We belonged to the original section on the 4th Floor (cost Y800 - $125 - for 8 months).  Later they opened a new section on the 3rd floor, better equipment, sauna, more expensive.

The treadmills are popular.

The gym had a range of equipment.

I usually used the treadmill for 35 minutes (walking and jogging), then did some light weights and stretching; finished with a shower, all done in 90 minutes.  The round-trip from home and back took about 2 hours. I often walked home (about 20 minutes).

Vera on the treadmill.  We usually went three times a week, Monday, Wednesday and Friday, from 9 to 10.30am.

Our friend Vivian was a regular at the gym.  Lately she's been taking her mobile phone (like most people) and her intensity level has dropped. The man next to her is Qin Lin Min, a piano teacher, also a regular attendee. Other regulars were Pan Jin You (Danny) and Chris from India. Liu Guo Ming looked after the Men's Change Room.  Mo Han was beautiful behind the counter (and lifting weights), she reminded us of Fiona Simpkin (nee Low).

I took some photos of the view from the treadmill.  This is looking slightly West, toward the Jia Jia Yuan Shopping mall.

The view directly in front of "my" treadmill.  Big hole in the ground. This will be the main metro station for Huangdao - open in less than 2 years - will connect to Qingdao Metro system, parts of which have already started operating.

Looking slightly East from "my" treadmill. View of Li Qun Supermarket and MYKAL Department Store.

We had a farewell lunch with one of our ex-student friends, Li Zhi Wei (Lena), in the Teacher's Dining Hall.  She will do a Masters in London. 

Vera with her Brazilian friend Lulu. Lulu's husband manages a factory making exercise equipment for export to Brazil and other countries. Vera met her at Chinese classes and they became good friends (chatted in Portuguese).

Saying goodbye to our friends Daniel Elsaesser (German) and his wife Zhao Hai Jie (Hayley). Daniel is fluent in Chinese and works for the Sino-German Eco Industrial Park in Huangdao.  They have a son, Oliver.

Hayley is good at painting and calligraphy. She likes pole-dancing, and they they installed a pole in their apartment.

Vera with Zhao Yin Xin (Oliver), Daniel and Hayley's son.

The Shi Yan Experimental Middle School, about 3 km from our campus, has a swimming pool and we usually went there on Sunday for a swim.  I walked back to the campus afterwards (about 20 minutes).

The main quadrangle of the Shi Yan Experimental Middle School, with statue of Confucius.

The indoor pool at the school; 25 m. Water temperature was around 25C.  A single visit (max 2 hours) costs Y40 ($6.15) but we bought a 90 visit ticket which brought the price down to $2.75 a visit.  We normally went at lunchtime to avoid the crowds.

The sports oval at Shi Yan Experimental Middle School - artificial turf -  pretty impressive for a school oval, isn't it?

Another view of the Sports Oval.  None of the high-rise buildings in the background were there 10 years ago!

Another view of the Sports Oval. There is a new shopping mall built on the other side of the offices at the back of the Oval. 

...

That's it for this post.

Best wishes, keep well and keep smiling.

Alex & Vera Olah

English teachers at the China University of Petroleum, Qingdao

www.upc.edu.cn

Wednesday 6 July 2016

Post #113 6 July 2016

Gentlefolk,

This post is about saying goodbye to some of our College friends and contacts.

It's been a pretty crazy last 2 or 3 weeks.  Lot's of goodbyes, packing, and getting ready to leave.  Only three sleeps to go before we leave China.

We've had a wonderful 6 years of teaching and living here.  We'll miss it.

Here are some photos.

A last bike ride with Michael and Steven. Photo taken in front of the Liu Pei Lou Residential Building where we live. We went around Tang Dao Wan Bay, and then over to Silver Beach.  It's a bit over 24 km around the whole promontory  -  Paul Finkbeiner and I once did it in 65 minutes - still the record!
We are so lucky to live here, where there is a safe place to walk or jog or bike.  And the air quality, right on the coast, is usually pretty good.

Vera also went for a ride, but a different way.

The esplanade along Tang Dao Wan Bay, just across the highway from our campus.  At great cost the Municipal Govt built a lovely promenade around TDW Bay about 6 years ago, not long before we arrived here.  So lucky. It has been pretty peaceful, but now more and more people are discovering this lovely Bay.

Photo taken from the other side of TDW Bay, looking back towards Huangdao City.  All the tall buildings have been built in the last 10 years.

From across the BAy, a view of our Liu Pei Lou Building (half is residential living for foreign students and teachers, and half is a hotel for the Training Center), and the tall new Engineering Building next to us.

A view of Silver Sand Beach.  It's  30 minutes by bike from the campus. Water still too cold now, but nice swimming in summer.  Some algae is starting to appear.  This beach gets far fewer visitors than Golden Sand Beach, about 5 km north.  Both are big stretches of  fine sand, gently sloping, usually fairly calm so safe for swimming.

Michael & Steven on Silver Sand Beach.  The Grand Wyndham Hotel is in the background.

Michael and me on Silver Sand Beach.

We said goodbye to another teaching colleague, Gautier Plassais. Lovely guy.

Saying goodbye to my ex-student Wang He (Albert). He has just graduated in Mechanical Engineering and will do a Masters degree at Dalian University of Technology (in Mectronic Engineering). He scored 93% for his final thesis, which was on drone controls. Albert is the only student to get all 70 short questions correct in my Western Culture exam.  He's an impressive young man.

Saying goodbye to Professor Zhang Wei Shan (Computer Science) and his father who was visiting from Laiyang (Yantai). We met Prof Zhang 5 years ago when we all lived in Building #1, and became good friends. His wife Wang Yi is expecting their second child.

The 'flea market' when graduating students sell all their excess gear. Their 4 years of undergraduate study is over, and it's time to move on. Most graduates have found jobs, while others will pursue Masters degrees either in China or abroad.

This girl was taking it easy.

Some students playing cards while waiting for customers. The girl on the left, Judy (Law graduate), was in my Selected Reading class this semester.  

I presented a copy of my book "It's all about the students" to Li Guan Lin.  He was "lao ban" (boss)  of the foreign teachers in Dongying when we arrived there in August 2009 (now he is Deputy Director of the International Education Center, in charge of 800 foreign students).
We obviously go to the same hairdresser!

With Wu Qian (Kathy), my helpful Liaison Teacher this semester.  All foreign teachers are allocated a teacher by the English Faculty to help us with admin and teaching issues.  They get paid a little extra, but not commensurate with the work involved in making our lives easier. Generally, Chinese teachers work much harder than foreign teachers.  We are here for a short time and then move on, but they are building careers.  They allocate a lot more homework, and have many more administrative duties, while also trying to do research and write academic papers which are necessary for promotion.
Kathy has a very cute 4 year old son (English name Alex ).

Dean of the English Faculty, Zhang Jian Ke (David) taking a photo with one of his graduating students.  We first met David in Dongying. He will shortly start a PhD at a university in Shanghai.

The "trophy wall" in our apartment.  I received three teaching Awards: from our university (UPC); from the Education Ministry of Shandong Province; and from the State Administration for Foreign Experts in Beijing.  In 2013 UPC published my book "It's all about the students", which describes our first two years teaching in China.  I also featured in a program made by Qingdao TV about foreigners living and working here. Many highlights in our 6 years at UPC.

...

That's it for another post.

Best wishes, keep well and keep smiling.

Alex & Vera Olah

English teachers at the China University of Petroleum, Qingdao

www.upc.edu.cn

Wednesday 6 July 2016