Thursday, September 18, 2008
Lost Wallet and Cards
A few minutes after the taxi brought us home Tuesday night, I discovered that I didn't have my wallet. I might have had it on my lap in the taxi. I looked all over where we got out of the taxi, and along the way where we walked to the apartment.
A Chinese debit card, two American debit cards, an American credit card, two phone cards and about 700 rmb ($100).
I didn't know which taxi company it was, and I didn't have the license plate number. I went to the guard house at the entrance where we came into the Olympic Garden apartments, and using another wallet and lots of arm waving, I got my point across that I had lost my wallet and cards, but I didn't know what they could do about it, and apparently neither did they. I tried to suggest that the driver might bring the wallet to them if he found it, but I don't think the message got through.
I called Daniel in Korla, and he and Lillian made some phone calls and found out that there are pictures of every car that goes in and out of the apartment grounds. They found out the license plate number and called the taxi company. Two days later we're still waiting for some news from them.
I called my banks to report my lost cards. Unfortunately, some of the lost card hot lines are 800 numbers that I can't call from China. Fortunately I have local numbers that I can call and be transferred to the hot lines. Unfortunately, that's expensive. Fortunately, I can call for 2 cents a minute with Skype. Unfortunately I needed to make more calls after I reported the lost cards, to get new ones, and my Skype credit is running out, and I won't be able to add any until I get the new cards! Fortunately, I might still have enough to make the calls I need to make.
Yesterday I went to my branch office of the Bank of China to ask for a new card. Fortunately some people work there who speak enough English to help me fill out the forms, which are in Chinese with no English translations. Unfortunately, I had to sign forms I couldn't read.
Next challenge: How to find the nearest police station so I can report my loss to the police, and how to explain why it took me two days (or will it be three or four?) to report it.
A Chinese debit card, two American debit cards, an American credit card, two phone cards and about 700 rmb ($100).
I didn't know which taxi company it was, and I didn't have the license plate number. I went to the guard house at the entrance where we came into the Olympic Garden apartments, and using another wallet and lots of arm waving, I got my point across that I had lost my wallet and cards, but I didn't know what they could do about it, and apparently neither did they. I tried to suggest that the driver might bring the wallet to them if he found it, but I don't think the message got through.
I called Daniel in Korla, and he and Lillian made some phone calls and found out that there are pictures of every car that goes in and out of the apartment grounds. They found out the license plate number and called the taxi company. Two days later we're still waiting for some news from them.
I called my banks to report my lost cards. Unfortunately, some of the lost card hot lines are 800 numbers that I can't call from China. Fortunately I have local numbers that I can call and be transferred to the hot lines. Unfortunately, that's expensive. Fortunately, I can call for 2 cents a minute with Skype. Unfortunately I needed to make more calls after I reported the lost cards, to get new ones, and my Skype credit is running out, and I won't be able to add any until I get the new cards! Fortunately, I might still have enough to make the calls I need to make.
Yesterday I went to my branch office of the Bank of China to ask for a new card. Fortunately some people work there who speak enough English to help me fill out the forms, which are in Chinese with no English translations. Unfortunately, I had to sign forms I couldn't read.
Next challenge: How to find the nearest police station so I can report my loss to the police, and how to explain why it took me two days (or will it be three or four?) to report it.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Tutoring
Daniel and Patty are both working full time at the French School. I've volunteered to wash clothes and dishes, and sweep and mop the floors. Daniel is still doing the cooking, when he's here. This week he's in Korla with Lillian and her parents, waiting for Aeryn to be born, hopefully while he's there.
My other job besides housekeeping will be private English lessons, including lessons with some people Lillian was teaching before. I used to help junior high and high school students with their math in Martinique, but I have virtually no experience teaching English to younger children. I have one group ages 9 and 10, and another, older group. Next week I'll be starting with someone younger.
I've been thinking about my vision, goals and strategies, and my head was spinning. Finally I thought of something simple (for me) that I can do with all levels until I think of something better. I've downloaded some educational videos from the Internet Archive called "Learning to be Human" by the Learning Corporation of America. I'll play each video a little at a time and have the students try to understand what people are saying, and write it down. Then we'll act it out, and discuss it.
That will provide practice in listening, speaking, reading and writing, and some first steps in spiritual and moral training. It will also tie in nicely with the harmonious society that's being promoted by the Chinese government.
My other job besides housekeeping will be private English lessons, including lessons with some people Lillian was teaching before. I used to help junior high and high school students with their math in Martinique, but I have virtually no experience teaching English to younger children. I have one group ages 9 and 10, and another, older group. Next week I'll be starting with someone younger.
I've been thinking about my vision, goals and strategies, and my head was spinning. Finally I thought of something simple (for me) that I can do with all levels until I think of something better. I've downloaded some educational videos from the Internet Archive called "Learning to be Human" by the Learning Corporation of America. I'll play each video a little at a time and have the students try to understand what people are saying, and write it down. Then we'll act it out, and discuss it.
That will provide practice in listening, speaking, reading and writing, and some first steps in spiritual and moral training. It will also tie in nicely with the harmonious society that's being promoted by the Chinese government.
Community service and development
One project I wanted to continue after moving to China is working with children on neighborhood community service and development.
One of my strategies for learning Chinese is to read children's books in Chinese, and look up words that I don't know in a dictionary while I'm reading. One day I sat on a bench outside near our apartment and started reading. Some women came by and watched me for a while and tried to talk to me. I couldn't understand anything they were saying and they couldn't understand anything I was saying. I pointed to the preschool writing exercise book I was working on, then I pointed to me.
One woman had a toddler with her, and I tried reading to him some of the words I had learned. He started picking up leaves and stones off the ground to give to me. His mother seemed to be enjoying the show, and brought him back several times to play with me some more.
One of my strategies for learning Chinese is to read children's books in Chinese, and look up words that I don't know in a dictionary while I'm reading. One day I sat on a bench outside near our apartment and started reading. Some women came by and watched me for a while and tried to talk to me. I couldn't understand anything they were saying and they couldn't understand anything I was saying. I pointed to the preschool writing exercise book I was working on, then I pointed to me.
One woman had a toddler with her, and I tried reading to him some of the words I had learned. He started picking up leaves and stones off the ground to give to me. His mother seemed to be enjoying the show, and brought him back several times to play with me some more.
Monday, September 15, 2008
Learning Chinese
One of my strategies for learning Chinese is to read Tintin and children's books in Chinese, and look up the words that I don't know, while I'm reading. That's a lot harder than you might think. It isn't like using a French-English where you can find the word in alphabetical order. A Chinese-English dictionary is in alphabetical order of the Pinyin form of the Chinese, which you can only guess if you already know how the word is pronounced. Chinese writing is composed of pictorial characters like Egyptian hieroglyphics. Each character is a syllable, and you can't guess how it's pronounced from the way it looks.
For example, one character is a box with a line going down through the middle. The Pinyin form is "zhong" which sounds almost like "jong," only you curl your tongue way back for the "jong" instead of putting the tip just above your teeth. Now if I didn't know that already, I would not be able to guess that the Pinyin for a box with a line going down through the middle is "zhong," and I wouldn't know where to look in the Chinese section of the dictionary to find it.
Chinese-English dictionaries have stroke indexes, where you can find a character by its shape, with the Pinyin form next to it. Then you can look it up in the main part of the dictionary. I was just starting to learn that when someone offered me an electronic dictionary. Unfortunately electronic dictionaries don't use the same stroke index system that the paper dictionary uses. There's a graphical input method for traditional Chinese, one for simplified Chinese, and another one that works for both.
One system is called Wubi, abbreviated "WB," one is called "Cangjie," abbreviated "CJ," and the other is called "CKC," abbreviated "ZH." Darned if I know why!
For example, one character is a box with a line going down through the middle. The Pinyin form is "zhong" which sounds almost like "jong," only you curl your tongue way back for the "jong" instead of putting the tip just above your teeth. Now if I didn't know that already, I would not be able to guess that the Pinyin for a box with a line going down through the middle is "zhong," and I wouldn't know where to look in the Chinese section of the dictionary to find it.
Chinese-English dictionaries have stroke indexes, where you can find a character by its shape, with the Pinyin form next to it. Then you can look it up in the main part of the dictionary. I was just starting to learn that when someone offered me an electronic dictionary. Unfortunately electronic dictionaries don't use the same stroke index system that the paper dictionary uses. There's a graphical input method for traditional Chinese, one for simplified Chinese, and another one that works for both.
One system is called Wubi, abbreviated "WB," one is called "Cangjie," abbreviated "CJ," and the other is called "CKC," abbreviated "ZH." Darned if I know why!
Finding our way in Shanghai
Contents:
1. Daniel and us and Shanghai.
2. My scouting expeditions.
3. The Day Patty and I Did Shanghai by Ourselves Without Daniel and We Had to Walk a Mile Out of Our Way in the Pouring Windy Rain.
1. Daniel spent many exhausting hours with us, going places he never goes, doing things he never does, going out on limbs that kept breaking off, to help us learn to go where we want to go and do what we want to do.
2. While Patty was at work, I practiced going some places where we might go together. Imagine trying to get on the right bus or metro line, and find out how much to pay, and get off at the right stop, and find the stores you're looking for, and buy stuff, without being able to understand what anyone says or read any of the signs!
3. Last Friday Daniel left to spend a week in Korla where Lillian is. She stayed there when Daniel and Patty and I came to Shanghai. Aeryn might be born this week, a week ahead of schedule. We're hoping and praying she comes while Daniel is still in Korla.
Saturday Patty and I went to Qibao Ancient City to buy a craft kit she saw there Friday. Then we ate lunch at McDonald's. That was pretty easy because I've had a lot of practice going to Qibao. It's just a five minute bus ride, after we take the shuttle that goes back and forth through the Olympic Garden apartments where we live, west of Shanghai.
Then we took metro line 9 in to Shanghai. Line 9 is a new line that hasn't connected yet with the other lines. It currently ends a mile or two from the nearest of the other lines. There's a bus that goes back and forth between the two lines, but for various reasons we decided to walk. We found a huge book store on the way, and decided to look for a phrase book and a book on the Wubi input method to help me use my Chinese <-> English electronic dictionary.
I knew enough about the electronic dictionary to look up "phrase book" in English and show someone the Chinese translation. He went away for a minute and came back with a book of idioms. I was wishing I had a phrase book. I said "Hello . . . Nihao" and "Goodbye . . . Zaijian," waving my arms back and forth. Then he understood, and took me to a section where I found the phrase book I was looking for.
About halfway to the other metro station, rain started pouring down and blowing all over the place. We ducked into a convenience store and bought a snack and a drink. After a while it let up a little and we went on. A block away from the metro station the road was closed for construction of guess what - the new metro line. We had to go about a mile out of our way on some side streets, in the wind and rain, to get to the station.
The rest was easy compared to that, although we did have a little bit of a scare when we couldn't agree on where to catch the bus back to Olympic Garden after we went to Carrefour. If we missed that bus we would have had to pay maybe 60 Yuan ($9) for a taxi. We finally did find the bus, though.
1. Daniel and us and Shanghai.
2. My scouting expeditions.
3. The Day Patty and I Did Shanghai by Ourselves Without Daniel and We Had to Walk a Mile Out of Our Way in the Pouring Windy Rain.
1. Daniel spent many exhausting hours with us, going places he never goes, doing things he never does, going out on limbs that kept breaking off, to help us learn to go where we want to go and do what we want to do.
2. While Patty was at work, I practiced going some places where we might go together. Imagine trying to get on the right bus or metro line, and find out how much to pay, and get off at the right stop, and find the stores you're looking for, and buy stuff, without being able to understand what anyone says or read any of the signs!
3. Last Friday Daniel left to spend a week in Korla where Lillian is. She stayed there when Daniel and Patty and I came to Shanghai. Aeryn might be born this week, a week ahead of schedule. We're hoping and praying she comes while Daniel is still in Korla.
Saturday Patty and I went to Qibao Ancient City to buy a craft kit she saw there Friday. Then we ate lunch at McDonald's. That was pretty easy because I've had a lot of practice going to Qibao. It's just a five minute bus ride, after we take the shuttle that goes back and forth through the Olympic Garden apartments where we live, west of Shanghai.
Then we took metro line 9 in to Shanghai. Line 9 is a new line that hasn't connected yet with the other lines. It currently ends a mile or two from the nearest of the other lines. There's a bus that goes back and forth between the two lines, but for various reasons we decided to walk. We found a huge book store on the way, and decided to look for a phrase book and a book on the Wubi input method to help me use my Chinese <-> English electronic dictionary.
I knew enough about the electronic dictionary to look up "phrase book" in English and show someone the Chinese translation. He went away for a minute and came back with a book of idioms. I was wishing I had a phrase book. I said "Hello . . . Nihao" and "Goodbye . . . Zaijian," waving my arms back and forth. Then he understood, and took me to a section where I found the phrase book I was looking for.
About halfway to the other metro station, rain started pouring down and blowing all over the place. We ducked into a convenience store and bought a snack and a drink. After a while it let up a little and we went on. A block away from the metro station the road was closed for construction of guess what - the new metro line. We had to go about a mile out of our way on some side streets, in the wind and rain, to get to the station.
The rest was easy compared to that, although we did have a little bit of a scare when we couldn't agree on where to catch the bus back to Olympic Garden after we went to Carrefour. If we missed that bus we would have had to pay maybe 60 Yuan ($9) for a taxi. We finally did find the bus, though.
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