Give It A Chance

During orientation one of my jobs is to describe what living conditions are likely to be like. In some ways it's an impossible task.  I have only visited a handful of Chinese cities and only lived in two - albeit in about six different apartments. Unless you are posted to Baiyin - an unlikely possibility, as we no longer have any teachers there - I can't really tell you much about the schools or the living standards. On the other hand I can tell you what my experience was when I moved there which might help.

When I first came over here I had to do a week of orientation when I was told about living and teaching in China and I had to demonstrate a lesson. Then I was given my placement and I didn't like the sound of it. Not at all. The write-up provided by the previous teacher made Baiyin sound like a hellish place to live. Reluctantly, I agreed to the posting and flew up to Gansu province. The ride from the airport - ninety minutes through bleak desert - did nothing to reassure me. The first sight of my apartment, and even moreso of the horrible grey concrete stairwell convinced me that I was now in Hell on Earth.

And then I went into my apartment and I was suddenly much happier. Apartments vary but that apartment was the best furnished of all the ones I've lived in in the last four years. I settled into the apartment and over the next few weeks got to know the city. It cannot, it has to be said, be described as beautiful. It's an ordinary, industrial city in the middle of a desert. It is never going to be an oasis of loveliness. There's pollution from the factories and occasional sandstorms. With that said I discovered quickly that while it might not have everything I would have liked, it certainly had everything I needed. There were good shops, more great restaurants than I could count, plenty of  bars and pool halls and even a cinema that usually had one English film.

Above all that though, the people and the schools were friendly and helpful and I quickly started to enjoy my life there. I even got a girlfriend.

At the end of the year, when I was asked to stay on in the city, I did not take too much persuading. And I stayed for another year after that. When I left to come to Yangshuo there were a number of reasons but none of them had to do with the city or the schools, especially not to do with the people. I had by then made many Chinese friends who I was sad to say goodbye to. Living apart from my girlfriend has, of course, been a particular wrench.

Now, I'm not saying that everyone has the same experience. It's quite possible that people will be placed in situations that they just don't like for whatever reason. In situations that they genuinely can't tolerate. Some of my apartments haven't been of that standard, for example and sometimes the schools and administrators don't understand the expectations of western teachers, but my point is simple. I started out hating my posting and ended up not wanting to leave. Unless your situation is genuinely very bad, it's worth trying to stick with it and give it a chance.