He Yuan, not to be confused with Ge Yuan

No, I haven’t forgotten how to post. Or write. It’s called 拖延 or tuoyán, Mandarin for “procrastination,” plus a bunch of other words I don’t feel like looking up (preparing for final exams, shopping, freelancing, career planning) because I’m too busy procrastinating.

Anyway, here are some shots from two recent side trips — one to He Yuan, a beautiful home and garden, like Ge Yuan, in Yangzhou, and one to Dong Quan Men, an alley lined with shops and restaurants in the old city. On one wall at He Yuan hangs what looks like an old class photo with a young Mao, who visited.

Before I forget, everyone chant with me: Li Na! Li Na! Li Na! Li Na! At age 29, she broke through and gave China its first Grand Slam tennis title, winning the French Open. Cool. Extra sweet because she beat two screamers — Maria Sharapova and Francesca Schiavone, who punctuate every shot by yelling — in the semis and final.

Hers is an interesting story of breaking away from both her husband as a coach and the Chinese government’s sports system, thanks to an experimental reform policy.

Oh, and happy Dragon Boat Festival, everyone. The zong zi, a glutinous rice dumpling wrapped in bamboo or corn stalk leaves, is to die for. Shaped like small pyramids, they’re filled with all sorts of things — red beans, chestnuts, pork fat, meat and, of course, the ever-popular golden yolk of a salted duck egg.

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The deal

There are two parts: the standard contract for foreign workers and the all-important “appendix” that specifies what I’ll be doing, for how much and for how long. The standard contract, as provided by the State Administration of Foreign Experts Affairs for China, outlines the basic obligations for Party A (the school) and Party B (me).

For example, “Party A shall provide Party B with necessary working and living conditions.” And “Party B shall observe relevant laws and regulations of the People’s Republic of China and shall not interfere in China’s internal affairs.”

The contract appendix says I get:

• 4,500 yuan per month (at the current exchange rate, that comes to the, uh, modest sum of $662.40 per month);
• 1,100 yuan “tour subsidy” — traveling money — after each of the two academic terms;
• $1,200 U.S. reimbursement for getting to China and back, to be paid at the end of the year (enough to cover the cheapest flights, from what I can see);
• a furnished flat with a bedroom, bathroom, sitting room and kitchen, phone, Internet connection, AC, TV, washing machine, microwave, fridge and “induction cooker;”
• utilities, TV and Internet;
• medical insurance;
• holidays off — Christmas (two days), New Year’s Day, Spring Festival (three days), Ching Ming Festival (one), Labor Day, Dragon Boat Festival (one), Mid-Autumn Festival (one), National Day (three).

My tasks:

• Teach 16 classes per week, each class lasting 45 minutes, with 25-30 students per class (five-day work week includes teacher work day Saturday, and I get Sunday and Monday off);
• Teach advanced English writing course for Chinese teachers of English (I can already hear the snickering from some reporters);
• Help organize “off-class” activities such as English Corner and English Speech Contest.

If I leave work without permission or am “slack in work on purpose,” I can be fined two days’ pay for each day missed. The government also can fine me ($800 to $3,000 U.S.) for breach of contract.

It’s safe to say I won’t be coming back with a boatload of yuan, but the money isn’t bad for someone with no teaching experience or TEFL certificate. And the cost of living in China is still low in many respects — a buck or two U.S. gets you a meal in the fried rice capital of the world. I see this as a break-even deal, which suits me fine in exchange for the experience of living in China. In theory.

More to come.