TeamWaWa and their crazy adventures

When we first thought of moving to China, we had read ALOT of blogs and websites. Some were positive and others not so much. We hadn't been to Asia before and aren't big history buffs. This post is dedicated to spreading the word that the places in China we've seen are clean. Yes, we've seen people peeing outside. Yes, Chinese people spit in the streets. But, the sanitation workers are out there picking up trash and gum. Yes, they scrape the gum off the sidewalks! Trash bins are everywhere. The roads are washed too. #chinaisclean

As we walk almost everywhere, we've noticed there are a lot of nice cars in Changzhou. Interesting that so many can afford to 1) drive in China and 2) Own such nice cars. I mean...Come on... We had really nice jobs in the US and still didn't own some of these cars. #jealous And, we regularly see vehicles this nice and some nicer. Here's some pics during our walks.

Happy Chinese New Year. Couldn't have asked for a better time visiting the Tianning Pagoda and Temple. It was amazing to see all the offerings and prayers by the Chinese people. May 2017 be prosperous for you and your loved ones!

When you were younger and your teacher or parents asked "What do you want to be when you grow up", the typical answers are Doctor, Lawyers, Nurses. I don't remember what my response was to that question. In fact, if you asked me right now, I wouldn't be able to answer it. My ideal job is one where I can do nothing and become a millionaire! An independently wealthy person. But, since that's not possible, let's focus on teaching. I thought about adjunct teaching a few years ago. It seemed like a lot of work for little pay. So that was crossed off the list of jobs matching my skillset. Alas, I am teaching. Teaching in China! I will attempt to answer as many of your questions as possible. 1) What are you doing? Teaching English at the Shane School in Changzhou China. 2) What makes you qualified to teach? Well, according to the Chinese government,  I am a foreign expert. But, really, since I have a Bachelors Degree and a native English speaker...

It's 1/13/2017. It's Friday the 13th!! What have we been up to? A lot of walking! Yes, we walk roughly 6-10 miles a day. That took a few days to get used to. Want to go to the store? Put your coat and shoes on and walk! Some things that are taking awhile to adjust to here in China: 1) Taking your leftovers home is an extra 1 yuan. You are paying for the plastic dish. 2) Grocery bags are extra. Remember to bring your own to save some change. 3) Labels. We do not read Chinese. If the label doesn't have a picture or English subtext, we don't buy it. Who knows what it could be. 4) Bathrooms. Remember to bring your own tissue with you when you leave to go out. Most places do not have TP to use. Also, 99% of bathrooms are squat toliets. Just get used to it. 5) Lack of personal space. Chinese people don't understand the need to have space. They basically stand on top of you. 6) Lack of heat indoors.  Forget wearing cute tops.  Your jacket is on until you go to bed...

Hello friends and family! We had been in China for about a week when we started this posting. Speed up to now 9 months in China. Finally, we are getting around to posting this. Looking back on our time here so far and what we have utilized, wished for, and finally broke down and purchased, here are some things we wish were suggested and/or provided to help make the transition smooth. So below you find a little Expat Start-Up Kit blog post. 1) Electric Kettle - This was one of the first things we purchased. With us being unable to consume China's tap water, we boil a kettle each morning. This is used to fill our water bottles, make instant noodles, and for morning coffee. We are finding this to be a must have. 2) Bus Pass - We walked everywhere for the first 3 months. We enjoy walking so it  has not really been an issue. However, the pavement is terrible when it rains, and this summer's heat was unbearable. Most bus trip are 1 Yuan each way (when paying with cash) or O.60 Y...

Okay, we'very finally got some time to post about our apartment. The welfare officer took us to 3 apartments. Each of these were 2 bedrooms. I guess she felt that since we were American we would want a lot of space. The first apartment we were shown also had and office. All of the apartments came furnished, but definite difference in cleanliness. We picked the 3rd apartment. It was a newer building and very clean. It included a flat screen TV! Not that we have cable though. We like it and really that is all that matters. With our extra bedroom that means family can come visit!

Some may find this as an odd post; bathroom fears. Please read on to figure out why I'm blogging about this. In the States, we each have a stall with a toliet and toliet paper. Sometimes if you are really lucky like in Von Maur you will have an entirely closed off stall. And when you are unlucky, you will get a stall with no TP. Well...Let's talk about China. Troughs and squat toliet are the norm. Sometimes there's not even a partition. Or in the case of Walmart in Wanda Plaza you do have a stall with a clean squat toliet. You won't have TP and you don't flush the TP. My fears include getting my feet all dirty or missing the hole and splashing my pants. Those are fears for semi to private ones. What about just open ones? I realize that I am the foreigner and this is normal to the natives. But until I've fully adapted to China Life, I think I will hunt out the Western toliets. Thank goodness my apartment and the Starbucks have them.

Hi everyone! We officially arrived in China around 730p 12/29 local time (remember China is currently 13 hours ahead of US EST). We made our way through immigration which was very intimidating.  Our welfare officer was there to meet us. Because we arrived later than expected we missed the bullet train. We had to take a bus to the railway in Shanghai and get on the 'slow train'. 2 hours on the slow train to then take a taxi to our hotel. We got to the hotel on Friday at 1a. We needed to be ready by 830a to get our traveler health check done. Friday was such a crazy day with the hospital check, getting phones set up, looking at apartments. Saturday we moved into our apartment. It's a really nice apartment considering what most of China has available. It was a very stressful couple days. We will blog more about some of our experiences like the bus almost cutting Matt in half. But, just to let all our friends and family know, we are safe and still alive. We are slowly...very s...