The pre-school I have been working at has been open in Datong for 2 years. They just built and opened the kindergarten this year. Jack and Michael just entered into the venture with their Chinese partners earlier this year, so I do believe many of these things were a surprise or a battle for them as well. But many of these things are because it's China and that's how it works. I want to be clear, it's not that I couldn't handle China....I just like to feel like I am being honest. And, I didn't feel like I was able to be honest while in China. I was being honest about all of my trips, travels, loves and disasters while I was there. All of my adventures are real and were as weird and fun as they sounded they would be! But there were a few things looming that I didn't feel comfortable sharing until I was home.
1. I was not working at the kindergarten as promised. And, the kindergarten wasn't getting the enrollment expected due to the high price of the school. I was starting to not trust we would have the enrollment needed. Plus, I was walking 40 minutes to work every AM.
2. I was told that Jessica and I would have our own apartment 1 month after I got here. It was almost 3 months after I got here. We had a male roommate and they moved in 8 (EIGHT) Chinese teachers in to share 1 bathroom with Jessica and I. We didn't have warm water or drinkable water for the first 10 days we were in our new apartment.
3. There was not management at the school I was working at. They removed Jack and Michael from having any responsibility at the Romp 'n Roll where I was working and left 2 teaching managers in charge of everything. But didn't actually give them any power or training to do their job.
4. We were paid 10x's the amount of the Chinese teachers. This is normal in this profession, however, it was the theatrics around this that was upsetting. The man who was in charge of paying us (Mr. Hu) would pay us in front of everyone so as to show how much more we were making than them. With the exchange rate, it doesn't amount to a ton of US money but in Datong; it's a huge difference. And, it was in cash.
5. I was never legally working in China. I didn't know this would be the case until I got there. Maybe this is naivete on my part or maybe it's just not understanding how the process works. But, in my first week (while living with Rachel) we were discussing visa's and she quipped "well, we all knew we were coming here illegally...I've been illegal for 6 months. It's not ok but it's how they work here." I almost died. My SIL repeatedly told me "don't do anything to get arrested while you are there" and I laughed because that is kind of a mantra I live by, in general. But here I was...doing something that could very easily get me arrested or kicked out of the country at the very least.
5a. Due to being illegal, I had to run down the back stairs of the school twice because "the government is coming" and go hide at a nearby cafe until we got the all clear to come back to the building. RUNNING DOWN THE BACK STAIRS. It's hard to convince people after that, that what we are doing is ok and legal.
5b. Even if I finished my visa and residency permit process, I wouldn't be legal to be working the job I was working because they didn't have the proper permits to employ foreign teachers. They were "working on them" but didn't have them. So, I would have to go to a meeting with the government and, essentially, lie about where I was living and working.
I will say that I loved much of the culture, the people, the history and the actual job I was doing but I couldn't ethically continue working where I was working. Even if that is just how China works. For me, China was a great place to visit and a great place to find out a lot about myself in a few short months. However, it was not the place for me to call home as I planned for 2 years. I've been having a great time surprising family and friends. I've already eaten my way through many of the horrible foods I have missed.
If I haven't seen or talked to you yet, let's make a date!