Mike In China

Ok, so I am not currently being as diligent with updating my blog as some people have requested. SORRY. However, I also know for a fact that many people aren't being very diligent with reading my blog so I don't want to overwhelm them (plus I'm a working man now and I'm busy). I am currently looking for another part time job to earn some more money so I can live it up and travel while I'm here. This past weekend was fun, we were much more successful finding a place where there were actually people. We went to a bar named Windows to meet some of our fellow teachers and it was decent. They played hip hop music and it was a mix of locals and foreigners. The initial plan was to go to a club that had a 70 kuai cover charge and then drinks were a max of 3 kuai. Pablo and I decided to go check that out with a guy Craig from Canada (fellow teacher). We went and it was down these stairs on an empty street and if there wasn't another cab of foreigners getting out in front of us we probably would have gone back to Windows. It ended up being a really cool place. Same thing with a mix of foreigners and locals but the place seemed much more "classy." It is hard to describe the difference between the two but I liked the second place much more. While sipping on a beer we suddenly found ourselves in the middle of an MC BATTLE?! It was some special night with two MC's that started battling on stage in English. I'm talking mother fuckin' 8 Mile style! It was definitely not what I expected to be doing on a Saturday night in Shanghai. The place was pretty cool and I hope we go back. My weeks are pretty much the same but I will share some funny stories and post some funny pictures. So, everyday in my 1st Grade class I start by saying, my name is Michael, what is your name? And the students look like they are having spaz attacks raising their hands for me to call on them. I called on one of the boys who always is SUPER excited about getting to say, my name is, and then his name and waited to hear his normal correct response. However, in their other English class they must have learned the words "I like" that day and the poor boy confused "my name is" with "I like." Because I knew the boys name I knew where this was going.... The young boy yelled out, with a big shit grin on his face while jumping up and down "I LIKE DICK." I had to pause class for awhile to laugh by myself. Another story, my cab driver today found out I was American and made me change to the front seat so I could have a Chinese lesson. It was a lot of fun and he did a great job teaching me some very useful Chinese words to use while in a cab. He didn't speak English very well but got his point across. While trying to come up with different words he knew in English he got very excited that he could say to me "big breasts" and while driving did made the motions with his hands on his chest imitating "big breasts." Good for you Chinaman, go get an American woman with your vast knowledge of the language. Announcement: Although these trends my not be making a resurgence in the US, China is doing its best to bring them back; the fannypack, little boys with rat tails, and anything NSYNC or Backstreet Boys from the late 90's. Finally I will leave you with some funny signs.