Well, here I am in China, in Gansu Province at Longdong University. I'm very surprised at how well I've adapted to such a different situation than in Australia. The road trip from Xian airport was really long, and basically hanging on for dear life with NO seatbeat, and Chinese drivers are just plain scary, I tell you, but they seem to know what they're doing!!

I'm very happy with my apartment- I have brand new furniture with a beautiful wardrobe and television stand and have a computer totally in Chinese, but at least I can use Word now and the internet. I've been out shopping for food and essentials that were overlooked in the apartment- major stares from all the Chinese but they are just so sweet. I cannot communicate with them, but with some miming actions I was even able to get the correct bucket for mopping that I wanted. I've met a couple of the other ESL teachers here and they are wonderful, so helpful and they took me to lunch yesterday (all up 10.5 yuan) and we bought some yams for dinner from a streetside man, which was delicious.

The main amusing aspect is my bathroom which is in the toilet, so showering is a major contortion act! I haven't yet tackled washing my hair yet so heaven knows how this will go! The wonderful thing is how safe it is, especially as a lone female here. The Chinese appear to love having me here and respect me and want to go out of their way to help. Getting back to safety- I left one of the other teachers apartments at 11pm last night and walked back to mine on my own- I would never in my life do this back home!

There's so much more I could say, but this will do for now- the next challenge will be teaching!

Songbird

____________________________________________________________________________

Reply by: Sweet melody

1. Chinese drivers on the whole do not know what they are doing. The concept of motorised vehicular traffic is a relatively new one for the majority of drivers here and they drive in a manner that shows they are oblivious to the serious consequences of vehicular collision at even low speeds. I know of 6 foreigners who have been sent home to their countries of origin as a result of injuries incurred in 2 separate car accidents here - both involving taxis by the way -and I do not know that many foreigners here. This country has proportionally one of the highest rates of death and injury due to road accident in the world and this is a direct result of their ignorant and cavalier approach to driving.

If you are in a taxi that is being driven dangerously yell "MAN YI DIANR! MAN YI DIANR" (slow down!); better still yell "TING CHE, TING CHE" (stop!) , then get out and find a responsible driver (and there are some). If you are in a private car do the same. Your life and limbs are worth far more than the 2 dollars you will forfeit, or even the 50 dollars you will forfeit if you happen to be en route from whatever airport to whereever.

If and when you get in a car and a fool of a driver tells you not to wear the seatbelt, wear it anyway, though please note that particularly in taxis, you should carry a towel or something to protect your clothes from the filth on the seatbelt that has accumulated owing to it never having been used, and one would perhaps be dubious as to whether these things would restrain you in a collision anyway. Finding a safer driver is always the best way to go.

2.The people here are strangely ignorant of many fundamental safety issues and particularly those that pertain to electricity and the consequences of electric shock. If you have any electrical outlets around wet areas such as your shower or near your kitchen sink - and i'm willing to bet that you have - make sure they are turned off, cover them completely with waterproof electrical tape, and don't even think about using them.

3. Common and sexual assault is very common in this country. I am not a belligerent person but have had no shortage of personal experience of the former, as will many foreign males who have been here for any length of time. Sexual assault of foreign females is also far from infrequent, and although admittedly this usually involves "just" a groping in a bar or on a bus, sexual attack of a far more serious nature is not uncommon in this huge country where there is little chance of discovery for the predators responsible.

4. China is a wonderful country and for the most part you will be treated with the kindness and respect that you would be hard pressed to find anywhere else in the world. Make the most of your time here and you will garner experience that can enrich your life in abstract as well as material ways.

Just don't be complacent chickybabe; this is still real life.