Last Monday was Arrival Day when more than 400 students descended on campus for their initial foray into TIP. We have more than 30 facilitators here now so we can hold two sessions at the same time, similar to what we do during summer. Peking University agreed to give us some more working rooms on campus (PTL), so for now, we all get to stay in Beijing. Yay! While we don’t all get to work together, we are on track to train nearly 5000 teachers this year!
Preston is facilitating Class F – a group of excited students who come from Yunnan, Qinghai and Shaanxi. Krista’s doing volunteer projects this session for TIP and church while managing household projects, e.g. cooking, cleaning and communicating.
The usual entrance interviews (Preston talk to 27 people himself ☺) and TIP orientation led to a successful first week. Plus, we are happy to say that some changes in the schedule mean we get off everyday right after dinner, at least in the short term. So stop feeling sorry for us, we no longer have meetings at 8:30 p.m.
Thursday and Friday were run of the mill days, except for the extensive cleaning job that we pulled off in between sessions. One of the areas of our room still needed a ceiling and wall scrub down. Now that the thick layer of dirt is gone, Krista is a little less concerned about what we are breathing.
We are happy to say that our students are enthusiastic and love to speak English – no matter their level. It has been fun getting to know them. And we are finding time to practice our Chinese, continue our morning walks in the park and read a fair amount. Life is a bit less hectic – thanks to the many prayers!
On Saturday, Krista enjoyed the morning visiting a hospice on the other side of town and talking at seniors there. Okay, we say “talking at,” since her Chinese understanding is minimal and their English was nonexistent. So it was a fun mix of laughing, smiling, translating and singing. The seniors were just happy to have visitors and hold hands. Afterward she had lunch with the volunteer team – and had fun connecting with other expats who call Beijing home.
Sunday after church, we had a relaxing lunch and visit with friends Laura and Peter at Annie’s, an Italian restaurant. It was gooda!
Now on to Act II.
1 comment:
How wonderful to have enthusiastic students! It must be because they have such great English teachers.
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