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| China Horizons Ltd. Co. is a Limited Liability Company. |
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| China Horizons Ltd. Co. is a Limited Liability Company. |
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| What an experience this has been. There's truly nothing like it! When we first arrived, our school was about nine hours late on picking us up from Shanghai. We were a little nervous because we didn't have a phone number for them, it was our first time being in China, and we didn't speak any of the language. They did eventually pick us up and the next few days were kind of the same. We didn't know what we were supposed to do; they hadn't given us a schedule and didn't do so until the night before we taught. When we got our schedule, we were informed that we would be teaching ages 2-18 instead of 12-16 like we'd been told. Things were a little bit rocky at the beginning and we were questioning ourselves as to what we had been thinking when we came to China. Home sickness definitely started creeping in the first few days. After we began teaching, we realized the purpose of our journey to China in the first place was to help the children learn English so they could have a better life and we could gain different experiences in the process. It turned out to be a blessing that we had all ages and not just ages 12-16. This age group is our toughest by far and we absolutely love the older and younger kids. The kindergartens (ages 2-6) are some of our favorite classes! They are so cute. We have a lot of free time and because we are in a tiny town, there isn't a whole lot to do. We have discovered that taking walks to different places is one of our new favorite pass times. The people are so wonderful to us and instead of getting mad when we walk through their field (like a lot of farmers in America do), they love it and almost feel honored to have a foreigner walking through their field! We love getting out and mingling with the people. Each time we do we are offered at least some sort of food and most of the time they just want us to come have dinner with them (even though we can't speak to much to them). We actually have a favorite fruit lady, as we call her; we go into her shop every couple weeks to buy a bunch of fruit and she is always so sweet to us and has never tried to rip us off. She lights up every time she sees us coming to her store again. This is just one example of the wonderful friends we enjoy making constantly. Everyone is your best friend even if you can't talk to them! The food was a little different and we had a little bit of difficulty getting used to it at the very beginning, but now we love most of the food. They have so many different kinds of vegetables, fruits, breads, and ways of cooking these that we have really come to love it! If you can get passed the way things look, or the fact that pigs and chicken feet are served so frequently, the food really is wonderful. At the beginning we didn't like a lot of the food, but after being here for a while we decided to retry a lot of it. We have come to love a lot of the foods we thought we hated at the beginning. We have definitely have taken all opportunity we can to travel. This has been one of the best decisions we've made since coming to China. China is full of different cultures and so much history! We never knew a 1/100th of what we now about China. Each area not only has different cultures, sights, and histories, but even the food is different in each place! We have had so many wonderful experiences while traveling and would definitely suggest to everyone that comes to take time and be willing to spend a little money to tour the different areas! There definitely will be times of homesickness; we haven't met anyone yet that can say they haven't been homesick from time to time. We've found that the best way to get out of these ruts is to emerge ourselves in the culture and to stay busy. We suggest bringing lots of books and other light projects. You will have lots of free time because you only teach 18-20 hours a week. If you are willing to get out and forget about a language barrier, the kids, teachers, and anyone else will always be happy to have you join them in their different activities. There will always be things that are hard to deal with in any new place, but if you give these places a chance and learn to live and think as they think, people from different cultures don't seem so alien anymore. They really are real people who think and act the same way we do! Over all we have really loved our China experience and would and will suggest it to anyone who is willing to get out of their comfort zone. We promise that if you have a good attitude and the right desire, you will be changed for the better! Terry Bitton and Sara Wiegman Tongcheng, Anhui, China Fall 2007 |
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China Horizons Website
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Why go to China?
I had no idea it would be the best, most fun learning experience of my life! It
was amazing. If I could sum it up in one word, I'd say Priceless.
It's a whole different world. You come to love their strange way of living, that
seems weird to us, but works for them. The food, the sights, the smells, the
feeling, the noise; I miss it all! More than anything I miss their faces. I miss
the sweet smiles of all my students, whom I will never forget. No matter what
age, they will teach you so much more than you will teach them. They will
teach you to be humble and kind; to be respectful and hardworking. They
will give you an enthusiasm for learning. They will give you a greater
appreciation for your own country and life. You will grow to love them.
Will it be easy? Yes, and at the same time, NO! It is very easy to grow to
love the people, but some of the experiences there can be tough. It is a
difficult and challenging vacation. It's an adventure. It's a journey.
Sometimes I'd feel inadequate and ineffective as a teacher, but then they'd
thank me for all that I was teaching them. Mostly we learned how to be
happy. We taught each other that.They showed me how blessed I was, and I
showed them how special they were.
I love and miss them so much, but I still get to talk to some of them through
email. I hope I can go back someday.
GO to China.
You will never forget this experience.
They will never forget you.
Here's an email from one of my students "Anna"...but she says, "Ama":
--------------
Dear Tricia
Now many of our teachers are new. There are new teachers to replace you,
but not the foreign instructors. She is a beautiful woman, she let us talk
about your feelings. We feel as if you are still our side, it felt really wonderful.
Every day we almost always think you once. Can you feel it? Time flies
quickly, but we feel you are still around us. Students often mention you, that
they would like to see you again, but would like to know all of you in the
United States.We do hope that we can meet again. We hope that you and
your family can be happy. This is a very happy for us. I will tell my students
that you miss us very much! We will miss you very much!
Ama
Tricia Packer
Linyi, Shandong, China
Winter 2008
I had no idea it would be the best, most fun learning experience of my life! It
was amazing. If I could sum it up in one word, I'd say Priceless.
It's a whole different world. You come to love their strange way of living, that
seems weird to us, but works for them. The food, the sights, the smells, the
feeling, the noise; I miss it all! More than anything I miss their faces. I miss
the sweet smiles of all my students, whom I will never forget. No matter what
age, they will teach you so much more than you will teach them. They will
teach you to be humble and kind; to be respectful and hardworking. They
will give you an enthusiasm for learning. They will give you a greater
appreciation for your own country and life. You will grow to love them.
Will it be easy? Yes, and at the same time, NO! It is very easy to grow to
love the people, but some of the experiences there can be tough. It is a
difficult and challenging vacation. It's an adventure. It's a journey.
Sometimes I'd feel inadequate and ineffective as a teacher, but then they'd
thank me for all that I was teaching them. Mostly we learned how to be
happy. We taught each other that.They showed me how blessed I was, and I
showed them how special they were.
I love and miss them so much, but I still get to talk to some of them through
email. I hope I can go back someday.
GO to China.
You will never forget this experience.
They will never forget you.
Here's an email from one of my students "Anna"...but she says, "Ama":
--------------
Dear Tricia
Now many of our teachers are new. There are new teachers to replace you,
but not the foreign instructors. She is a beautiful woman, she let us talk
about your feelings. We feel as if you are still our side, it felt really wonderful.
Every day we almost always think you once. Can you feel it? Time flies
quickly, but we feel you are still around us. Students often mention you, that
they would like to see you again, but would like to know all of you in the
United States.We do hope that we can meet again. We hope that you and
your family can be happy. This is a very happy for us. I will tell my students
that you miss us very much! We will miss you very much!
Ama
Tricia Packer
Linyi, Shandong, China
Winter 2008
For several years I had wanted to live in China. In 2007 I searched out a
few different agencies that helped send people to China to teach English.
Most of them looked pretty good, but I never got a great feeling from any of
them, until I found China Horizons. Everything they offered and represented
was exactly what I was looking for. Jacob just bent over backwards to help
me out and get me all ready to go to China. He was extremely personable
and was willing to do anything to help.
I taught at Anhui University in Hefei. I loved teaching my students. I was a
little apprehensive at first knowing I would be teaching college students, but
quickly found myself feeling right at home in the classroom. I made my
share of mistakes and had a few classes that didn’t go as planned, but the
students were just always so willing and excited to learn that all of those
potentially awkward situations were easily adverted. Teaching was fun, it
was exciting, and of course it took some work, but it was the best job I have
ever had, by far. The school treated me with a great deal of respect and did
literally everything they could to make sure I was happy, comfortable, and
satisfied.
My China experience was life changing. Living in China for six months
changed my life in so many ways. I think differently, I have more confidence,
I am more independent, and appreciative of life, just to name a few. Every
day I am reminded of something from China that has considerably changed
the way I look at life. I was also lucky enough to make so many amazing
friends. Friends I will keep in touch with for years to come.
I love China, and am so grateful I had the chance to spend time living there.
Being a teacher in China taught me far more than I ever was able to teach
any of my students. It was a memorable experience and is one of those
events that significantly helps define who I am!
Spencer A. Streeter
Hefei, Anhui, China
Winter 2008
few different agencies that helped send people to China to teach English.
Most of them looked pretty good, but I never got a great feeling from any of
them, until I found China Horizons. Everything they offered and represented
was exactly what I was looking for. Jacob just bent over backwards to help
me out and get me all ready to go to China. He was extremely personable
and was willing to do anything to help.
I taught at Anhui University in Hefei. I loved teaching my students. I was a
little apprehensive at first knowing I would be teaching college students, but
quickly found myself feeling right at home in the classroom. I made my
share of mistakes and had a few classes that didn’t go as planned, but the
students were just always so willing and excited to learn that all of those
potentially awkward situations were easily adverted. Teaching was fun, it
was exciting, and of course it took some work, but it was the best job I have
ever had, by far. The school treated me with a great deal of respect and did
literally everything they could to make sure I was happy, comfortable, and
satisfied.
My China experience was life changing. Living in China for six months
changed my life in so many ways. I think differently, I have more confidence,
I am more independent, and appreciative of life, just to name a few. Every
day I am reminded of something from China that has considerably changed
the way I look at life. I was also lucky enough to make so many amazing
friends. Friends I will keep in touch with for years to come.
I love China, and am so grateful I had the chance to spend time living there.
Being a teacher in China taught me far more than I ever was able to teach
any of my students. It was a memorable experience and is one of those
events that significantly helps define who I am!
Spencer A. Streeter
Hefei, Anhui, China
Winter 2008
