> Paul,

> Interesting to read about your experiences. It is very familiar to
> me, this thing. I have seen many teachers come to China, and there is
> a pattern. (My company even has this in the training manual.)

> First there is the 'honeymoon'. Everything is new and exciting. This
> slowly wears off and from about 10 weeks to 3 months comes the second
> phase. This is the 'rejection' phase. People start to miss their home
> culture. Everything here seems stupid and dirty. People are often
> lonely as they haven't the friends they had back home. The language
> is often frustrating.

> IF you can get over this phase then things start to improve. YOu meet
> new people and make new friends, you adapt to the way of life and
> generally settle down and start to pick up some of the lingo.

> By the end of a year most people feel quite at home and comfortable
> here.

> Your school though, sounds pretty severe. Please don't think that is
> the norm. The lack of freedom for the teachers, does this apply to yo
> as well?

> Schools have a responsibility to look after their 'foreigners' and
> they will have a world of trouble if you have major problems, or an
> accident (over and above losing one of their teachers). Hence many
> schools try and limit where and when the teachers can go (out). This,
> of course, creates many problems, as we are not accustomed to this.
> If this applies to you, you need to speak to the boss and tell him
> this isn't in your contract! (Unless it is of course!!)

> Anyway, stick in there, and if you stay in China for another year I
> would find a school which isn't such a grim place! (Well, it sounds
> bad from here!)

Hi, my sympathy to your first impression in China. The reason: Lacking of communication!
I studied French language and literature in 1965-1970. The first books, La Langue et la civilization francaise, had given me lots of practicle information. That was 20 years ago. In 1994, I went to West Europe the first time, I was so at home with the sceneries and the streets. So, to avoid culture shock, you have to be prepared for it. As they say: "When in Rome, do as the Romans do." In China, I did the same thing. I went to Xinjiang in Kashi and Urumqi, before I went, I learnt some useful sentences in Vigur(vi'ur), I felt no shock at all, instead, an old lady guided me all around in her part of the city.
Alex