As luck would have it, Tim and Coin's visit included a stop in Hangzhou to meet her cousin for the weekend, which suited me perfectly. Getting to Kunming is not easy and most of the time, expensive. Also, I was able ot combine the trip with a visit to my new school to sign some paperwork and get some details about the place.
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| Rainy evenings |
I was staying in a pretty decent hotel in the 'old town' pedestrian area of the city, about a 15-minute walk from the lake. It rained on and off the whole weekend, but it made for some pretty and cosy pictures.
I went and met my new boss, signed a mountain of paperwork and was given a tour of the campus. It looks to be more like KFLS and completely different to what I am doing now, which, in my current frame of mind, can only be a good thing. I will be teaching G10 11 12 a range of essay writing, literature and AP Language and Composition. I have basically been given free rein to teach whatever I fancy, but within reason. I am actually quite excited!
Because of the weather, I wasn't able to get to explore around the school too much, but after a quick 10-minute explore, I quite liked the vibe. It is different to the manicured shopping centre style I have now and has more of a local feel. Reminded me a lot of Kunming.
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| Tim Chris and I at the Lake |
Once Tim and Chris arrived, we went for dinner and a few too many drinks and made plans to walk around West Lake the next day.
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| Tim and I, Chris behind the camera. |
It was chilly and overcast but pleasant, we walked North to South before getting to the point we were hungry and more importantly thirsty. It is a huge lake and so just walking half of it took us several hours, of course we weren't exactly walking quickly and kept getting distracted by ducks and temples.
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| Our shop/bar |
After our stroll, we went in search of the first place that came up when I searched "craft beer", which turned out to be less of a bar and more of a shop with a small table. The girl was friendly and even made Chris a fire when he got too cold. We sampled several beers and then went to meet Tim's mates for dinner at a highly rated Italian place.
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| Italian stairs |
From there we went to a small bar which we were assured was a quiet and chilled place, little did we know it was the owner's birthday and he had gone all out. DJ, buffet, drinks, the works. He is a Filipino guy who got so excited with my rave reviews from the Spring Festival and my drinking red horse. He was a lot of fun and very accommodating.
In general, I am now looking forward to my move to Hangzhou and am more convinced than ever that I am making the right decision. I just have to make it through the next 11 weeks at work and I am free.
