Chinese Bloggers

Ok guys, this is my new blog. I feel a little cliched through getting one of these set up, but I really think it's the best way to keep you all informed on my progress here and let you see some photos of this truly amazing country without constantly bothering you with group emails or repeating myself every time I want to chat to you all.

Should anyone here be reading this who doesn't know me, I'll give you a little background...

My name is David, 24, from Stourbridge in the West Midlands, United Kingdom. After a year and a half messing around in a job that wasn't taking me where I wanted to go I decided to get radical and do something to turn my life around and get it moving in the right direction. This will involve a return to university life as a dietetics student, but before all that I wanted to take this opportunity to do something that I have wanted to do for a long time...namely, heading off to see the world as an English teacher.

So I began making arrangements. I quit the job, enrolled on a CELTA (Certificate of English Language Teaching to Adults) course and began looking for jobs. The course was hardcore and only let me have an average 4-5 hours sleep a night, but at the same time was truly amazing and taught me more than I'll ever possibly use. It gave me the confidence and reassurance in my capability as a teacher to allow me to embark on this adventure but best of all I met some great people and made some good friends. I left with a Pass B and was all set to go.

Now, many people have asked me about my choice of destination - China. Well, one answer is - if not now, then when? The issue was never about whether I would go to China - visiting this country has been an aim for a long time - but more about timing, convenience and opportunity.

And that opportunity is now. Having reached an end in all that tied me down to one situation, and having not yet started all that would tie me to another, I saw this as my only real chance to leave it all behind and head off halfway around the world.

So I did.

China, with all it's history, culture, unique identity and mystery combined with it's rapid development and the importance it will play in the future has always been an attraction for me. And how else could I really get to know the country than by living and working there? I love languages and always knew I'd enjoy teaching English as a foreign language. Finally I made it happen.

I found an agency on the internet, the Buckland group (www.bucklandgroup.org), based in Yangshuo, Guangxi Province, that seemed to offer a good safety net for teachers that they placed along with all the provisions that I required. I applied, was accepted, and before I knew it, I was off on a plane to China.

The rest of this site details what followed. Read on.