Today we had the privilege to meet with teachers from many rural areas who traveled specifically to meet for the first time with a foreign teacher. Many of these teachers of English have not yet had the opportunity to ever speak English with a native speaker, so I was honored to share this with them. They were bubbling over with questions and so anxious to hear my perspective on any new insight to improve their current teaching methods. I have to say it was quite overwhelming to be regarded this highly and once again I felt much like a celebrity, as many of them wanted individual photographs with me and asked me to sign their notebooks.
Our group has really enjoyed our stay in Xi'an, but it is time to pack our bags again and travel eastward to Changzhou via overnight train tomorrow night. Most of us are looking forward to the experience despite the fact that we know we may not sleep very much! I'm not sure how adventurous I will feel or how close I will get to the dining car, but I am looking forward to seeing more of "real China" via train.
How amazing to read that some of the English teachers have never had the opportunity to speak with a native English speaker. It makes me so thankful for our Spanish speaking interactions that we have around here. FYI H, you are totally a celebrity!! I'm glad that all is well.
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