Thursday Come Early

This morning I had a new class: another public school, fairly early in the morning, thought not insanely so like the other one.

I was pleasantly surprised; the school wasn't too far away, the grounds were nice, and the students were actually at a higher level than any other students I currently teach. On my first day they got into an argument on the merits of rap music and demanded I teach them Spanish instead of English.

The only problem is the lack of resources. So far all the public schools I've seen have been clean and air-conditioned, but other than a blackboard and chalk I have nothing to work with. In the lower levels it's ok, but when things get more advanced and listening/speaking becomes a big part, half the textbook is unusable because I don't have a stereo.

Then Vietnamese class and to Cleverlearn to teach the kids about Halloween. I brought them some candy but they rejected it as being too cheap. Snobs!

Down With Wednesday

Another early morning - 6th grade this time, though they're usually easier to handle than my 8th graders.

It's fairly obvious which textbooks were written by Vietnamese and which were written by Americans. The American ones usually assume a familiarity with American culture that is completely unwarranted (one chapter on food concentrated largely on Cajun cuisine) while the Vietnamese ones have characters named Hoa and Nam rather than Tom or Alicia who live in Hue or Dalat instead of New York.

Another difference: this week I get to teach the chapter about Ho Chi Minh's Young Pioneers! Did you know the Young Pioneers help poor and sick people? And they embody the spirit of a unified Vietnam? I do now.

After class I headed over to Pho 2000, one of the few places I can eat watched over by a smiling Bill Clinton rather than Uncle Ho. The potato curry was quite nice after two straight months of eating their pho.

Then Vietnamese class, where we read a dialogue of two people 'at a party' accompanied by a photo of two people clearly standing in front of a post office.

Finally I saw 'Tropic Thunder' at Diamond Cinema with a friend. I wasn't sure if the Vietnamese would like it, since it's mainly a collection of character actors mugging and swearing loudly, but they seemed to enjoy it.

Two for Tuesday

Not a particularly eventful day. After Vietnamese class I taught at Cleverlearn, where my students - after learning about Halloween - noisily insisted that I bring them candy.

Although, i did read in the paper a triumphant announcement by the Prime Minister that Vietnam is 'winning the war on leprosy'. Go team!

A Week in the Life: A Case of the Mondays

The life of an English teacher, that is. So let's go right in...

Mondays are difficult for anyone, but mine especially since they begin at 6 AM. That's when I wake up so I can get to school at 7.

This is Duc Tri, a public school which my private language center sometimes provides with teachers (myself being one0. Today I teach 8th grade, which is more or less what you'd expect a third-world public school foreign language class to be like. i have no materials except the book, a marker, and a whiteboard. There are about 40 student sin the class so the ones at the back are far out of reach and the studious ones sit up front and answer everything.

This particular morning I arrive a few minutes early and go to my classroom to wait. Out in the school courtyard I can hear patriotic music combined with the sound of children marching and chanting, but the last time I tried to look out duringmorning patriotism one of the Vietnamese teachers dragged me away.

Today's lesson (I have two classes with the same lesson, one time a week) is on letter-writing, so I take them through headings, greetings, closings etc. I don't know if one-third of them understand the lesson, but I did my best.

after school I take the long, hot trek up Nguyen Trai to Pham Ngu Lao past Ben Than Market and finally ending up at the health club on Le Thanh Ton, where $40 a month buys use of the gym, showers, and sauna. Use the treadmill while watching CSI New York and then wash myself off so I can go to Vietnamese class a new man.

Before that, however, I'm feeling a bit curry-deprived so I head to Ganesh and splurge by spending $6 on their three-course set lunch. There are better and cheaper Indian restaurants to be found but this one is right across the street from the gym.

Vietnamese class is OK; for the fourth time in six weeks we have a new teacher. We only have a couple of weeks left so we're wrapping it up. My class has 12 students - nine Asians (from Taiwan, Korea, and Japan) and three Westerners including myself. There is one German and one Italian.

After we say our final 'chao co' a few of my classmates and I went to a small restaurant nearby and had some sour Korean xuc xich (sausage) and che, a Vietnamese dessert drink made with beans and sweet coconut milk, among other things.

Then home to watch check the pirate copy of 'The Lion King' I bought yesterday to see if it works. Not only does it work but it has only Spanish dubbing. my surprise increases when I realize that the same person who is Grandpa Simpson in the Mexican dub of 'The Simpsons' is the voice of Scar.

Salute Your Local PCCC

It must be Fireman Appreciation Month or something here in HCMC because those posters have been appearing everywhere.

Personally I find it hard to imagine a full-sized fire truck threading it's way through Saigon traffic in time to save a building; maybe they have smaller trucks. Or maybe the constant rain and humidity prevents fire by itself.

In a way it reminds of Crassus, the old Roman gangster who would set fires and then surround the building with toughs so that the fire brigade couldn't get in, and only step upside if the owner paid protection money. I wonder if a similar scheme runs here?

I do like the artwork though. I haven't seen even vaguely Realist public art in a long time. I don't know how effective it is but is does add character.