My arrival in Anqing,after many exhausting hours of travel,was as welcoming as anyone could hope for.I was met first by Colin,who has done such an admirable job orienting me and handling my relations with the school here in Anqing.He took me out for a dinner where I was able to try several foods I'd never even thought about eating!

I arrived later than I would have liked,just before National Day,so I got to spend a lot of time exploring the city and learning about the people with whom I would live.I attended the school's September Sport Meeting and tried very hard to learn a few of my pupils' names!There are so many good athletes!

Later in the week,the Headmaster generously invited me and Ray,my fellow foreign teacher,to her home for a wonderful lunch,and we spent the day seeing some of Anqing's sights,like Zhen Feng Ta and Linghu Park.I was so impressed by how welcoming everyone was as I passed in the street,always smiling,always offering a friendly greeting!

Once the holiday was over,it was time for class!And what pupils they are!So many of the students have a greater command of English than I imagined.They are gifted and smart and it is a pleasure to teach them.As the weeks of class have come and gone,we have begun to understand each other better,and I am learning how to get the best response from our brief time together each week.Games,and reading,and mock conversations have offered the best results so far.Pictionary,in particular,where I draw a picture and they guess the word,has been a favorite.

Most recently,Ray and I were able to teach Grade 7 about carving a jack o'lantern from a pumpkin so they could use it to celebrate the Halloween weekend!They were so excitable and so eager to learn!I can’t wait to see what the rest of the year has in store for us all at Anqing Foreign Language School!