Sociology: Nighttime Sounds.

Boston: Gunshots. Police cars. Traffic. Women yelling at their deadbeat boyfriends about child support. Drunken singing.

Hradec Kralove: Fireworks.

Strange sightings.

A friend's post just reminded me of something I saw yesterday. I don't know how I forgot about it. I saw a young man around my age on the riverbank talking to a swan. Then he fed it half a sandwich. I guess I didn't know how to comprehend what was happening. They were just sitting there like two friends. I guess it's good to have a swan on your side; they're downright mean when it comes to a fight.

So Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, and St. Valentine are playing poker...

All my jokes are bad.

Anyway, I am finally done with classes and can relax for a couple weeks. Of course I'm not really relaxing because I'll be traveling to Budapest and around Czech. But aside from that, the week has ended on a positive note. While I resisted strangling certain troublemakers, most of the kids were pleasant. I even received some Christmas presents including chocolate, ornaments, and one very fine gimp lanyard. I feel special. 

And because I'm a sucker for adorable faces, I took class photos. The little kids are holding up their Christmas cards. The older students taught me how to say "Merry Christmas" in Czech, which is "Veselé Vánoce!" 

One of my favorite students is little Hounzii on the right. What are you doing being so small, Hounzii? It's just silly and adorable.

Double Trouble (but lovable) Adams

Sneaky sneaks Malinka and Tereza

Crazy children who are obsessed with receiving high fives.

While this group drives me crazy, they're super fun and smart.  Lovable scamps.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 

World didn't end.

Looks like I have to teach today after all.

Can You Just...Not...Speak?

Something I don't understand about certain people is the need to be around people all the time. Call me an anti-social loner but I really like my quiet time. Or at least sit around in comfortable silence with someone. I am not criticizing social people. Being social is great. I'm a fan of stringing together sentences and painting various cities and towns red (still thinking of a tag name). I think being social and talkative is equally as important. If you're too quiet, there is the possibility that you might be mute or have serious social anxiety issues in which case I suggest seeking professional help. I like small talk as much as the next person but I fairly certain there is a reason they don't call it big talk. Language geeks, what do they know, right?

What I want to know is: Is there a polite way to tell someone you don't want to see them for a week or two because you feel they are being overbearing? I don't want people to feel like they have to ask me how my dinner was (unless I'm doing something crazy exciting for dinner like eating a Bengal tiger or eating and sky diving at the same time). It's okay, dinner was dinner. Unless I die tomorrow, there will be more in my future and when those come to pass, it's still very unlikely that I will tell you what happens during those.

This is why I really enjoy Kristy's (flatmate for those of you who cannot keep up with my endlessly fascinating life) company. She reminds me of a lot of my closer friends back home. We are perfectly fine sitting together and not talking. We'll be reading, working, writing, whatever but it's never weird.

I think it's important for people to be alone and reflect. It makes your personality more 3D. If you're talking all the time, you're not doing much thinking.

On a lighter note, here's something funny:

Sidenote: This post excludes rants. Rants are welcome as long as I say they're welcome.

Plant Life.

It rains here in the Czech Republic. A lot. And snows. Maybe it's just the winter time but as Chelsea says, I am like a plant. Right now I just want to curl up and nap and not come out until the sun decides to come out.

I also got my 2nd Hep B vaccination today (out of three shots...yay fun balloons and carnivals and popcorn) and personally I think that's enough action for today. I would really love to just sit by my fake fireplace with a cup of coffee. I feel a little awkward when I mention that I have to get a Hepatitis B shot. I feel like I have to whisper it so people passing by don't stop and look at me like, "Whoa, hold on. YOU have to get a HEP B SHOT? You know that's like a sexually transmitted infection, right? Judgement, judgement, judgement, taboo, taboo, taboo, blah, blah, blah." While I know that's not the only way it's transmitted, I always assume people are extremely nosey and judgmental. Anyway, point is, shot received. I am 2/3 protected from that craziness.

As much as I would like to stay in with my cup of coffee, I'm this thing called an "adult" and "adults" have these things called "jobs". I actually won't mind today; the kids are pretty good.

It'll be so quiet when Kristy leaves tomorrow. I still have to finalize my plans for the break. I have to book my train ticket, pack, exchange money, etc. It'll be interesting traveling by myself. I usually have someone with me but I have to get used to it sometime, right? I won't be by myself in Budapest but I just hope that I don't run into any trouble getting there. Knowing me, I'll book a ticket to Budapest and then accidentally get on a train to Berlin. Well, you'll all find out soon enough.

Crawling to the holidays.

I just need to make it to Friday.

Tuesdays are always tough since they're my longest days and I am beyond exhausted by the time I get home. My fifth graders this morning were great. They had a lot of fun doing the Santa chain story. Once I got to sixth grade...let's just say they're not my favorite. There is one kid who tests my patience every single week. I don't understand kids like that. They just make your job hell. The rest of the kids are fine but there is just one demon catalyst. I know I must be patient but it's hard when you're exhausted. I don't want to yell. I hate yelling. I'd rather have fun. But the way I see this kid is that he's the Joker from Batman. Some men just want to see the world burn. I am always happy to make it to my afternoon English club classes. They make the job fun. Little Veronika even gave me another present: Ferrero Rocher. Yum. :)

I need to blow off some steam like crazy. I wish I brought my running sneakers but my suitcase was already full.

Until Christmas vacation begins, I have some small comforts to keep me sane:

1) A fireplace. Since the people I know with fireplaces live far away, I made one for me and Kristy.

 2) Pure hot chocolate (in Brno, but you can get it anywhere here which is not common in the States).

3) Silvie (my one adult student) and her daughter made fresh holiday cookies and gave me a big container to take home.

4) And I finally committed to a pair of slippers. They're very warm and fuzzy. :)

How Garfield feels about Mondays.

That's the way I feel about Tuesdays. It seems like it will never end and I have to maintain a high level of energy to entertain kids 6-12. Oy.

I start at 9 a.m. at one school trying to make sleepy and bored middle school kids fall in love with English. I think I'm pretty successful so far. I share an office with the three male gym teachers who are very nice and told me I have to hang out in the office more so they can teach me Czech swear words. I'm sure I'll pick it up from my students soon enough. Some of them already know English swear words. Around 11, I leave and have one hour to walk to the bus stop, which is a little bit of a walk from the school, catch the bus, grab lunch and run to the next school for afternoon classes where I need to have enough energy to last until 4 p.m. I decided to stop by this little Chinese restaurant Kristy has been telling me about so I grabbed some sort of chicken and noodle dish and ran out the door completely forgetting to grab a fork and napkins. I realized this once I got to the school and was so hungry I didn't care and started eating with my hands. I considered for a brief moment using my pens as chopsticks but decided against trying. I'm sorry I'm not the most lady-like all of the time. You try teaching kids for 7 hours and then tell me whether you will wait for a fork. And don't worry, I washed my hands before class.

A teacher was nice enough to lend me a spoon so I was able to eat more between one of my classes. I know I sound like a poor, starved college student all over again but I promise I'm healthy. Among all my books and papers I don't have room to store lunch on Tuesdays so I just grab something to go.

I am exhausted by my last class but I know I need to muster enough energy to entertain the last few kids so I harness the spirit of a second grade teacher I once knew (Mrs. Robinson) who was delightfully crazy and throw in a dash of various entertainers and I can just survive. Today was a nice surprise though because I got an early Christmas present from one of my second graders, Veronika, who loves to hug me and not let go.

She made it herself. :)

Also Veronika and the other two girls in that class, Miša and Hana, like to run down the hallway screaming, "ARIANA IS A PRINCESS!!!" 

I am really loving these kids. As many times as I have to tell them to sit and yell, "Quiet!" to get their attention, it makes me happy to see them. 

Ariana Hakim: Writer. Goofball. Giggle Monster. Teacher. Princess. I like it.

Extremities? What extremities?

We spent all day in Praha.

Outside.

At the Christmas markets.

It is -12 Celsius outside and it wasn't much warmer during the day.

We kept ducking in to places to get warm.

Excuse me while I hibernate for a few weeks to remember what having toes feels like.

On and Off Switches With Faulty Wiring.

Last week was crappy. This week: awesome. All my kids are doing their work and are being nice to each other (except one troublemaker whose parents I will have to have my directors call but one out of one hundred or so is not bad). I am having all my older classes do a little Christmas tree competition where if they say a full sentence (revolving around what we're studying at the moment) their teams get to decorate an ornament and put it on the tree. Whoever has the most ornaments wins.

For my Uprková classes I'm doing a slightly longer project so I won't post the pictures now but here is my Wednesday conversation class at JG. I'm not supposed to have favorites but they're my most advanced and mature group so I really like talking to them.

And just for funsies here is the carrot that my second grader, Ondrej, drew. I think it's quite good. 

Teaching Newsflash:

I've been called "mom" three times.

I say let their imaginations run wild.

Tereza (appx. 6 years old): *I am carrying her down the stairs because she twisted her ankle earlier in the day* Are you a princess?

Well Tereza, to that I say, reality be damned.

Weird. I'm Usually On Time to These Types of Things.

So we had a post-Thanksgiving Thanksgiving dinner this weekend. Kristy and I went to this little village outside of Hradec where Tim, Helena, and Dušan live. A few of their friends came over and brought some yummy tasty sugary bits of delicious. We had a lovely dinner of chicken and goat and so many other things I thought I would surely die from the sheer weight of food. Things got a little weird after dinner though. I won't go into the details because I think they're a little personal but both Kristy and I both went to bed kind of thinking, "Eeeeeeee...what?"Parents, guardians, don't worry our safety was not compromised.

In the morning we had breakfast and I played hide and seek with Tim and Helena's daughter, Sherry/Sherri/Shirri (?). Non-American pancakes were made. I was so excited when they said pancakes only to find out that their pancakes are pretty much crepes. UPSETTING. And no maple syrup. I was grateful for the food and hospitality and could appreciate the twenty or so guinea fowls, chickens, and stray kitten roaming the grounds. On top of that it was snowing in the morning. How perfect? I'm just reminiscing about winters in New England.

Then we went to Dušan's house and watched movies for a few hours. His house is still in progress but homyguh is it beautiful on the inside. I was surprised. More bonus points: 1) old books 2) old book smell 3) fireplace. I think if I had just his kitchen and living room I would be set for life. I need no other addition to the house. Except maybe a finished bathroom.

Productivity is somewhere in my name.

Not.
Playing peek-a-boo with random little kids is in my name.

Feelings of elation.

I can't express how happy I am that I made this move in my life. It's a big change and I'm still getting used to it but I really think was the right path for me. I much prefer an afternoon where I can go to a cafe in the old town that only plays Sinatra, Edith Piaf, and Jacques Brel for tea and plan my lessons and play with the owner's 3-year old son.

When I still lived in Boston, I would go home at around 2 p.m. and sleep until dinner time. I was so bored and unmotivated. This is such a breath of fresh air. It's challenging and fun. I am becoming more comfortable going out and doing things even though I don't speak the language.

I feel calm and at peace yet at the same time excited and ready to explore. As sad as I am that my family and friends are still back in the U.S. and I can't see them at any given time, I am happy here.

Teacher's Pets.

I know I'm not supposed to have favorite students but some kids are just more well-behaved than others.

After class of six 7-year old boys who I find hilarious but touch nerves often:

Marek: I'm sorry, Ari. I don't know what these guys problem is.

Sometimes it's nice just to hear things like that from a 7-year old.

Austria is indeed very different from Australia.

Austria was this past weekend. The night before we left the power went out at our flat. We called our program directors about it since they handle the communication with the landlord and the fuse box is inside the school which we don't have keys to and they said they would take care out it. Phone calls were made but no one wanted to travel into the city on a weekend to turn the power back on so all of our food spoiled.

Aside from that Austria was awesome. It was so beautiful. We went to this old church right outside the town of Steyr. The have this old mechanical nativity scene that took 40 years to complete. It wasn't exactly the highlight of my trip for obvious reasons but I can appreciate the hard work it took to make everything. Then we went into town and explored. It was a lot colder than I expected so it's a good thing I like layering up.

We ended up going to this little mountain town where they have this festival about the Krampus who is a monster/demon thing that accompanies Santa Claus on Christmas and punishes bad children. There was a big parade where people dressed up as these monsters and (jokingly) tried to take people from the crowd. It was...interesting.

We were starving after the parade so we found a restaurant to get dinner that was supposed to be like a Tex/Mex grill place and I wanted to nachos con carne but what came from the kitchen was not what I was expecting. First I think the waiter misunderstood me and thought I was just ordering spicy nachos with no meat but the "salsa" they used I'm pretty sure was something equivalent to the sweet & sour sauce you get with Chinese food back in the U.S. It was weird. I still ate it because I was hungry and had a few bites of the turkey dish that Daniel got.

We all went back to the bus and headed to this little mountain town outside of Salzburg. I forget the name of the town but it was so cute and quiet. Daniel, Kristy, and I got up very early to explore the town before breakfast. We had a large breakfast of sweet breads and cereal and coffee (yum (: ) and then headed to Salzburg. We hiked up to the fortress (very steep and long walk) and saw old weaponry and royal chambers and torture devices. Then we went down and perused the Christmas market which was huge. I spent most of my euros on food (I don't have much use for Christmas ornaments and trinkets) but I did buy a little owl figurine to add to my little collection of owls from around the world. And I don't mind spending money on food because it's necessary to my health and rich hot chocolate and bread pudding with apples and nuts and plum sauce and pretzels as big as my head are just so tasty.


I really like Austria. It was cute and people were very nice but I don't think I could live there long term. The lack of meat that isn't pork is too much to handle.

You can see my lovely photography here.

I have twenty kids.

Lolz. 

Teacher jokes. 

I'm sorry.

Field Trips.

My first sixth grade class was on a field trip to the zoo today so Marketa and I went on a field trip of our own. What a sweet class. :)

Devious Teacher.

Upon winning a game of "Whose Class Is It Anyway?" (a game where students must use words of sequential order and in a full sentence), my male sixth grade students start singing and dancing Gangnam style. 

LITTLE DO THEY KNOW THEY WERE LEARNING THE ENTIRE TIME HAHAHHAHAH.

Teachers will scheme.

Language Barriers.

Me: Okay who remembers one of the words we learned last week?
Student: Vay-Mat.
Me: Huh?
Student: Vay-May
Me: One more time?
Student: VAY-MAT. VAY-MAT.
Me: *confused*
Student: *confused* Vay-mat?
Me: VOMIT! Yes, vomit.
Student: Yes.

I spoke too soon.

I told everyone the cold was probably nothing so of course I wake up with a fever. I think if I have another cup of tea I'll drown on dry land. At least I came here somewhat prepared with a stash of Tylenol and a thermometer. So here's to thinking ahead but also minus several points for neglecting to bring hand sanitizer and not washing my hands after wiping boogies off little Hounzaa's nose.

Downside to Teaching Kids.

Disease spreads quickly.

I woke up with a sore throat and felt very disoriented. After several cups of tea, some spoonfuls of honey, and a walk to TESCOs in a failed effort to find cold medicine, I'm feeling a little better.

My program director said she would go to the chemist after she drives me to class to retrieve some medicine for me.

I wasn't that bad when I was 5, was I?

I helped out with the once a month Saturday English daycare that my program directors provide and oh man am I beat. I love the little kids, they're so much fun but they take so much out of you. We spent three hours playing games and coloring and taking snack breaks and trying to shake off some very excited and happy five year olds that were clinging to my arms and hands and legs. It was funny and they were adorable but it makes it hard when I can't understand them and they get so frustrated that I don't respond that they cry. Luckily that's when Marketa took over. It's just so difficult with the little kids because they don't understand that I don't speak their language.

There was this adorable little boy with really chubby cheeks, blonde hair, and bright blue eyes and he looked terrified of everyone and everything for about 2/3 of the time. I really tried to encourage him to act like trains and airplanes and ships like the rest of the kids but he just wanted to hold my hand. It was precious. Finally by the last hour he loosened up and was running around and giggling and screaming like the rest of them.

I am not sure if I'll do it again because when I got home around noon I was so exhausted I went back to bed. We'll see.

Some kids.

Some kids are quiet.
Some kids are lazy.
Some kids are loud.
Some kids are crazy.

And some kids just like to take their shirts off in the middle of class.

Languages rule.

So I'm learning more about British English versus American English. I was reading through several of my students' tests and noticed so many of them used the term "maths" instead of math. I was so confused and thought it was wrong. Then I looked at one of their textbooks and it said "maths" not "math". I looked it up and "maths" is the British short form of mathematics. We Americans just shortened even more to "math". Isn't language weird and awesome?

I feel like the Bill Nye of the English language sometimes.

STATE SCHOOLS.

So they're a noisy bunch of kids but alright. I gave the fifth and sixth graders and assessment today just to see where the previous teacher left off. I had the students write five or six sentences about various topics. The sixth graders had to write about their family. One girl wrote, "Is it your grandpa? No, it isn't. My grandpa is dead." I know it's sad but when I read that I burst out laughing. The girl is so unintentionally morbid. Very smart but morbid. Another girl thought I didn't like her because I stopped her a little early. I tried to explain to her that her sentences were perfect and she got a 1 (highest grade). I had to ask the Czech teacher to explain to her that it was really really good.

The fifth graders were tougher. I wanted to keep them all occupied but it's hard keeping them all focused. One girl who is very shy and had to coax her to talk a little more. She ended up drawing a picture of me (a very pretty one, too) and wrote "I like Ariana" on the side. Awwwwwwww haha.

My afternoon third graders were so jumpy. There were three girls and one boy. The boy, Mathias, was so shy and so I know he'll need a lot more encouragement. All three girls wouldn't stop hugging me. I was talking to Daniel (another American teacher here) and he said it's probably because they're happy they have a teacher who is friendly and smiling compared to their previous English teacher. I'm just happy their excited about English.

The swing of things.

I'm getting there. I had my first day of classes. It wasn't so bad. Some of the kids are super excited about learning English and some need a lot more encouragement. Tomorrow is the real test, I am teaching three classes at a public school (ahhhhhhh). I am hoping it won't be too bad. Fingers crossed. Knock on wood. Lady luck please be on my side.

In the meantime here is a screenshot of where I live:

See that building smack-dab in the middle? That's the elementary school and the entrance to my apartment is right at the back of it. Sooooo yes, I do live in a janitor's flat but hey, it's warm, I have a bed, a shower, and a kitchen, no complaints here. The street is called Škroupova. The language here has so many sh, zh, ch, and v sounds, I love it.

I met another American teacher here. His name is Brian. I observed his state school classes this morning. Oh man, were those kids naughty. I feel bad for the guy. This is why I am a little nervous for tomorrow. The other teacher, Daniel, is leaving at the end of November because his father is ill and so he's going back to the U.S. to take care of him. It sucks but family is family. I am trying to meet more Czechs but it's a little hard with the language barrier. I am trying to plan a trip to Dresden, Germany with some of the other teachers. Apparently the Christmas markets can't be beat and while I don't celebrate Christmas, it would be nice to go and maybe get some gifts for people back home. The only problem is shipping them. Quite honestly, I am terrified of stepping into a Czech post office where I am sure they don't speak English. 

Impatient American.

I went out to lunch with Kristy and Michaela. I burned the roof of my mouth on fried turkey breast with banana and honey. I was just too intrigued to try it. Let that be a lesson to me. Not such a happy first St. Martin's Day for this gal.

Getting Started.

I am starting training today! It's just an overview of the method, games, and techniques. Right now I am waiting for Michaela from HQ in Prague. She's supposed to be meeting me here, I guess. I went out to dinner last night with Kristy and another American teacher, Daniel, and hearing about their experiences makes me a little nervous. I hope it's not so bad. I know kids are a handful but I don't think they're all terrors. I really hope to make this a fun year. I have a lot of energy and am goofy enough that I think kids will appreciate it. Although right now, I am wishing I was still asleep.

(Came across this last night. I have no clue.)

First Full Day in Czech Republic

I arrived in Hradec Kralove last night around 5pm. A gentleman on the train was nice enough and spoke a decent amount of English to help me out with the train stops and helped me get my suitcases off the train. However, after that I was on my own and had to lug both suitcases up the stairs. At least I worked out my arms a little :). One of my program directors, Marketa was already waiting for me with her son (adorable, I asked him to be the guard for my purse while Marketa and I put my suitcases into her car. He was happy to oblige.) Marketa drove me to my flat (I think it's actually supposed to be a janitor's flat since it's attached to an elementary school). It's bigger than I had imagined but it's only a one bedroom flat so my bed is in the living room. I don't care so much, as long as I have a warm place to sleep, I am okay with anything.) Something I found to be strange is that there is a separate room entirely for the toilet and the shower and sink are in a separate part of the flat. Not exactly so common in the US but hey it's not a squat toilet haha). 

After getting a little settled, Kristy (roommate and another teacher) and I went out to dinner with an older American gentleman. I guess he's kind of the American to know in the city since he's lived here for four years. He's incredibly nice, his name is Ralph. We also met a guy from California (Brett/Britt, I'm not sure exactly), a guy from England (Tim) and his wife (Helena, Czech), and Dušan, a funny Czech dude who works at the university here. 

Because I have a weird sense of energy all the time, of course I still woke up early on Saturday (8am) but forced myself to sleep a little more since I was traveling for quite some time. Around noon, Kristy and I went on a litte tour of the city. It's so pretty here and there are tons of shops and cute cafes. I am not used to the smoking inside the buildings which I'm not super happy about since my clothes end up reeking of smoke but there's a lot I have to get used to. I am still figuring out the money but Kristy and I got breakfast at a cafe and it came to about 118ck which is somewhere around $5 for everything. Kristy told me whatever it is in crowns, divide it in half and move a decimal point up. That works for me.

 Later we went grocery shopping so I could get some essentials. We were looking for pasta when I found this:

AND INDO MIE!!! I was so happy and was laughing so much that I turned beet red. 

Also they really love candy and chocolate here. This is something I'm okay with.