tyler,
i'm very busy these days planning lessons. today was my first experience teaching and i came away with mixed results. first, my lesson was about moral values and family values, mostly geared to get my students speaking to one another. they're upper-intermediate level, which means they understand natural speech but miss a lot of articles and pronunciation and vocab.
they were all very interested in my lesson until one of the korean students started talking about a "hypothetical" situation about telling the teacher when one of her fellow students cheated on an exam. she went on and on, trying to clarify her story, but we were all lost, mostly in her accent. as moderator, i suddenly became confused on how to handle the situation, then i move on to my next discussion. in foresight, it would have been a great time to address new vocab, but, as it was my first class, i failed on the opportunity.
so i ended my lesson thinking i royally screwed up and lost track of my goals. however, the instructor reviewing me said i did a great job being patient, not losing the respect of my students. he said i achieved my first lesson goal -- getting the students talking -- which was all that was expected of me on my first day.
tomorrow my lesson involves a hand out where i discuss death, dying, and killing, and associated vocabulary. then i'll cover a matching execise where the student try to match famous people who died with their last words. it should make for a very chipper class, don't you think? not really. anyway, we'll see how it goes. i'm starting to pick up a lot of useful skills. the most important thing to remember that teaching is entirely different than regular communication, and much of the interactions are very simple and deliberate, without any eloboration or courtesy. it's very strange, but i'm getting the hang of it.
as far as prague, i doubt i'll ever leave. honestly: i feel truly happy for the first time in my life. before now, it felt i was living for other people and being forced to do things i didn't want to do (which i was). i was always somewhere i didn't want to be around people i didn't want to see. now, i'm in one of the most beautiful, hospitable places in the world and feel almost constant joy for life. you, being in your ideal spot, probably have an idea of what i'm talking about. so, i'm probably never leaving here, and, after speaking to some instructors at the school, i think they're interested in hiring my there after i graduate. either way, and unlike america, employment will be a certainty.
i hope all is well. let me know how your schooling is going. i'm just too busy to help these days.
a-dios,
keith
Wednesday, April 25, 2012
Sunday, April 22, 2012
Prague, CR. April 22 2012 -- Letter to Mom
dear ma,
i walked around for about 5 hours today. i began hiking west up a
hill to a park within the mala strana district, an old german
settlment along the vlatava's western bank. i winded up this hill to
breathtaking views overlooking the city, and continued along the ridge
to an old buddhist monastery surrounded by jazz clubs.
then i reached the neighborhoods surrounding the prague castle, the
biggest castle in the world. i walked the winding streets to open
courtyards filled with impeccably kept, functioning stone buildings
and tourists and accordian music, then i was at the south wall of the
prague castle.
the main catherdral was surrounded by other tall, regal buildings with
spires, but within the cathedral i was simply blown away by its
massive hall. the ceilings were higher than i could imagine and
colored stained glass shone long, colorful streaks across the floor.
the hall echoed with the voices of excited tourists and i stopped for
a few minutes to hear a tour guide covering the historical
significance. it was the most spectacular place i've ever been.
i exited and headed back down to the river and the charles bridge,
walking past street venders and artists and tourists and emigrants,
like me, trying to find themselves. once i reached the river, i
needed only to turn right and walk shoreside back to my flat.
overall, it was one of the best days i've ever spent, and now, rather than be
anxious and overwhelmed, i'm mostly just excited. this is one of the
most beautiful places in the world, and i don't know when i'll ever
leave. the people are friendly, jobs are available everywhere, and
the beer and food and culture are boundless.
matt, my classmate from seattle, is here now. we went with christopher, 29,
a student still here from last month, to eat chinese food ($3.45 for a plate of
sweet and sour chicken and rice) and then to the mall for an outlet converter
for matt. i think we'll try to get a beer later tonight, before we begin school
tomorrow.
talk to you later,
keith
i walked around for about 5 hours today. i began hiking west up a
hill to a park within the mala strana district, an old german
settlment along the vlatava's western bank. i winded up this hill to
breathtaking views overlooking the city, and continued along the ridge
to an old buddhist monastery surrounded by jazz clubs.
then i reached the neighborhoods surrounding the prague castle, the
biggest castle in the world. i walked the winding streets to open
courtyards filled with impeccably kept, functioning stone buildings
and tourists and accordian music, then i was at the south wall of the
prague castle.
the main catherdral was surrounded by other tall, regal buildings with
spires, but within the cathedral i was simply blown away by its
massive hall. the ceilings were higher than i could imagine and
colored stained glass shone long, colorful streaks across the floor.
the hall echoed with the voices of excited tourists and i stopped for
a few minutes to hear a tour guide covering the historical
significance. it was the most spectacular place i've ever been.
i exited and headed back down to the river and the charles bridge,
walking past street venders and artists and tourists and emigrants,
like me, trying to find themselves. once i reached the river, i
needed only to turn right and walk shoreside back to my flat.
overall, it was one of the best days i've ever spent, and now, rather than be
anxious and overwhelmed, i'm mostly just excited. this is one of the
most beautiful places in the world, and i don't know when i'll ever
leave. the people are friendly, jobs are available everywhere, and
the beer and food and culture are boundless.
matt, my classmate from seattle, is here now. we went with christopher, 29,
a student still here from last month, to eat chinese food ($3.45 for a plate of
sweet and sour chicken and rice) and then to the mall for an outlet converter
for matt. i think we'll try to get a beer later tonight, before we begin school
tomorrow.
talk to you later,
keith
Saturday, April 21, 2012
Prague, CR. April 21 2012 -- Letter to Nick and Liz
yo bros,
it's 2:45 a.m. prague time and i can't sleep, probably due to my intense body ache from travel and the fact that they gave me only a thick, hot comforter to sleep with. i have a large room to myself, but the outlets are in odd places, the floors really creak bad, and the overhead light barely lights up the room. though i guess it'll work for a month.
matt (the dude you met) flies in tomorrow (today) afternoon, but there's already a guy staying in the flat, chris, 29, an american from california. he graduated from the course last month, but, due to available space, he decided to do another month in the school's cheap housing. after meeting him, he told me that his principle reasons for choosing prague were that marijuana and online gambling are legal. i think he will try to make a living playing poker online, rather than teach.
chris and a young british guy, oliver, who works for the school, helped me settle in. they told me that the course was very challenging, and that last month a girl ran out of the room crying in embarrassment. however, i still feel pretty confident because chris told me that he didn't do ANY of the required pre-course task, and got away with it. just didn't feel like doing it, he said.
but oliver, the british guy, went on to tell me that after the course is finished, teaching is very easy. he said he has 3 part-time jobs and likes it more than anything he's ever done.
yesterday, after chris' gambling tournaments were finished, he took me out for a couple hours around the city. we walked to the school, then visited the different downtown districts of the city, where the streets were completely filled with tourists (my driver from the airport explained that most prague natives have a cottage in the country where they go for the weekends, which means the only people in the city on weekends are annoying tourists and people like me). overall, the city exceeded all my expectations. it's absolutely amazing here.
skype works good here, but neither netflix or hulu are available. i hope i don't have a lot of free time.
anyway, i'm sure the house seems very empty without me, but i hope you two will manage to live on. i should be pretty busy this whole week, but i'll try to keep you up to date on my happenings. i can't wait to see you guys in october.
take care,
keith
it's 2:45 a.m. prague time and i can't sleep, probably due to my intense body ache from travel and the fact that they gave me only a thick, hot comforter to sleep with. i have a large room to myself, but the outlets are in odd places, the floors really creak bad, and the overhead light barely lights up the room. though i guess it'll work for a month.
matt (the dude you met) flies in tomorrow (today) afternoon, but there's already a guy staying in the flat, chris, 29, an american from california. he graduated from the course last month, but, due to available space, he decided to do another month in the school's cheap housing. after meeting him, he told me that his principle reasons for choosing prague were that marijuana and online gambling are legal. i think he will try to make a living playing poker online, rather than teach.
chris and a young british guy, oliver, who works for the school, helped me settle in. they told me that the course was very challenging, and that last month a girl ran out of the room crying in embarrassment. however, i still feel pretty confident because chris told me that he didn't do ANY of the required pre-course task, and got away with it. just didn't feel like doing it, he said.
but oliver, the british guy, went on to tell me that after the course is finished, teaching is very easy. he said he has 3 part-time jobs and likes it more than anything he's ever done.
yesterday, after chris' gambling tournaments were finished, he took me out for a couple hours around the city. we walked to the school, then visited the different downtown districts of the city, where the streets were completely filled with tourists (my driver from the airport explained that most prague natives have a cottage in the country where they go for the weekends, which means the only people in the city on weekends are annoying tourists and people like me). overall, the city exceeded all my expectations. it's absolutely amazing here.
skype works good here, but neither netflix or hulu are available. i hope i don't have a lot of free time.
anyway, i'm sure the house seems very empty without me, but i hope you two will manage to live on. i should be pretty busy this whole week, but i'll try to keep you up to date on my happenings. i can't wait to see you guys in october.
take care,
keith
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