Break Fast

I met the other English teachers who will be teaching at my school today. We had to go for a health check, a requirement for all foreigners who want to work in China. We were told to be there at 7:30 am which meant getting up at 5:30 am. We were also told not to eat or drink anything until the health check was over.

We arrived at the hospital, joined the long queue of other foreigners and eventually got to the front to be given a form with about 7 different room numbers on. We had to go round the hospital and, in scenes reminiscent of the Crystal Maze, enter each room and do the challenge. You never knew what you were going to find; an ECG, an x-ray or maybe just a bloke ordering you to stand behind a line as he pointed a stick at a line of Es, Ms and Ws in decreasing size until you could read no further.

By 10:30 we finally left and were all really hungry and thirsty so went for an early morning banquet in a restaurant which consisted of 6 different types of dumplings and a dish known as 100 year old egg. This is a boiled egg that has been preserved in clay and quick lime giving it a black colour. It sounds horrific but was actually really good.

This photo is from the meal. They seem a nice bunch. Only one has actually taught English before. I am the oldest!