End of week one

Monday at last! Everyone warned us that week 1 was the hardest week you will do at MAE so it is good to now have our "weekend" to enjoy. It was a challenge, no denying, but I think we faired better than some of the other new recruits. We kept bumping into them at the hotel buffet breakfast or dinner on the nearby streets and there were many stories of traumatized young students (and teachers) or older students that refused to interact for the whole 2 hours. My worst class was a room full of 4 yr olds with a number of distressed students and others sitting with their hands over their ears because they couldn't cope with all the noise and I'm supposed to be dispensing library books and collating book tickets, marking work and sending it home with students, recording which language skills we have covered on ever more bits of paper, making sure students are enjoying themselves and want to come back next week....... but all I wanted to do was put my hands over my ears too! With the help of another staff member we got through the first 15 mins and then things settled into some form of order.
The other staff at the branch are all very helpful and good fun. There are 5 other Aust or NZ teachers and 2 local staff at the front reception. It is great to have so much experience to call on. They also seem a pretty social bunch, our branch set the bar by arranging drinks for all the branches at the end of week 1. It actually wasn't a good roll up but our branch was well represented.
Our workplace is on the fourth floor of the shopping centre at Kovan. To access it you must take a lift from the ground floor right beside the durian stall. If you have never experienced the smell of durian then you may not appreciate this, but all week the durians seemed to be getting riper and the smell stronger. But then on Sunday I didn't smell them at all. Is this because I am acclimatising or was I just so dog tired I didn't notice?

So today is Monday, the first day of our weekend. We went for a morning walk around Fort Canning Park again and along the river then this afternoon we went to see the American version of "The Girl with the Dragon Tatoo". Loved it but the theatre was freezing! We had been warned that they have the temp way down in the theatres but even with a cardigan I was freezing. Wished I had worn socks and a beanie. It certainly put us in the context of the north of Sweden. We headed straight to Zam Zam then (right by the Golden Landmark)for the best murtabak in Singapore and were not disappointed. We both agree we love this Arab St area of Singapore with the trees, old style buildings and colorful traders.

Tonight we are signing the final papers for the lease on our apartment and handing over the balance of down-payment. We have already paid one month's rent as a holding deposit. Now we need to pay the equivalent of another 2 months rent for a bond and a further month's rent plus 7% as the agent's fee. It puts quite a dent in the bank balance when we are paying S$700 a week! And ours is considered quite a bargain. We get paid at the end of the month so some way off yet. We have to vacate the hotel on Wednesday, will be moving in with Peter who interviewed us for the jobs until our apartment is available the following Monday. Can't wait! It will be so nice not to be shuffling around in suitcases for clothes though we should sound more grateful for these 2 weeks, being put up in a very comfortable and well located hotel. The other good thing was being together with all the other new recruits and sharing experiences - good and bad. As of this week we will all be moving off to new addresses.

Foyer is Peninsula Excelsior Hotel