Joma

I'm just sitting here at Joma Bakery and Cafe, it's a really nice environment as it feels like I could be anywhere in the world. Sometimes you need that to then appreciate walking out into the world you live in now. I have an essay that is due on Monday, so I'm sitting her listening to people chatting, and writing about how the way people use English is changed and affected by the technology available to them. I have mostly written about the alphabet and the printing press. Earlier, there were some other EFL teachers at the sofa near my table, and one girl was just talking and talking but not actually saying anything. From what she was saying it seems that she hasn't really seen anything here. Not really opened her eyes. I'm not judging, because I wouldn't want to be, but I do feel that I have learned more in 7 weeks than many of the other people I meet and see who have been here for much longer. It's all drinking, partying, and general lazing, which I just can't buy into. It's not me. We had our first English Club at the Note coffee on Monday night. it went really well, and we had 20 people there! I think they all enjoyed it. We did speed 'friending' with lots of introductions and goodbyes phrasing for them to learn and practise. Everyone seemed quite surprised that we were willing to do it, and were really appreciative. So we will continue that while we are here! As an update: Hugo is working at Language Link, partly at the English centre and partly in a local secondary school which he loves. I am working with a mix between all ages, different classes, and mostly in the evenings. I am enjoying it. We are trying to get into a routine, timetable, but its quite difficult as we are working slightly opposite schedules. We are also quite homesick, it goes up and down. I suppose sometimes in life you have to be so far from home to understand just how much you appreciate it.