Job Discussion Forums

[Josef K]

Korea (finished my 3rd contract - left and in China)

Loves:
Job: co-workers, work conditions, pay, students
Food: spicy chicken, pork, cheap food, cheap alcohol
Internet: fast, pretty reliable
Transport: clean, reliable, convenient

Likes:
People: girls in their summer clothes, friendly strangers, some cool expats
Cities: modern, convenient, easy to be anonymous

Loathes:
People: obnoxious drunks, ethno-centric oldies, no sense of space, expats that give everyone a bad name, rude, ignorant people that have never travelled but tell you how 'great' korea is compared to ...
Apartments: either small and modern or big and old but noisy all the same
Towns: dirty, garbage strewn, smelly, sewer smells that make Bangkok blush, culturally boring
Food: peasant food that's is made a virtue of
Students: lazy, stupid students that wont study in public school and then make their parents outlay a fortune to attend a private language institution

Feel better now!

[steki47]

[gloomyGumi]

how about people lookıng shocked to see other people suddenly? lıke roundıng a corner. face to face and--!!! OH MY GOD!!! ANOTHER HUMAN BEING!!! and then they cover theır mouths wıth thıs phony shamed and overwhelmed look, sometımes gıgglıng to theır frıend ıf they are wıth someone. THIS ALWAYS MADE ME WANT TO COMMIT AN ASSAULT.

[steki47]

[gloomyGumi]

[steki47]

[gloomyGumi]

[Trebek]

Yeah, the lack of spacial awareness among Asians never ceases to amaze me. Whether it's two girls jaywalking across a busy street and not noticing their impending deaths, the sudden stop on a crowded sidewalk, I have even seen one or two walk right into a wall.


The cueing is even crazier but when in China...... I can yank 4 out of my way with one hand in order to get a seat on the bus! I just join in and act like them. I will stick my foot out and trip any cue jumper. I will plow through a crowd and get on that elevator whether I am first or last. I won't behave this way if people are waiting their turn but if the crowd is unruly..... I act polite and gracious the entire time I do it.

[contented]

[timothypfox]

I have taught ESL in Montreal, New York City, and in Japan. So here are my thoughts:

Montreal
Likes
- fun city with great coffee shops and night life
- attractive women and men
- people are down to earth and you can strike up a conversation easily at coffee shops and such
- nice festivals
- relatively low crime rate

Dislikes
- bosses at language school are often French-Canadian Quebeker nationalists who dislike native English speakers (deep down)
- many people are rude when you make a reasonable effort to speak French
- finding an apartment is literally a race - people will race over in their car as soon as a place is listed
- winter bitterly cold
- ESL market is glutted so expect hourly pay part time jobs at language schools
- for more qualified it will be adjunct city at colleges or universities
- homeless people trail along after you giving you a long explanation why they need money

New York City
Likes
- a lot of cultures
- exciting places to go and things to do
- so many places to study at college
- lots of jobs because of lots of immigrants
- if you work at a public school - the pay and benefits are good
- it is not that hard to get ESL work at a language school or at a tutoring school
- a great variety of food

Dislikes
- the subways are dirty with homeless people asking for money, and annoying children selling chocolate supposedly for their school basketball teams
- a glaring mix of incredible wealth and grinding poverty
- desirable housing is expensive
- affordable housing is farther out and in less desirable neighborhoods
- there are many places you would not like to live
- new yorkers can be rude if you don't follow an aggressive high speed rhythm - this includes ordering a coffee or asking for directions
- if you work at a public school - the politics is a pressure pot pitting unions and teachers against school administrators, there's way too much pressure for teachers to revise and improve their teaching methods with limited resources
- if you work at an ESL school - pay is by the hour and you may have to work at a couple of schools to make ends meet.
- some people can be provincial and think there is no world outside outside of their neighborhood or NYC
- still a lot of fear about terrorism - getting in and out of buildings is irritating
- people smoke on sidewalks

Japan
Likes
- the food is good and supermarkets are clean looking
- when something messes up in service (ie at a restaurant) you usually get super-polite apologies
- some people are excited to meet you and learn about life abroad
- people are gentle and patient
- women are attractive
- if you can get work at a private school - the pay is decent and work is easy
- teachers are still quite respected compared to North America - students still look up to their teachers
- great videostores and anime
- department stores are great for clothes shopping
- bookstores are fun even if you can't read - magazines include great free gifts
- excellent convenience stores reminiscent of the hayday when 7-11 first started in the US - they are still excellent here and have amazing chocolate and freshly prepared foods

Dislikes
- people always ask you the same odd questions (how tall are you? how old are you? can you eat japanese food etc)
- people tend to be shy so you really have to put yourself out there and make the first move to talk to people
- school children walk up and start trying to speak English to you when you want quiet time
- choices for recreation (classes etc) are more limited than in North America (although things like yoga or dance are increasingly becoming available)
- society is too work centered and school centered - families hand out children to schools to do half the job of raising them, work is considered more important than family - vacation time is limited
- family get-togethers tend to be morosely obligation events to wash graves for relatives who died years ago, or go yet another memorial service at a temple for the same person
- difficult to learn the language because people are always expecting to speak with you in English
- it's hard to make close friends because many working people are available only once a month because of work

[timothypfox]

I have taught ESL in Montreal, New York City, and in Japan. So here are my thoughts:

Montreal
Likes
- fun city with great coffee shops and night life
- attractive women and men
- people are down to earth and you can strike up a conversation easily at coffee shops and such
- nice festivals
- relatively low crime rate

Dislikes
- bosses at language school are often French-Canadian Quebeker nationalists who dislike native English speakers (deep down)
- many people are rude when you make a reasonable effort to speak French
- finding an apartment is literally a race - people will race over in their car as soon as a place is listed
- winter bitterly cold
- ESL market is glutted so expect hourly pay part time jobs at language schools
- for more qualified it will be adjunct city at colleges or universities
- homeless people trail along after you giving you a long explanation why they need money

New York City
Likes
- a lot of cultures
- exciting places to go and things to do
- so many places to study at college
- lots of jobs because of lots of immigrants
- if you work at a public school - the pay and benefits are good
- it is not that hard to get ESL work at a language school or at a tutoring school
- a great variety of food

Dislikes
- the subways are dirty with homeless people asking for money, and annoying children selling chocolate supposedly for their school basketball teams
- a glaring mix of incredible wealth and grinding poverty
- desirable housing is expensive
- affordable housing is farther out and in less desirable neighborhoods
- there are many places you would not like to live
- new yorkers can be rude if you don't follow an aggressive high speed rhythm - this includes ordering a coffee or asking for directions
- if you work at a public school - the politics is a pressure pot pitting unions and teachers against school administrators, there's way too much pressure for teachers to revise and improve their teaching methods with limited resources
- if you work at an ESL school - pay is by the hour and you may have to work at a couple of schools to make ends meet.
- some people can be provincial and think there is no world outside outside of their neighborhood or NYC
- still a lot of fear about terrorism - getting in and out of buildings is irritating
- people smoke on sidewalks

Japan
Likes
- the food is good and supermarkets are clean looking
- when something messes up in service (ie at a restaurant) you usually get super-polite apologies
- some people are excited to meet you and learn about life abroad
- people are gentle and patient
- women are attractive
- if you can get work at a private school - the pay is decent and work is easy
- teachers are still quite respected compared to North America - students still look up to their teachers
- great videostores and anime
- department stores are great for clothes shopping
- bookstores are fun even if you can't read - magazines include great free gifts
- excellent convenience stores reminiscent of the hayday when 7-11 first started in the US - they are still excellent here and have amazing chocolate and freshly prepared foods

Dislikes
- people always ask you the same odd questions (how tall are you? how old are you? can you eat japanese food etc)
- people tend to be shy so you really have to put yourself out there and make the first move to talk to people
- school children walk up and start trying to speak English to you when you want quiet time
- choices for recreation (classes etc) are more limited than in North America (although things like yoga or dance are increasingly becoming available)
- society is too work centered and school centered - families hand out children to schools to do half the job of raising them, work is considered more important than family - vacation time is limited
- family get-togethers tend to be morosely obligation events to wash graves for relatives who died years ago, or go yet another memorial service at a temple for the same person
- difficult to learn the language because people are always expecting to speak with you in English
- it's hard to make close friends because many working people are available only once a month because of work

[timothypfox]

sorry for the double-posting!

[MNguy]